Friday the 13th (1980)

"Did you know a young boy drowned the year before those two others were killed? The counselors weren't paying any attention... they were making love while that young boy drowned! His name was Jason."

- Mrs. Voorhees

Friday the 13th is an American horror film of the slasher sub-genre directed by Sean S. Cunningham and produced by Steve Miner. It is the first in a series that spans more than ten sequels and is arguably one of the most influential modern horror films of all time. Friday the 13th was remade in 2009 by Marcus Nispel, but only includes snapshots of events chronicled in the original movie.

The plot of the movie is loosely inspired by the 1971 Mario Bava film Reazione a catena (known in the US market as Bay of Blood). The story involves a group of young campground conselors who decide to repair and re-open Camp Crystal Lake for the summer. They soon discover that Camp Crystal Lake has a dark and sordid history and the past comes back to haunt them as an unseen figure begins killing off the unsuspecting camp counselors one at a time.

Notes & Trivia

 * Friday the 13th has been made commercially available on Betamax, VHS, Laserdisc and DVD. It was included as part of the Friday the 13th: From Crystal Lake to Manhattan Ultimate DVD collection.


 * On the set of Friday the 13th, older cast members such as Kevin Bacon poked fun at fourteen-year-old Ari Lehman (Jason) for "getting into character".