Friday The 13th 4K UHD Review
‘Friday The 13th’ slashes its way to 4K.
After numerous Blu-ray re-releases, the original 1980 ‘Friday The 13th’ finally hits 4K (hopefully the rest of the Paramount F13 titles follow suit soon).
It’s no secret that this is one of the premiere slashers (though not the best in the series). It’s a simple story of a group of camp counselors (who are attempting to get Camp Crystal Lake up and running) that become terrorized by an unknown serial killer who has their own secret backstory.
Director Sean S. Cunningham may have ripped off ‘Halloween,’ but this horror movie stands on its own as an atmospheric and creepy slasher that also acts as a murder mystery and a revenge tale. A lot of times movies that rely on the ending tend to fall apart (see most any M. Night Shyalaman film), but ‘Friday The 13th’ sticks the landing and manages to set up an ongoing saga involving the Voorhees. Sure, the last act is a bit clunky with the back-and-forth between Alice and the killer, but the payoff is so good that you can overlook it.
An element that doesn’t get talked about enough is the ensemble cast. The cast really clicks here with Adrienne King, Kevin Bacon, Betsy Palmer, and Laurie Bartram being notable stand-outs. Really though, everyone is well cast here.
Note: This disc contains the theatrical and uncut versions of the film.
Video/Audio:
Presentation: 1.78:1 2160p. How does it look? The 4K transfer is nothing short of being deeply impressive. The image clarity makes it look like a brand new film. Everything from the green forests to Crazy Ralph’s wardrobe looks crystal clear (pun intended). I’ve seen this film countless times and its never looked this good.
Audio Track: 5.1 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? It’s always a bummer to see the same Blu-ray audio track on a 4K release, but this is still a solid lossless 5.1 track.
Extras:
* Digital copy
* Commentary by Sean S. Cunningham, Victor Miller and Peter Bracke for the uncut version.
* ‘Friday The 13th Reunion’- A 2008 panel featuring Harry Manfredini, Victor Miller, Tom Savini, Betsy Palmer, Adrienne King and Ari Lehman.
* The first part in a series of shorts titled ‘Lost Tales From Camp Blood Part 1.’
* ‘Secrets Galore Behind The Gore’ is about the special effects.
* ‘Fresh Cuts: New Tales From Friday The 13th’ covers everything from casting to how the film came about.
* ‘The Man Behind The Legacy: Sean S. Cunningham’- An interview with the director.
* ‘The Friday The 13th Chronicles Friday The 13th’- A featurette with interviews and production stories.
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Robert Ham
dmanderson
Andrea
nicklyons1
DVD Corner's blog 
What exactly are the differences between the theatrical and uncut versions of that old movie? Is the uncut version any improvement over the theatrical version?
I believe the only difference is a few seconds of added gore that was cut out.
In my view, Friday The 13th: The Final Chapter is the best Friday movie of them all and it surely deserves the 4K Blu-ray release. Friday The 13: Part III also deserves the 4K Blu-ray release as it marked the beginning of not just Jason wearing the hockey mask but was the one film where the film franchise really started to take shape.
The Final Chapter is my favorite as well.