Friday the 13th: From Crystal Lake to Manhattan
Paramount DVD

- This incredible horror series was created by a struggling producer/director Sean Cunningham of gentle kids movies who needed to attract future financiers. In 1980, producer/director Sean Cunningham did what a lot of young filmmakers choose to do -- make a horror movie -- and hope that this would jump-start his career in Hollywood. Of course, he had idea that "Friday the 13th" would launch a megabuck series and along with "Halloween" would become one of the most popular movies about 'dead teenagers.' The genre would become a stable of horror and lasts until this day. Cunningham says that he didn't mean to comment on the morals of teenagers regarding sex or drugs but many certainly felt the heat of punishment along those lines. The amazing thing is that Jason Voorhees didn't even appear in the first film.

When a group of teens show up at an abandon summer camp, they quickly learn about the tragic drowning of a young boy during a previous season. Cunningham catches the audience off guard by casting "nice girl" actress Betsy Palmer and people are hooked. Once the first film became a huge hit, Cunningham had to introduce Jason -- first as a young boy (Warrington Gillette) and later as an adult killer with an insatiable appetite. As you watch the films back to back several facts fall into place as the series evolves. In Part II, we see Jason's face; Part III is a 3-D movie where things jump out at you and Part IV: the Final Chapter, the notorious hockey mask is introduced as a prank and Jason picks it up. Jason endures all kinds of torture on land and underwater. And, by the 8th film, they take him out of Crystal Lake and into scary New York City. The scene where he confronts some street kids hanging out in Times Square is as memorable as Jason noticing the huge billboard of a hockey mask.

This series of movies about untimely, unwarranted death feed into people's fears and (like "The Terminator") a much need sense of invincibility in turbulent times. Of course, the sense of evil always surfacing is also an underlining theme. Over the years, the series which cast unknown young actors featured 12 year old Corey Feldman ("The Lost Boys"), Tony Goldwyn ("Ghost") and stunt man Kane Hodder. The films also paid homage to Boris Karloff and John Carpenter By the time "Jason Takes Manhattan" produced "Friday the 13th" had also spawned an clever television series that didn't include Jason.

The eight films on five discs is an awesome collection! There are eight featurettes about each of the films and these documentaries are informative, entertaining and provide a valuable history of this segment of the horror genre. There are loads of other documentaries about "Friday" artifacts, tales from the cutting room and the victims. Fans will be delighted!

The Night Stalker/The Night Strangler
MGM Home Entertainment

- When producer/director Dan Curtis made "The Night Stalker" back in 1972, Hollywood was a very different place. Curtis was fresh off the success of "Dark Shadows," he was asked to do the original film for television. It was an instant hit, watched by more people than even the most popular TV movie of the era, "Brian's Song." So, naturally, a sequel "The Night Strangler" was a safe bet.

The mixture of horror and comedy -- laugh-out-loud reactions to the events and actions of inquisitive reporter, Carl Kolchak (Darren McGavin) delighted audiences. Kolchak cruised around town in his ratty car, white straw hat with a small tape recorder and camera and an eagle eye for the mysterious. But, its Kolchak's reaction when he encounters the actual vampire or undead creature who is killing to stay alive that makes us laugh as we're also scream. Curtis hired his favorite actors -- Wally cox, John Carradine, Al Lewis and Margaret Hamilton -- performers that he'd loved since his youth. and, Darren McGavin, a wiry character actor was his first choice to play the curious reporter who sniffed out the ghouls among us.

The two-disc set include Dan Curtis interviews about the creation of the series as well as the each feature. Horror fans and lovers of comedy will delight in this mini-collection.

Body Parts
Paramount Entertainment

- When This cult hit about a prison psychologist who survives a horrific automobile accident in which he receives a transplanted right arm of a murderer. Jeff Fahey stars as Bill Chrushank, the psychologist, who yearns to heal just one person. So, he believes his doctor's spiel about medical progress. But, things start to go wrong immediately. The arm seems to have a life of its own and Bill begin to have flashbacks of the donor's murderous life. He seeks out the other two recipients and they are unconcerned. A young man who received a pair of legs loves the fact that he can walk again and an artist (Brad Dourif), who received the left arm, is suddenly selling his paintings for huge sums of cash. But, all their lives are disturbed when the dead criminal suddenly comes to collect his limbs!

"Body Parts" was written by Eric Red, a gifted writer who produced two other cult hits, "The Hitcher" and the extraordinary modern vampire drama, "Near Dear." It would have wonderful if Red had given us an interview or a behind the scenes featurette. Instead, there are no special documentaries. Too bad because this is a big mistake!

Edited by Veronica Mixon
images courtesy of Disney, MGM and Paramount.

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