Friday the 13th is just eight days away and you can start the celebration early with this short fan film from Hectic Films Productions in association with Curtis Noble Photography and Project Oh! Magazine. Camp Crystal Lake pays homage to previous Friday the 13th films while re-introducing Jason Voorhees in a new yet nostalgic way, all highlighted against classic lines from the Mother of All Slashers, Pamela Voorhees. Rumor has it Alice herself, Ms. Adrienne King, called it, “bloody brilliant!”
Camp Crystal Lake is written and directed by Rickey Bird. Cast members include Erica Morgan, Jessica Alicia Bertrand and DT Carney as Jason Voorhees. The seven minute fan film showcases another night of Jason’s homicidal behavior as he attacks two young women lurking around the infamous campsite.
Camp Crystal Lake was shot to have a throwback quality to the days of VHS tapes. The only problem with this being the camera and cinematography were so good that they sometimes made the quality of film stand out as new age. To the producers’ credit, half of the film – honestly and genuinely – looked and felt like watching a VHS tape from the 80’s; while the other parts were clearly from the last year. Maybe instead of marketing this fan film as a VHS throwback, it would be a better decision to do as a remastered VHS? Just my two cents.
Other than that one little critique, I actually loved Camp Crystal Lake and it is one of the better Friday the 13th fan films that I’ve seen. I loved how the film started with panning shots of an abandoned and ruined camp ground, insinuating that Camp Crystal was left to rot away after the first few murders took place there. It gives a good indication of where this fan film would place in the Friday the 13th franchise timeline. Even the simple shots of Jason roaming in an open field were fantastic because they felt relative, they felt in character. They felt like, maybe, something that was missing from previous movies. Contrary to its title, Camp Crystal Lake gives the impression of a stand-alone though unofficial film in the series, not a fan film, and that is a true testiment to the people who worked on this gem.
Let this serve as a warning and a reminder that if you get naked and smoke pot in a horror film… you’re going to die. Erica Morgan and Jessica Alicia Bertrand were fantastic in their roles as attractive canon fodder. And it takes a lot of guts to step into the shoes of Jason Voorhees, especially when the most recognizable talent to play the killer is Kane Hodder. I have to say that DT Carney did a wonderful job at bringing the massive, hulking, killing machine to life again. If anything, Camp Crystal Lake teaches you one important thing… One way or another, Jason always “gets” the girl. Well done.
Final Score: 8 out of 10
