Jason Resurrected
Many Friday the 13th fans list Part VI: Jason Lives as their favorite entry in the franchise. I am not one of those people. It’s not a slog to get through like Jason Takes Manhattan or first-class garbage like Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday, but it doesn’t rise to same heights of the previous films.
It’s a watered down film. The final girl is useless when it matters most. The characters surrounding her are basic. And figuratively speaking, Jason is a zombie.
As always, let’s take a look at what Jason Lives does well before examining the low points.
High Points of Jason Lives
Premise
The premise is straightforward. Tommy Jarvis digs up Jason’s grave to make sure he’s really dead. He stabs him multiple times with a metal rod just to be sure. Then lightning strikes the rod while its inside Jason, accidentally resurrecting him. Frankenstein Voorhees returns to Crystal Lake to do what he does best: kill people. Of course, Tommy tries to stop him.
Tommy Jarvis & Sheriff Mike Garris
In Jason Lives, Tommy has mostly moved past his psychological setbacks in Part V. Now, he’s headstrong, determined to prove his archnemesis is alive and killing again. Sheriff Garris is a tough cop and a stern father. He thinks Tommy is committing the murders himself.
Naturally, Tommy and Garris just don’t like each other. Their hatred of one another is the most entertaining part of this story. It feels like a rivalry out of an 80s action movie à la Roadhouse, Bloodsport, or something Walter Hill or another western fanatic cooked up. They give us a couple car chases and a foot race through a cemetery. Garris and his partner draw their guns a few times too.
Ring of Fire
The third act battle isn’t necessarily a work of high art, but it’s aesthetically pleasing. Tommy leads Jason into the middle of Crystal Lake, where he’s waiting inside a canoe with a chain and weights to drown him. The canoe is surrounded by a ring of fire. The contrast between the pitch black water and the gold flames is eye-candy for me.
Low Points of Jason Lives
Not Scary
There is nothing ominous or frightening about this movie. It’s very light. As far as I’m concerned, Jason Lives is a PG, Disney channel version of a Friday the 13th film. There’s barely any blood. There’s a few corny jokes and segments. For example, there’s a “comedic” scene where a bunch of random characters are playing paintball in the woods. It’s supposed to be funny, but it’s silly. The characters come off as a bit too childish and cartoonish for their age.
This incarnation of Jason isn’t a standout either. He just walks around, aimlessly and mindlessly. He doesn’t display any of the humanity his character has in Part 2 or 3 and he’s not ruthless like he is in The Final Chapter, The New Blood, or the remake.
The film score goes hard though. It’s a dark, pounding, and fierce musical composition.
The Kills
Most of the kills are nothing special. Jason slashes or stabs most of his victims with whatever weapon he has on hand at the moment and he kills one character off-screen.
The best kills are Nikki, Hawes, and Garris. Jason slams Nikki’s head into a van wall so hard, we see the outline of her face on the other side. He rips Hawes’ heart out of his chest and breaks Garris in half with his bare hands.
The Characters
Paula and Sissy are another batch of vanilla characters. There’s nothing unique or dynamic about them, except for their 80s hairstyles. Paula and Sissy are just teenage camp counselors and the final girl’s best friends. All we learn about Sissy is that she likes “boy scouting” and Paula…well I don’t recall learning anything about her at all. There’s nothing memorable about these two.
Then there’s, Cort. Cort is the “cool guy” in the gang. He’s not too bright and he listens to a Walkman and wears jeans ripped at the knees. He represents the MTV, glam metal generation. He may have been considered cutting edge in 1986, but in the 2020s, he’s nothing special.
Several characters also only appear in one scene before they are killed, including Nikki, Cort’s girlfriend. If she’s only in one scene, why the hell should it matter to the audience if Jason takes her out or not? At least, she’s one of the best kills in the movie.
Megan Garris: The Final Girl of Jason Lives
Megan is an underwhelming final girl. As a character she’s fine. She’s outgoing, has a sense of humor, appears to have a good head on her shoulders, and has obviously never had a hard time lighting up a room.
But when its time to battle Jason, she doesn’t deliver. She hangs back in the cabin with the kids. If I’m being honest, she doesn’t have much of a character arc in this movie. Megan spends most of her time lusting after Tommy and arguing with her dad. She’s similar to Jenna in the 2009 remake. Megan is simply Tommy’s sidekick.
During the third act, she does get in the water and turn on the boat so the propeller can slice Jason up. But at this point, Tommy has already chained him to the bottom of the lake. So she’s really just throwing sprinkles on the cupcake.
I will go to my grave believing Pam Roberts should’ve been in this movie instead. She already has an established camaraderie with Tommy so that removes the need for a lot of exposition. Plus, following the events of A New Beginning, Pam would’ve been battle hardened, entering Sidney Prescott territory. Once a final girl reaches that status, there’s no stopping her.
