PopHorror Let's Get Scared
As a child who grew up in the 1980s, I look back at those years with a great affection. My childhood was the beginning of my life long love affair with not only horror, but specifically with the subgenre of slashers. The 1980s is certainly the advent of the golden age of slashers.
In this series, I’ll look back at what I feel are the best slashers to come out of the 1980s. So come with me, and let’s revisit what Gene Siskel describes as “meat cleaver in the forehead” movies.
Halloween, Friday The 13th And The Beginning Of The Slasher Boom
There has always been a debate on who is responsible for the slasher boom of the 1980s: Was it John Carpenter’s 1979 film, Halloween, (read one writer’s tribute to the film here), or was it Sean Cunningham’s Friday The 13th (read our tribute to the film here)?
I do agree that Halloween began the subgenre. Cunningham has even admitted that he told scriptwriter Victor Miller to rip off Carpenter’s film. While Halloween did release first and introduced viewers to the basic structure of the slasher film, Friday The 13th expanded on the concept by adding the element of gore. Because of money and time restraints, the director switched the emphasis of his film from plot to bloody kills.
This aspect has became a template for all following slashers. Everyone going the theaters to see these throat rippers were going for one reason: for the glory of the death scene. A combination of Halloween and Friday The 13th changed the horror movie industry forever.
The Cast Of Friday The 13th
Some of the best casts in all ’80s slashers can be found in the first four Friday The 13th films. They’re full of likable, relatable characters. We have kind, easy going Annie (Robbie Morgan) who is on her way to Camp Crystal Lake to work as the camp cook. Unfortunately, she meets her end while hitchhiking there. If there is one victim that I dread seeing killed, it’s definitely Annie.
There is also the fun loving Marcie (Jeanine Taylor), and her boyfriend, Jack (Kevin Bacon), your typical young couple. They are in love, and like any average teenage couple, they like to roll around in the sheets… which is precisely why they’re taken out in brutal fashion.
Then there’s Jack and Marcie’s friend, Ned (Mark Nelson), who uses comedy as a defense mechanism to cope with his low self-esteem. Right before Ned is slaughtered, we see him walking all by himself. He’s somewhat depressed and jealous of Jack and Marcie’s relationship. This is precisely the time when he is led to his death.
I’ve always loved nurturing, selfless Brenda (Laurie Bartram), one of the best characters in the Friday the 13th franchise. She is always looking out for everyone else, the complete opposite of the stereotypical bitchy character that became cliche in future slashers. She would have made a great Final Girl.
The good guy of the group is Bill, who was played by Bing Crosby’s son, Harry. I have often thought that he should have made it to the end with Alice. He reminds me of Paul in Friday The 13th Part 2. They are both good-natured guys, and would have been interesting to see him with Alice through the night.
Alice is Friday The 13th’s first Final Girl, and one of my all time favorites. Adrienne King gives a phenomenal performance as the courageous, yet sensitive counselor. She doesn’t succumb when Steve Christy (Peter Brouwer) flirts with her. You get an idea of who Alice is, that she doesn’t like to be cornered or pressured to do something. Unfortunately, her fear of being cornered is exactly what happens to her. Alice’s courageous spirit helps her overcome her fears. She is the last one standing once she finally takes down the real evil.
Last but certainly not least, is the incomparable Pamela Voorhees, played by the late Betsy Palmer. I don’t know how she did it, but every time I watch her performance, I always feel sorry for Jason’s mama. If I had a son who was taken from me, I would be angry as well. Betsy Palmer lifted Friday The 13th by her performance. It’s hard to picture anyone else in this role.
Death Scenes, Tom Savini, And The Beginning Of Slasher Special Effects
While Halloween had death scenes that were somewhat restrained, Director Sean Cunningham knew that bloody death scenes were going to be the main attraction. He wanted the best, so he hired FX guru Tom Savini for the special effects who became a rock star because of his work here. As a result, Friday The 13th has some of the best death scenes in all of slasher history.
Special FX are the real reason people were packing into movie theaters to see these newfound slashers. The real stars of the films are the special effects team. Ever since, it has become a competition in filmmaking to create the goriest kills.
Some of the best and bloodiest kills from Friday the 13th include the death of Annie and Marcie’s ax to the head, which had the nice touch of having the weapon hit a light bulb before it’s final work was done. Who could forget Kevin Bacon’s bubbly, bloody end after getting an arrow punched through his throat? And then there’s the iconic decapitation as Alice cuts Pamela’s head off. Certainly, I can’t forget a moldering, distorted Jason jumping out of the water and grabbing Alice.
Less is more with Ned’s death that takes place off camera. Brenda’s death is haunting, even though you never see her die. I also love how artistic the camp counselors look in the last freeze frame of the prologue.
The work by Tom Savini in Friday The 13th cemented the death scene as the star of every slasher.
Harry Manfredini’s Classic Soundtrack
The impact that Composer Harry Manfredini made on the success of the Friday the 13th franchise is undeniable. The film would have been lifeless without his music and sound effects, which have became a character themselves. He gave Friday The 13th its iconic, dreadful atmosphere. Manfredini’s score is so well known that it is still a part of our pop culture. In the 1980s, every horror fan knew his music the second they heard it, as popular as the Jaws soundtrack.
Closing Thoughts
Looking back on Friday The 13th (1980), I realize that every facet of the film is perfect: the cast, the death scenes, the special effects, the music. It’s fascinating to realize that this was just the beginning of the slasher subgenre. Many people tried to do what Cunningham did in this film, but no one has yet to come close.
That’s why, forty years later, people are still obsessed with Friday The 13th. It has spawned a whole genre of movies and changed horror forever. Friday The 13th put the slasher subgenre into motion. It was also highly successful at the box office, so dozens filmmakers tried to rip it off since.
In part 2 of I Love ’80s Slashers, I will look at the strongest one of these ripoffs, The Burning. Keep your eyes turned to PopHorror for all of your horror movie news, reviews and interviews!
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