Friday the 13th, Part VIII - Jason Takes Manhattan
by Rob Hedden
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Actor: Jensen Daggett, Kane Hodder, Tiffany Paulsen, Tim Mirkovich, Todd CaldecottDirector: Rob Hedden
Brand: Paramount
Cinematographer: Bryan England
Writer: Rob Hedden
Editor: Steve Mirkovich
Editor: Ted Pryor
Producer: Barbara Sachs
Producer: Randy Cheveldave
Writer: Victor Miller
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; English (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo; French (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Running Time: 100 minutes
Published: 2002-09-01
DVD Release Date: 2002-09-03
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Paramount
DVD Reviews of Friday the 13th, Part VIII - Jason Takes Manhattan
DVD Review: Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (Three Stars)
Summary: 3 Stars
This review refers to the Paramount DVD edition of the film.
THE WHO'S WHO: Starring Jensen Daggett, Scott Reeves, Barbara Bingham, Peter Mark Richman. Martin Cummins, Gordon Currie, Alex Diakun, V.C. Dupree, Saffron Henderson, Kelly Hu, Sharlene Martin, Warren Munson, Kane Hodder. Score Composed and Performed By Fred Mollin. Written and Directed By Rob Hedden. (R) For Violence, Mild Gore, Profanity, Drug Use, Very Brief Nudity and Mild Sexual Content; 100m.; 1989.
WHAT'S GOING ON IN HERE?: Maniacal hockey-masked murderer Jason Voorhees (Kane Hodder) has butchered so many teenagers that there's not much left for him to do. In wake of his recent rebirth, he's decided to take a vacation aboard the "Lazarus" cruise ship and do some hacking there. Graduating high school students are his latest target and their happy-go-lucky trip to Manhattan turns deadly in a hurry. But once Jason's out of his element, this film promptly disintegrates under its own weight. Writer/director Rob Hedden brings a good first half of a movie to the screen which ultimately turns into a neverending story. Fortunately, a cast of likeable faces makes this film easier to watch, although it's obvious that any real talent departed the "Friday" series after "The New Blood". Jensen Daggett puts a lot of effort into her role as Rennie but Scott Reeves looks a little lost as Sean Robertson. Certainly neither one of them has the presence to carry the film. Barbara Bingham is a nice addition to the cast as teacher Colleen Van Deusen, though she's only there to offer Daggett's character moral support. Peter Mark Richman's gruff arrogance takes the forefront more often than the role deserves leaving the supporting cast to present the strongest display of aptitude. Gordon Currie (as Miles Wolfe) displays none of the talent that would carry him through "Puppet Master 4" four years later. Kelly Hu, on the other hand, offers up a minute sparkle of talent as Eva Watanabe, foreshadowing her success in "The Scorpion King" and "X2: X-Men United" over a decade later. Sadly, all Saffron Henderson can do as J.J. is scream and look cute in a leather jacket. Outside of that, all she does is take up valuable space. Sharlene Martin does an admirable job as Tamara Mason but she doesn't measure up to Susan Jennifer Sullivan's snotty girl portrayal of Melissa in "Friday VII". Martin Cummins shows a bit of promise as Wayne, but the best supporting actor prize goes to V.C. Dupree as boxing star Julius. His character is handed one of the meatier roles and Dupree definitely runs with it. But as amiable as the cast can be, the weight of the script is too much. The opening scenes are wonderful, but once the graduates hit the "Lazarus", the film takes a down swing. Once our heroes hit Manhattan, the pace of the film slows dramatically and seems to wear on and on and on. The false ending after the subway train incident only serves to emphasize that fact. There are one or two genuinely funny spots in this film which break up the monotony, most notably when Jason is confronted by some young street punks after breaking their radio, and more of that humor could have saved this floundering fiasco. But other problems are apparent in this outing as well, most of them revolving around Jason himself. For starters, Kane Hodder tries far too hard to give Jason a personality this time around. But his most successful moments as the mongoloid killer are when he emulates Richard Brooker (note the rooftop fist fight sequence as evidence of that). Another drawback lies in Jason's speed. Although we don't actually see Jason moving at the breakneck pace he appears to, in certain scenes he pops from place to place much too quickly, destroying some of the tension that other "Friday" films built up around his slow moving savagery. Too, Jason's facial make-up is more comical than convincing in this one and his demise is completely foolish, almost to the point of making fun of the fans who've stuck through the series this long. Trivia buffs take note: when the title of the film appears on the screen in the opening credits, it covers a "Batman" symbol billboard at the city intersection. What a wonderful offshoot that would have been...Batman vs. Jason Voorhees...it definitely would have been better than what we're left with. Also, the waitress in the Times Diner is director Rob Hedden's sister Peggy. Finally, keep your eyes on the cook in the Times Diner who gets thrown through a mirror when he attacks Jason. That man is Ken Kirzinger. Why is he such a special side note in the trivia section? Because he would go on to play Jason Voorhees in "Freddy vs. Jason". Overall, like many run-of-the-mill horror movies this one starts off well but crumbles before it reaches its conclusion. True fans of the "Friday" film series will undoubtedly find favorite scenes and enjoyable aspects of the production, but most others would be advised to stick with the original seven.
