Quinton_Moad wrote:
I know this question has been raised before but I'm tired of HALLOWEEN fans saying how much more sophisticated that franchise is than the FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise. I know fans will be fans but that has to be one of the most ridiculous assertions ever. The FRIDAY THE 13TH remake is SO much better than the HALLOWEEN remake. I liked Rob Zombie's direction in it but they took away a very tangible element that made the first movie so chilling. Michael Myers' story is never explained and we are left to assume that he was just an average kid from an average family. Rob Zombie does what Ronny Yu did in FREDDY VS. JASON and turned him into a sympathetic character. The only time the movie implies that Michael is pure evil is when he murders the janitor who was friendly towards him during his time in Smith's Grove. The FRIDAY THE 13TH remake expands upon the original story while following the same basic formula as the rest of the franchise. I love the first two HALLOWEEN movies and I also like the fifth, third, seventh, and fourth in that order. The sixth, eighth, and both remakes are tolerable. I just think that, as far as quality goes, the FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise wins hands-down. I get the feeling that I'm watching a straight-to video horror movie when I watch the fourth HALLOWEEN. The fourth and fifth are so predictable. The FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise was always fresh. The copycat killer in A NEW BEGINNING, the self-referential humor in JASON LIVES, the telekinesis subplot in THE NEW BLOOD, and the body-jumping in JASON GOES TO HELL are all elements that put the FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise one step ahead of the HALLOWEEN franchise as far as quality goes. The FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise has also been put under the microscope much more than the HALLOWEEN franchise and the directors actually seemed to give a damn about the subject matter.
I don't think it was Ronnie Yu and Freddy vs Jason that turned Jason into a sympathetic character. It would be more Shannon and Swifts doing if you need to say it was anyone.
But regardless, the elements of Jason as a sympathetic character were there as far back as part 2. Jason is killing to avenge his mother and is putting bodies in front of her head on a make-shift alter as one would who was making offerings.
If anything, Freddy vs Jason just reminded us that Jason has a purpose, which is something we haven't seen since part 2.
The Friday the 13th reboot was very good. It had its problems, but no more so then most of the original series so it's right on par for me.
The Halloween remake was terrible. I don't like Zombie's film-making style and think his writing is terrible. He really took something that could have been great (and originally was) and made it very sub-par with his trashy hillbilly style. I also agree that too much exploration of Myer's family did ruin the mystique of the character. Zombie made him into an average psycho with a cliched terrible environment to grow up in. When Michael finally kills his first victim the whole "pure evil" thing is lessened to the point of non-existence because the viewer can argue now that he's become a product of his environment and upbringing.
Within the original series however I'd say the original Halloween is a better over all film then the original Friday the 13th, but not by much.
Both series taken as a whole though (not including the remakes\reboots) Friday the 13th comes out far better.
These are slasher flics, so I think sophistication goes out the window. I see nothing "sophisticated" in either series - originals, remakes or series as a whole.Statistics: Posted by rick — Sun Apr 10, 2024 11:01 pm
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