Review of Friday the 13th Part III (1982) by Dylan F — 14 Oct 2017

I want to start off by listing the positives of Friday the 13th Part 3. With the exception of the jarring opening/end credit theme, Harry Manfredini's score shines here as it did in the first two installments.

We also have the introduction of Jason Voorhees' iconic hockey goalie mask, which has come to help instantly identify the character and transcend the genre. Lastly, as always (and as odd as it may be to say), the murders are always creative and entertaining.

However, these factors aren't enough to carry this film, as they're almost not enough to get it to two stars. Though the acting in the first two movies is far from Oscar-worthy, one can still overlook the performances to enjoy themselves.

Not so much here, where the cartoonish acting really heads into overdrive. This helps to illustrate how annoying the stock characters are, or worse, how little we care about them. Then there's the lack on continuity between this one and Part 2.

Granted, a slasher movie shouldn't be held to the same standards of canon a Star Wars or Marvel film is, but here the lack of attention to what has come before is jarring and almost laughable. The main example of this is Jason's face, which looks nothing like the face we saw in Part 2.

Additionally, while the Jason in Part 2 was portrayed as a deranged hick, here he comes across as more of a clone of Halloween's Michael Myers. One would think the director of this one didn't bother to watch what came before, except Steve Miner directed both films, which boggles the mind.

Despite these heavy complaints, I will say that it doesn't reach the level of absurdity some of the later installments would. However, Friday the 13th Part 3 is sadly probably only for fans who are completists.