Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter

My favorite of the franchise that I've seen so far. There's so much to love. It's just nastier and oddly has the most heart compared to the first three. The characters are actually believable opposed to just being flat and honestly I hate to see each one of them die! Crispin Glover dance is undoubtedly the highlight of the film. I could watch him dance all day long. Also Jason is relentless and unstoppable in this. The kills are so creative and memorable with some top tier makeup from Savini to go along with it . God, I love this entry!

I think Corey enjoyed that a lil too much hahahha

"Help! He's killing me! He's killing me!"

The Final Chapter is one of my favorite Friday the 13th films. It has Tom Savini returning to do the effects, we have Crispin Glover doing a iconic dance, it has Tommy Jarvis's debut played by Feldman, the hippie girl down the road, the morgue scene, Jason getting brutally slashed in the face, Sam telling us he's being killed which is so funny and Jason is just being brutal.

I think this is the one I have seen the most and just right after part VI this is my favorite. I like the teenagers, I like the final girl and time flies while watching this one. Only minor thing, I'm not a sucker for those off-screen kills and we should've gotten more of Gordon.

Lol Crispin Glover just a big a dork here as in BTTF LOL

Forgot to mention the wee Mouth from the goonies lol

These have gotten pretty formulaic but this one is just enough different to make it interesting. Having another family living near by instead of sexually active teenagers gave us someone to care about. But seriously, why would you live that close to Crystal Lake? You know there have been killings. George McFly's dance scene was something and they had a character just watching silent naked women films. What? Overall still entertaining with some good nudity, kills, and gore.

A Couple Notes

How Jason made it out of that hospital unseen i don't know lol

Crispin Glover's chicken dance is unmatched!

Rob 's "He's killing Me, He's killing meeeee" is one of the most ridiculous lines in the whole franchise lol

Corey Feldman/Tommy really f**ks Jason up in this movie. And how he survived when half of his face/head slides down the machete i'll never know, however they did think this was the final one I guess, and they gave it to him good.

This is my favorite film of the franchise so far. It’s not necessarily a great movie, but it is fun movie.

I liked the pacing, you don’t get bored while waiting for the night scenes where the action can start. Joseph Zito is good slasher director, he also directed The Prowler, a good movie as well. Wish he had directed more.

The killings are creative and the gore and special effects are pretty good, thanks to the master Tom Savini who helped create Jason in the first movie. This time he wanted to help kill off Jason.

One thing that helps the movie not being so formulaic or making it interesting enough are the victims. Yes, you have the usual reckless and stupid young people, but the main characters are a family that happens just to live near Crystal Lake (which is kinda weird, but ok) making the film at least a little bit different and not that unbearable. Among the stupid ones there’s George McFly, I wasn’t expecting that, it was cool.

There’s also the most nudity I’ve seen in one of these movies. I’m not complaining, quite the opposite, just pointing out.

Jason visual is also my favorite.

“Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter” is, ironically, the high point of the franchise so far—and also, of course, one of the biggest lies in terms of title, since it’s nowhere near the end. Still, as a movie, it’s the most cohesive example of how this series can work when its ingredients are put together with a bit of narrative care, competent direction, and a clear sense of rhythm. Joseph Zito steps in to direct and delivers a slasher that balances methodical suspense with explosive graphic violence better than any of its predecessors—without seeming bored with its own premise, which honestly means a lot by the fourth go-around of the same basic story.

The structure is still the same: teens head out to a cabin near Crystal Lake, ignore all the warnings, have sex, smoke, and get killed one by one by Jason Voorhees. But what sets Part 4 apart is how it handles this formula with a little more control over the clichés that, in previous entries, felt completely automatic. Here, the scares follow a bit more internal logic—like how the victims’ bodies are hidden or revealed in ways that feel believable instead of just popping out at the exact second the script wants to jolt the audience. There’s an effort to give the horror a more coherent sense of space, and that alone adds a lot more tension to the experience.

Visually, it’s also the strongest of the original four. The cinematography really nails the feeling of death looming over the woods and cabins. Rain, lightning, and well-placed shadows help keep Jason hidden until just the right moment, making his appearances way more chilling. And it’s worth calling out the makeup and effects work, led by Tom Savini, returning to the franchise after doing the first film. The kills here are brutal, detailed, bloody, and often creative enough to crown Part 4 as the most graphic and shocking installment of the series up to this point. Jason—played with intense physicality by Ted White—isn’t just a killing machine; he radiates a kind of animalistic rage, especially in that scene where he crushes someone’s skull with his bare hands.

Another big win is the introduction of the Jarvis family, which slightly breaks away from the franchise’s usual pattern. Tommy, played by a young Corey Feldman, is a fresh and surprisingly effective addition. He’s not just another disposable teen—he actually brings a different kind of energy to the movie. And there’s something oddly touching, even ironic, about the fact that the only person who manages to take Jason down is a kid—not some buff action hero or a virginal final girl, as slashers usually demand. The bond between Tommy and his sister Trish (Kimberly Beck) works well too, adding a bit more emotional weight to the climax than the drawn-out, uninspired chase scenes from earlier films.

If there’s one area where the film drops the ball, it’s in the editing of the third act. Even though the tension builds really well throughout most of the movie, the final chase kind of loses steam. There’s a noticeable lack of creativity and boldness in how those escape and confrontation scenes are staged—which is a shame, since the movie was gaining serious narrative momentum up to that point. On the flip side, the final scene, where Tommy sheds his innocence and takes on a near-feral persona to defeat Jason, is powerful and ambiguous. Zito directs the ending with real energy, giving the franchise a rare moment where it brushes up against genuine psychological depth—something this series has rarely even tried.

Overall, “Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter” is the most polished example of what the franchise can achieve within its formula. The plot is still simple, but the characters are a bit more fleshed out, Jason is scarier than ever, the effects are top-notch, and the direction at least partially respects the audience’s intelligence. It’s funny to think this was supposed to be the end, because ironically, it feels like the first film that truly knew what to do with Jason Voorhees. If someone wants to understand why this franchise became such a phenomenon, this is hands down the best place to start.

Jason is back in a solid movie for the franchise.