“So, what WERE you gonna be when you grew up?!”
Somewhere between The Terminator and Scream lies a plucky little film called Jason Lives.
I mention Scream because the self-aware humour displayed in this one predates Wes Craven’s genre-ruining blockbuster by ten years.
I mention The Terminator because, well, Jason has now been turned into an unstoppable force that cannot be stopped by regular means.
Or so our heroes believe.
This instalment, bathed in perpetual night, is by far the most fast-paced of those I’ve experienced so far. The composer evens seems to have been encouraged to up the ante with their score, with hints of Bernard Herrmann all over the place. The screenwriter also smartly throws in as much for the plot to do as possible, knowing full well that a silent killer wandering around for 89 minutes isn’t as interesting as the previous films assumed. The sort-of subplot involving one character trying to rescue another from being wrongly accused of Jason’s killing spree was a great idea, so there’s even a car chase thrown in to liven things up.
Due to the nighttime settling, the cinematographer does all they can to liven up the would-be drab visuals. It really does feel like they’re painting with light. A few shots, including that of Jason standing upon a burning RV, could easily be framed and hung on a wall. Or at least used as an official poster. If the marketing department failed to do so, then shame on them.
The only standout performance this time is that of TV-stalwart David Kagen. Although, judging by his filmography, I’ve not and never will see him in anything else, which is a shame. I’m just not a soap opera kinda guy. The rest of the cast is solid, but nothing to write home from camp about.
Speaking of which, we finally get some campers show up in this one. That means all sexuality has been carefully scrubbed clean from the proceedings, besides a fully-clothed dry-humping scene. Involving adults, of course. I was relieved that Jason shows no interest in killing the campers. In fact, it would have been fun if he had simply nodded at that little blonde girl he stands over at one point and she nodded back, before quietly moving on. That would have been interesting, but no.
I mean, we can’t have something silly happen in a movie where characters break the fourth wall and literally speak directly to the camera, can we?!
While the actual kills are sadly too fast for my deteriorating eyesight to pick up, the ideas and settings surround them are at least diverting. Having worked in administration for ten years, I thoroughly enjoyed watching the weekend warrior business managers get carved up while paintballing. Yeah, that was a cathartic scene. It’s just a shame Jason didn’t wrap one of those “DEAD” bandages around his head after being impotently shot by a paintball gun.
Again, that would have been far too silly, I guess.
Or too clever.
I have two more instalments to watch in this boxset, but it seems there are three more out there I need to track down separately. That is, if I choose to count Freddie vs. Jason, which I think I will. I won’t be bothering with any reboot bollocks, that’s for sure.
Oh and if I hear the name “Megan” being screamed one more time… well… I’ll passive aggressively write a bad review for a good movie.
Do stay in touch, darlings.
Toodles!
P.S. MEEEGAAAN!
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