Jason Lives: Friday the 13th Part VI (1986)

"I've seen enough horror movies to know any weirdo wearing a mask is never friendly.", 25 June 2005

What an original idea for a movie! A group of kids goes into the woods near Crystal Lake. One by one, they're butchered by an undead madman named Jason. Roll credits. That's pretty much the entire movie. Wake me when it's over.

Actually, this Friday sequel is a little better than most. While the plot ideas are nothing new, Director/Screenwriter Tom McLoughlin attempts to bring a level of intelligence to the proceedings. Some of the dialogue is at least witty. It might have been interesting to see what he would have done with the series had he been brought on earlier before the concept became so tired.

The acting is nothing spectacular. In fact, I can't remember anyone who stood out. The special effects are the highlight of the movie. The opening scene in the graveyard with the maggot covered Jason is quite good. The film suffers tremendously from MPAA cuts. Most of the effects are shown only in very brief glances.

In short, Part VI is far from worst of the series, but it certainly isn't the best.

EDIT 10/30/17 - I just rewatched Part VI and realize I missed the mark the first time through. I originally watched it as a serious episode - like all the rest. I had never considered looking at this installment as a comedy. If you look at it like that, Part Vi really works. I said it was intelligent, but it's also very cleverly written. Some of the scenes are a real hoot. One I especially enjoyed is the scene where Jason is outside the cabin mimicking or tracking the girl's movements through the cabin. Very nice stuff. I also failed to recognize just how good Thom Mathews and the rest of the cast really is. It might be one of the better acted films in the series. After my rewatch, I also think it might be one of the better entries in the series. I'm changing the rating to a 7/10.

7/10