Friday the 13th: Part VIII- Jason Takes Manhattan

Starring: Jensen Daggett, Scott Reeves, Peter Mark Richman, Martin Cummins, Kane Hodder
Directed by: Rob Hedden
Rating: R
Genre: Horror
1989

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Jason (Kane Hodder) tracks a girl (Jensen Daggett) from Crystal Lake to New York City, where he wrecks his usual brand of havoc.

Review:
Tim: After complaining about the last few Friday the 13th movies, I was excited to see that this film attempted to change a few things up. In some ways, this was excellent. However, it also created some new problems as well. All in all, this film was slightly better than the previous film, but still not good enough to reverse this franchise's declining quality.

The biggest and easiest problem with this movie is that for a film subtitled Jason Takes Manhattan, Jason spends an unbelievably short amount of time in New York City. I've read where the director himself acknowledges this problem. I understand that this was a result of budget restraints, but still is a major flaw to the film. The vast majority of this film takes place on a ship and the outer edges of New York City. Very little actually takes place in Manhattan, which is disappointing and an example of false advertising. I was very disappointing in this aspect.

I also hate some of the changes they made to Jason here. He has always had a strange ability to appear in places where he probably shouldn't have been able to. However, in this film, he appears to be able to teleport back and forth. I can't believe this is true because it is absolutely absurd, but I have no explanation for how he seemingly travels across distances in seconds. Someone runnning into a building away from Jason is suddenly confronted by him inside the building. It makes no sense, and really hurt this film. I also hate how Jason apparently swims (?) from the sinking ship to New York City. I can't explain this, and it is terrible.

Not all of the changes are bad, however. I actually enjoyed that this film didn't take place in the woods surrounding Crystal Lake. After seven (seven!) films about the same exact thing, it was nice seeing a change of pace. True, Jason isn't quite as frightening on a boat or a subway, but he is still pretty chilling. The new surroundings felt like a breath of fresh air.

The cast is still pretty stupid, as you've come to expect from these films. I actually thought Jensen Daggett did an impressive job making her film debut as Rennie Wickham. Daggett isn't the most energetic actress, but her moody quietness was fine in the context of this film. I actually liked her and found myself rooting for her, which is rare in this franchise. However, for allthe credit she deserves, we have to take some away from the atrocious performance of Peter Mark Richman. His character was so unbelievably stupid that every second of his screen time detracted from the movie. His acting was bad, but the dialogue he had to utter was truly moronic. I hate the character and I hate the writers for giving us such a one-dimensional, ridiculous idiot. These movies need some realism, and Richman certainly didn't add to this at all.

At this point, I've all but given up on this franchise. Even changing the setting added very little. I like that director Rob Hedden tried to change some things up, and his direction felt very different from previous films. While most of the movie is similiar, the changes also felt like a much needed breath of fresh air. Sure, they created a whole new set of problems, but it is nice to have something different to complain about.

Even though they changed things up, Friday the 13th: Part VIII- Jason Takes Manhattan is still a silly, stupid film that further tarnishes any legacy that this franchise ever had. I am not alone in thinking that after eight films, it is time to try something different.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 5.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Friday the 13th, Friday the 13th: Part 2, Friday the 13th: Part 3, Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, Friday the 13th: A New Beginning, Friday the 13th: Part VI- Jason Lives, Friday the 13th: Part VIII- Jason Takes Manhattan, Halloween, A Nightmare on Elm Street