5 Memorable Moments from the Friday the 13th Franchise

Friday the 13th is a date that causes anxiety for the superstitious, but feelings of excitement and nostalgia for horror movie fans. It’s  a date that has become synonymous with terror, mayhem, and one hockey-masked menace named Jason Voorhees. Since its inception in 1980, the Friday the 13th film franchise has been a rollercoaster of blood-curdling screams, unforgettable, gory moments and sensational storylines. It’s hard to believe that the simple remise of a slasher set at a summer camp would be so influential to a film genre.

Everyone has a favourite Friday film, plus everyone has a favourite moment from one of the films. To mark this extra freaky Friday 13th (it is spooky season after all), some members of the team at Love Horror shared their most memorable moments from the Friday the 13th franchise… Here are just five to get you started.

5 Memorable Moments from the Friday the 13th Franchise

1, The Arrow of Doom – Friday the 13th (1980)

It all started with a group of camp counselors attempting to reopen Camp Crystal Lake, a place with a dark history. When one unfortunate group of kids start their stay at the camp, it set the scene for a film that holds an important place in horror movie history.

In this first film, one kill particularly stands out for most Friday fans, it’s the infamous “arrow kill” that stole the show as the number one kill this time round. As Jack (played by Kevin Bacon) rests on his bunk with a doobie, his tranquility is pierced – quite literally – as he meets his grisly end with an arrow thrust through the back of his throat from beneath. Say no to drugs kids – and thin mattresses.

2. The Eyeball – Friday the 13th Part III (1982)

You can’t couldn’t have a ‘part three’ to a horror film in their eighties without capitalising on the (then) cutting edge tech of 3D, complete with the coloured specs. But while 3D may have been all the rage in 1982, it was the gruesome practical effects that stood out in Friday the 13th Part III. And one memorable moment was when the audience was treated to a startling 3D gag involving a big of head squeezing an unfortunate character named Rick (Paul Kratka).

His act of chivalry – offering to ‘go outside and take a look around’ armed with just a small torch – leads predicably to him meeting Jason. As his head is crushed from behind by the brutal hulk, one eyeball shoots out of the screen, leaving audiences shrieking in delight or terror, depending on their predisposition.

3. Funky Moves – Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984)

“The Final Chapter” may have been far from the last installment in the series, but it did deliver one of the most memorable moments in the franchise – and squeamish will be happy to hear that it wasn’t a death.

Although poor Jimmy (Crispin Glover) did meet a bloody demise – with a corkscrew through the hand, followed by a cleaver through the head – it was preceded by some of the finest dance moves ever to grace 80s horror. Quite why these evasive techniques or bursts of energy weren’t used to avoid Jason’s blade is one of horror’s great unanswered questions.

4. Have a Heart – Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday

In Jason Goes to Hell, also known as ‘this really is the final Friday this time – until the next one’, the audience is exposed to one of the strangest and arguably grossest moments in the franchise.
Early on in the film, Jason seems to have been defeated once and for all. He is felled after being set up in a trap and shredded by gunfire in an act that truly no self-respecting horror monster would ever dare return from.

But just minutes later during an autopsy, Jason’s heart, which is shown to be his literal source of evil, is revealed. As if ripped straight from a Lovecraftian nightmare, the coroner, driven by a mysterious compulsion, consumes the malevolent organ in a grotesque, visceral display. And, surprise! Jason is back in the room.

5. Liquid Nitrogen Freeze – Jason X (2001)

You thought number five was going to be Freddy vs Jason right? But actually that little filmic outing wasn’t strictly part of the Friday the 13th franchise. So instead we look to the Final Friday (which wasn’t actually called a ‘final’) Jason X – also known as Jason goes to space (whatever next?!)
When Mr Voorhees leaves Earth’s atmosphere, you know you’re in for something special. Zero gravity, zero boundaries and quite often, zero logic. All out of ideas on how to kill the seemingly immortal monster, the authorities decide “if you can’t beat ’em, freeze ’em” and Jason is placed in cryogenic suspension – in space. When Jason is accidentally re-discovered and thawed, he thanks Adrienne Thomas-Hart (Kristi Angus) for finding him by submerging her face in a container of liquid nitrogen, then smashing it like glass.

These are just a few of the most memorable moments that have graced the silver screen over the past four decades of Friday the 13th films. From the eerie cabins of Camp Crystal Lake to the depths of outer space, Jason Voorhees has been a relentless force of terror, and his victims have always paid the price. We hope you have an enjoyable Friday the 13th and if you hear that unmistakable ‘ch, ch, ch, ah, ah, ah’ start running and don’t look back.