Starring: Richard Brooker, Gloria Charles, Rachel Howard, David Katims, Dana Kimmell, Paul Kratka, Cheri Maugans, Kevin O'Brien, Catherine Parks, Jeffrey Rogers, Nick Savage, Tracie Savage, Steve Susskind, Perla Walter, David Wiley, Larry Zerner
Review: See Jason Voorhees in a whole new dimension... of spine-tingling terror! That's right, the body count around Camp Crystal Lake is about to rise. Jason has a new look, thanks to the infamous hockey mask, and the look of this chapter is nothing short of in-your-face chills, thrills, and kills courtesy of 1980s cutting-edge 3-D technology. So watch out, because Jason is coming right at you in Friday the 13th Part III in 3D!
The Friday the 13th franchise has a formula as old as the hills. Unmemorable horny teens are in the woods up to no good and the menacing Jason stealthily kills them off one-by-one. That's about it. And Friday the 13th Part III is no different, except for the fact that the infamous killer dons his iconic hockey mask for the very first time and we get to watch the all of killer carnage in stunning 3D. So it's a little different.
I've seen this particular part several times before, but this time around I finally got to enjoy it in classic 3D. I had the cardboard glasses with the red and blue lenses - and I enjoyed the heck out of it! It's not everyday that you get to see a 3D movie that goes over-the-top with cramming in so many 3D gags that you'll get whiplash from jerking your head back to avoid yo-yos, machetes, spears, snakes, eyesballs, a wallet, hot fire poker, a baseball bat - and more - from coming right off the screen and into your face. I found the experience rather enjoyable. However, the movie itself is not one of the better films in the series.
The characters are bland (except for prankster Shelly (Larry Zerner)), the plot, if you can call it that, is non-existent, and the movie really meanders from 3D gag to 3D gag probably to keep you awake or interested. Final girl Chris (Dana Kimmell) isn't as interesting of a protagonist as past entries, but Jason is menacing, creepy, and awkwardly lethal due to many of the kills being enhanced with the 3D gimmick. Harry Manfredini score was chilling as always and the moody atmosphere looked especially frightening, which helped to enhance the effectiveness of Friday the 13th Part III.
I will say that if you have a chance to see Part III in 3D - it's totally worth a watch! I do enjoy the franchise, but other parts are much more entertaining. So come to Camp Crystal Lake for Jason, the kills, and the 3D gags that are fun enough to scare you silly.