Ranking the Friday the 13th films

For the day that's in it.

It's hard to believe there's 12 of these films. It's even harder to believe there hasn't been a 13th made.

They aren't ranked highly among film fans, even horror fans tend to mock them but honestly I love 'em. Well not all of them, a couple of them are downright dreadful but they have a certain charm. It's a plain old story of good vs evil, black and white and no shades of gray.

It all began in Camp Crystal Lake in 1957. A young boy with special needs drowned while the two camp counselors who were supposed to be looking after the swimming children snuck away to have it off. The boy who died was Jason Voorhees and his death drove his mother Pamela insane. The following year she killed the two guilty counselors causing a scandal that closed the camp for the next 22 years. In 1980 it reopened and would you believe it, the new arrivals were once again butchered until one woman managed to fight back and decapitate Pamela. The killing spree was over. Or so we thought. It turns out Jason didn't die. He was living in the woods all along and now he wants revenge for his mother's death. Nothing can stop him, not even death itself.

The 12 films are ranked below from worst to best.

Friday The 13th Part 5 : A New Beginning.

Dreadful. A Jason-less attempt to take the franchise in a new direction that tried to cover up it's extreme deficiencies with big dollops of nudity. Oh and the 50's greasers scene has to be seen to be believed.

Friday The 13th Part III

The 3d gimmick adds fun to the kills but the appalling acting ruins it all. Only notable for the first appearance of Jason in his trademark hockey mask.

Friday The 13th Part 7 :The New Blood

Dull as dishwater and totally neutered by censor cuts to all of its kills. A bloodless Friday The 13th film. What is the point?  And speaking of pointless.

Friday The 13th (Remake/Reboot)

A modern day reboot that amps up the sex and violence but one that adds nothing new to the mix at all. Made to cash in on the popularity of it's lead Jared Padalecki but no one bothered to watch it. Plus Jason's a drug grower. No....just no.

Friday The 13th Part 8 : Jason Takes Manhattan

By part 8 the franchise had accepted it's silliness and decided to up sticks to mix things up. Sadly it takes nearly 80% of the films runtime to get to NYC but there's plenty of fun to be had when it gets there.

Friday The 13th

The original film isn't the best for once but it's still a decent slasher with some genuinely effective jump scares and Tom Savini's gooey special effects make the kills sing. Kevin Bacon's demise is especially nasty.

Friday The 13th Part 2

Part 2 is a part 1 redux but it improves on it in every way. Better characters, better scares and better kills. Plus two of the kills are flat out stolen from Mario Bava's A Bay Of Blood. That's always fun.

Freddy Vs Jason 

This clash of franchises does something rare. It makes Jason the good guy. Kind of. The funniest film of the bunch by far "That goalie was pissed!!"

Friday The 13th Part 4 : The Final Chapter

Brilliantly crunchy Tom Savini effects, a well placed storyline, a fun turn from a baby faced Corey Feldman and an unhinged Crispin Glover performance (that dance scene) turns part 4 into the best of the early episodes.

Jason Goes To Hell : The Final Friday

The franchise's second attempt to go in a different direction was quite successful as the supernatural is fully embraced and the gore is upped to an almost obscene level. Almost.

Friday The 13th Part 6 : Jason Lives

Part 6 is when F13 stopped taking itself seriously and it's so much fun as a result. Zombie Jason, paintball kills, triple decapitations, the Bond spoof opening. Loadsa laughs.

Jason X

Jason in space. Yep. Number 10 fully embraces insanity and we win. Frozen heads, holographic replays of the franchises most iconic kills, a David Cronenberg cameo and the hockey masked shooting star. A perfect beer and spicebag movie.

What's your fave of the bunch?