Jason Goes to Hell is the second last entry in the Friday the 13th series. It’s also my final movie in the series. Of course, there’s Freddy Vs Jason and the Friday the 13th reboot. However, I’ve already seen them. Tomorrow I’ll be watching a movie by the director of The Suicide Squad.
Much like Jason Takes Manhattan, Jason Goes to Hell’s title is a misnomer. It doesn’t involve Jason in Hell, although the ending is the closest it comes to being true.
It’s the first Friday the 13th movie produced by New Line Cinema. It’s directed by Adam Marcus.
Jason Goes to Hell starts like every other entry… until it doesn’t. Jason chases a lone woman at Camp Crystal Lake. It seems like the end for her and then lights spring on. We find out the woman is actually an agent for the FBI. They’ve set everything up so they can finally kill Jason once and for all.
At first glance, it seems like there’s no more Jason. However, this is a horror movie and nothing is ever that simple. The spirit of Jason forces a coroner to eat his heart. Yes, that really happens.
From here, Jason jumps from body to body, killing anyone he can. The only hope rests on his sister, niece, or baby grandniece. That’s right, Jason Goes to Hell retcons his family.
Maybe it’s because I’ve been watching five Friday the 13th movies in a row, but the tropes are too much. The movies follow the same structure over and over. Sure, this one is slightly different with the family angle and a bounty hunter going after him.
But, it’s not enough to make it different from the previous instalments. Especially, when characters make stupid decisions for the sake of the plot. The franchise suffers from creating memorable heroic characters, unlike Halloween or A Nightmare on Elm Street.
The saving grace comes at the last moment. When the camera focuses on the hockey mask and a familiar glove of knives drags it to Hell. That is the moment Horror fans collectively lost their minds
It’s when the crossover of two Horror icons officially became reality. Another good point is the inclusion of the Evil Dead mythology. Adam Marcus uses the Sam Raimi series as an Easter Egg to explain the supernatural abilities of Jason.
Jason Goes to Hell offers nothing new to the franchise other than a contrived family retcon.