THEY SAY THEY'RE SPECIAL BUT...: The 1.85:1 widescreen is one of the best "Friday" fans could hope for. It's even, fairly crisp and natural in its appearance. For being a 2.0 stereo sound, this movie has quite a bit of depth and fidelity in its soundtrack. Of course, fans who liked "The New Blood" will be disappointed that Paramount didn't include a 5.1 surround sound. There's also a French stereo track and English subtitles which are yellow, easy to read and are placed within the frame of the film itself. The front cover is a slight change from the original video release and it's a toss up as to which one is better. The original was reddish and stark in its hue and found Jason climbing over a city skyline. This DVD release is more garish in its color choices and features an ominously lit hockey mask rising between two rows of city buildings. The back cover is a swampy mess of color and random photographs while the one sheet insert fares a little better with its neon-back Jason photo and the displaying of the seventeen chapter stops which break up this one hundred minute movie. The disc itself has been painted with a smaller version of the neon-backed photo from the one sheet insert. Special features are extraordinarily limited on this disc. Actually, much like "Friday VII", there are no special features. Not even the theatrical trailer. To reiterate a point I made with my review for "The New Blood", I'm sure there's a trailer for this film out there somewhere, but the indifferent execs at Paramount didn't include it here.
THE YOLK'S ON YOU: Paramount has never been known for plying their releases with additional footage, let alone hiding anything on the disc. You're more likely to reattach your head after Jason punches it off your shoulders than you are of finding hidden easter eggs on this one.
THE LEWD AND NUDE ALERT: In the opening moments of the film, lucky libidinous viewers have the opportunity to see the side of Suzi Donaldson's (Tiffany Paulsen) left breast and are also given a tease with the top of her beautiful buns when Jim Miller (Todd Shaffer) plays with her panties. Tamara Mason (Sharlene Martin) shows off her first class form in black underwear when she tries to seduce Charles McCulloch (Peter Mark Richman) as part of her "biology project". She then showers in the nude but the curtain prevents us from seeing anything worthwhile. We do, however, get ultra brief glimpses of her right breast and stunning backside when she's attacked by Jason (Kane Hodder).
THE GORE REPORT: There's a wee bit of blood during Jason's first killing. One of the guys gets his head knocked off but there's an appalling lack of gore. There are a few other bloody instances in this film, but there's really not much stimulation for gorehounds. If you want the real gore of "Friday the 13th", you'll have to look elsewhere.
SAY AGAIN: "Look, you don't understand. There is a maniac trying to kill us." - Rennie (Jensen Daggett). "Welcome to New York." - Waitress at the Times Diner (Peggy Hedden).
THE FINAL SAY: Yes, I recommend buying this DVD. It's not a "New Blood" or "Jason Lives", hell it's not even a "New Beginning", but it's still not the debacle that "Jason Goes to Hell" or "Jason X" would be when New Line took over the series. Watch it for the first hour, the reason this film earns its three stars...then try to sit through the rest.
PLAY IT AGAIN, SAM: "Darkest Side of the Night" Performed By Peter Fredette. "Say This to Me" Performed By Neo a4. "Tamara's Bio Project" Performed By Rob Hedden and Murray Middleman. "Broken Dream" Performed By Terry Crawford. "Stalker's Rocker" Performed By Steve Linn and Tim Yalda. "Strike" Performed By the Koo.
Description of Friday the 13th, Part VIII - Jason Takes Manhattan
A passing boat bound for new york pulls jason along for the ride. Look out new york here comes hell in a hockey mask. Studio: Paramount Home Video Release Date: 08/22/2006 Starring: Todd Shaffer Scott Reeves Run time: 100 minutes Rating: R Director: Rob HeddenBestsellers in DVD
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