Starring: Corey Feldman (Narrator), Kane Hodder, Robert Englund, Tom Savini, Danielle Panabaker, Sean S. Cunningham, Derek Mears, Betsy Palmer, Wes Craven, Robert Shaye, Alice Cooper
Directed by: Daniel Farrands
Written by: Peter Bracke (book), Daniel Farrands
Running time: 400 minutes
Rated: Not rated (contains graphic violence)
The year was 1980, co-writer/producer/director Sean S. Cunningham would release his then unknown little slasher film, Friday the 13th into theaters that May. The film would prove to be a number one hit for Paramount Studio’s on its opening weekend. Little did anyone suspect the film that was modestly produced for around $ 500,000 would go on to gross nearly $40 million dollars over the years (and that is just domestic numbers). The film was such a hit, Paramount rushed into production on a sequel to be released less than a year later. Friday the 13th Part 2 would also open at number one for the weekend making a massive amount of money for the studio. The success of the sequel meant another film went into production. Paramount was on to something with these upstart slasher films, Hollywood was starting to take notice and more importantly, so were the fans.
Momentum was in the studio’s favor and they kept giving the fans what they wanted. Friday the 13th would go on to spawn 9 more sequels, a remake, and a television series. The success of the series would propel the film franchise and its supernatural hockey masked killer, Jason Voorhees into pop cultural super stardom.
In 2006, author Peter M. Bracke chronicled nearly every aspect of all the films and TV series including over 200 interviews with the series alumni. It was documented with hundreds of never before seen photos, documents, and production materials into Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday The 13th hardcover book. Enter filmmaker Daniel Farrands, who had previously directed the incredible documentaries Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy (2010), Scream: The Inside Story (2011), and penned the films Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers (1995), The Tooth Fairy (2006) & The Girl Next Door (2007). Farrands decided to tackle a movie version of Crystal Lake Memories. As a lifelong fan, Farrands wanted to take Bracke’s book and expand upon it to make it a fitting tribute to one of this generation’s most iconic bogeymen.
Corey Feldman who starred in Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter serves as narrator for Crystal Lake Memories. The film features interviews with over 150 cast and crew members from every Friday the 13th film and the television series, many of which have never been interviewed on-camera before regarding their roles. Interview highlights include Kane Hodder, Robert Englund, Tom Savini, Danielle Panabaker, Sean S. Cunningham, Derek Mears, Betsy Palmer, Wes Craven, Robert Shaye, Alice Cooper and so many more.
The documentary is spread over 2 Blu-ray discs and 2 DVD’s depending on which format you want to watch it on. The film is chopped up over 13 chapters with each chapter discussing an individual film and the TV series from conception through box office release and then some. There is so much information available in the film that even the most die-hard of fans are sure to learn something new in this.
Topics run the gamut from what filmmakers desired to make to what actually made it onscreen. How the many makeup effects were created and why there were so many different looks for Jason and just who actually came up with the hockey mask idea. Also, why there are so many inconsistencies between each sequel is discussed. Discussions include the iconic music by composer Harry Manfredini and how he came up with the theme that everyone loves and Alice Cooper creating the theme song for Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives is referenced. The decision by director Ronny Yu to replace Jason actor Kane Hodder with Ken Kirzinger in Freddy vs. Jason (2003) is particularly interesting and discussed briefly.
In addition to the documentary itself, the lone special feature of the set includes a running audio commentary by
director Daniel Farrands, author Peter M. Bracke, and editor Luke Rafalowski. The commentary goes into even greater detail than what is discussed in the documentary and die-hards will find this very enjoyable.
If you thought you knew everything there is to know about the Friday the 13th franchise, you are wrong. Crystal Lake Memories is the most exhaustive film about the series that you will ever get in one place, made by filmmakers that love the series as much as we do, and it shows. It shows in every detail put on film and every interview captured and every location revealed. Farrands and his crew must really be commended for the above and beyond job they did on this film to chronicle a piece of horror cinema history. Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th is a must-see for any fan of the series or its iconic bogeyman Jason Voorhees!
4 ½ out of 5 Pentagrams!
