Perhaps the only film that one can recognize from its whispering sounds; yes, the legacy of the Friday the 13th is one gem for any horror film buff that needs no introduction. The first (the series showed up in 1980) movie featured Kevin Bacon (and people wondered who he is) but not Sally Field; instead it was Adrienne King who got the lead role. Sally, in the meantime, chose the Norma Rae gig instead of spending at Camp Crystal Lake the summer; this is what that got her the Oscar. After that, 10 successful sequels followed and Paramount decided to travel backwards to introduce the current generation the things on Jason Voorhees.



This time, it starts with a short prologue narrating Jason's legend that fades into the words 20 years later. Up come five shiny and happy campers heading the old Camp Crystal Lake grounds. It was the greed for good times and wild marijuana that drags them towards a hulking Jason in interestingly creative ways.

Enter Clay Miller; his search for his absconding sister Whitney is an outcome of the dissatisfaction stirred up by the incapability of the local police. His method is a unique one, as is evident from his missing person notice on his motorcycle. His confrontation with another camping group at a local convenient store earns him Jenna's sympathy and help, after which, her entire group heads their cabin for some unrestrained weekend revelry. Next, it is Chi chi chi chi. Ha ha ha ha!

Those who remember the original Friday the 13th must agree that it's a horror film that's above average and a milestone that have set the standard to measure the gore in mainstream movies. But this time, such stuff are not going to deliver much of a shock value and it's our mindset to blame; the world has made us witness much gore and violence than Paramount could even think of. However, the same formula still holds on as much as the hockey-masked Jason, yet it delivers the chills and the terrors of what was witnessed in the originals. Director Nispel sure has learnt a lot from his earlier The Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake and this time, he uses his experiences here; it's evident from his use of camera that replaced the former staple of the standard angles.

The cast is an even combination of attractive, fun loving actors and actresses that sways between emotions and genuine laughter and sometimes, they take the audience deep into the terrors without uttering even a single word! Well done are the special effects; they are precise and imaginative, but impaling of heads should have had a few more means for the sake of creativity.

So, does Friday the 13th enjoy a start status? Yes; even if we mark it low, then definitely not below 7.5 stars out of 10.