Friday the 13th Part III (1982) Review

One of the reasons I love the early Friday the 13th movies is the way Parts 2, 3 and 4 play out as one prolonged nightmare. Part 3 picks up right after the events of Part 2.

Jason survived his confrontation with Ginny but along the way something appears to have happened to the man’s wardrobe. The dungarees and potato sack are gone and Jason is now in some new gear. More importantly, this is the movie where Jason Voorhees finally finds the missing piece of the puzzle

The hockey mask.

Before we get there though, Part III has some fun with the original 3D presentation. The movie is laugh-out-loud funny when watched today as we’re constantly reminded of these moments. Things are constantly being pushed towards the camera, including the mouse during the opening sequence, Rick’s eyeball popping towards us when Jason crushes his head and the harpoon shooting straight into Vera’s eye.

Subtle it is not.

The characters are an enjoyable bunch. Dana Kimmell plays Chris, our final girl, who returns to Higgins Haven despite the memories of a terrifying encounter in the woods years earlier. She is joined by friends including Shelly, Vera and the stoners Chuck and Chili, while a group of bikers also get dragged into Jason’s latest killing spree.

Shelly is probably the most important character without even realizing it. He is a horror nerd who carries around masks and practical-effects props, constantly trying to scare everyone because nobody takes him seriously.

Unfortunately for Shelly, Jason does.

After killing him, Jason takes Shelly’s hockey mask and put it on and so an icon is born.

It’s strange watching it now because the hockey mask is so inseparable from Jason that seeing him without it almost feels wrong. Part 2 gave us Jason as the killer but Part 3 gives us the Jason Voorhees that would become one of the most recognizable figures in horror history.

The movie itself is a lot of fun. It has that familiar Friday the 13th formula of putting a group of likeable idiots somewhere they really shouldn’t be while Jason quietly works his way through them.

Richard Brooker also gives Jason a slightly different presence. He is still human enough to be hurt but he is becoming bigger, stronger and considerably harder to put down.

The final showdown with Chris in the barn is easily the highlight. Jason stalks her around Higgins Haven before eventually finding himself hanging from a rope. For a moment, it looks like Chris may actually have finished him.Then Jason grabs the rope and pulls himself back up. Fuck sake, right?

Eventually Chris buries an axe into his head, leaving us with another defining piece of Jason’s appearance. The hockey mask now has the damage that would carry over into the next movie, further connecting these early sequels.

There’s also one final nod to the original when Chris ends up on the lake and Pamela Voorhees suddenly appears from the water. It is essentially this movie’s version of Jason’s famous jump scare from the first film, and it brings everything nicely back to where the nightmare started.

Friday the 13th Part III is not complicated, nor does it need to be. It is a fun, violent slasher with ridiculous 3D gimmicks, memorable kills and another great final confrontation.

Most importantly, it completes Jason’s transformation.Part 2 introduced Jason the killer. Part 3 gave him his face.