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Friday the 13th - From Crystal Lake to Manhattan (8 Movies)

Friday the 13th - From Crystal Lake to Manhattan (8 Movies)

List Price: $79.99
Your Price: $63.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: The Box Set That Slasher Fans Have Been Screaming For...
Review: "He can't be alive! He can't!" - Chris can't believe Jason's stamina for staying alive in "Friday the 13th: Part III"

"Paramount" finally smartens the hell up and re-releases the first eight "Friday" films, together for the first time, in one big box set, reigniting the saga of Jason Voorhees, the mama's boy with the hockey mask fetish.

The good - all eight films together, 2 installments per disc with audio commentary on III, IV, VI,& VII. A fifth disc with a feature length documentary on the history of the franchise, a "where are they now?" style featurette on the victims from each film, a look at the props from the films, trailers, etc. The special features are what will probablly make me buy this.

The bad - deleted scenes? They will probablly be included but won't be the stuff fans have been craving for. Dolby Digital? Sure, 2.0 DD or surround, at best. If there are 2 films per disc, I hope "Paramount" doesn't go on the cheap and put one film on each side of the disc making the viewer flip the disc over to watch the other movie (flipper discs, suck big time!). Dual layered discs are the way to go.

As for the films themselves... "I" through "IV" with "Jason Lives" are a must view. "The New Blood" is o.k. (the action scenes between Jason and Tina were cool. The rest you can skip). As for "V" & "Jason Takes Manhatten"? Well, sometimes dead is better.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The best DVD set I bought this year
Review: Everyone has seen at least one of the Friday the 13th movies in their life. The first two came out before I was born and the next 6 came out before I was old enough to appreciate them, but I think that was for the best. By the time I finally discovered Jason there were 7 sequels, I didn't have to wait a year for them to come out. But then I did have to wait for decent DVD's to come out. I bought all of the old Bare Bones single disc movies, and waited a while when the box set came out. But when I finally bought the box it was well worth it.

You get commentary from the filmmakers on I think 4 of the 8 movies, plus a bunch of other cool special features. Deleted scenes, and a few featurettes that are entertaining. It would have been nice if they could have given 3D glasses and made part 3 3D again, since half the movie is pretty much 3D gags. If you are a fan of the Jason movies, or slasher movies in general then you should definitely pick up this set.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: ITS ABOU TIME!!!
Review: Finally horror fans get to own the first 8 jason movies in a exclusive paramount box set. It is a five disc set with a bonus disc that should have good extras.Thank God jason goes to hell and jason x aren't in this collection. What a disgrace! Here are the official bonus features.Cast commentary on FRIDAY THE 13th - PART 3 by author Peter Bracke and actors Larry Zerner, Paul Kratka, Dana Kimmell and Richard Brooker
Commentary on FRIDAY THE 13th - PART VI: JASON LIVES by director Tom McLouglin
Commentary on FRIDAY THE 13th - PART VII: THE NEW BLOOD by actor Kane Hodder and director John Carl Buechler
Commentary on FRIDAY THE 13th - PART VIII: JASON TAKES MANHATTAN by director Rob Hedden
A featurette "Tales From the Cutting Room," in which exclusive deleted scenes and footage is revealed for the first time.
An 8-part featurette "The Friday The 13th Chronicles," which looks at the legacy of the films throughout their history, featuring cast and crew commenting on each film and why they appeal to audiences. Includes Adrienne King, Amy Steel, Corey Feldman, Kane Hodder, Lar Park Lincoln, Betsy Palmer, Tom Savini and directors Sean Cunningham, Tom McLoughlin, Rob Heddon, Joseph Zito and John Carl Buechler.
A 3-part featurette "Secrets Galore Behind The Gore," which looks at the work of master make-up effects designer Tom Savini in Part 1 and Part IV and John Carl Buechler in Part VII. Includes rare and never-before-seen footage, drawings and stills illustrating the make-up techniques used to create Jason and achieve elaborate death scenes.
A featurette "Crystal Lake Victims Tell All!," in which cast and crew from various films share amusing anecdotes. Includes Corey Feldman, Larry Zerner, Adrienne King, Amy Steel, Lar Park Lincoln and directors.
A featurette "Friday Artifacts and Collectibles," which looks at props and collectables from the films.
The theatrical trailers from all 8 movies except Part VI, which is represented by the teaser trailer. Deff. worth buying....

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Friday the 13th collection
Review: I just got the box set for Christmas and I've been drooling ever since. I had been waiting a very long time for this to come out. I was only 8 when the first Friday the 13th came out, but my oldest brother (who at the time was 12) and I used to roleplay and record ourselves playing the parts of Jason and victim. We were so cheesy, but we loved doing it.

I'm not picky about any of the Friday the 13th's. Everyone says the same thing about A New Beginning or Jason Takes Manhattan, but I loved 'em just as much as the ones that came before and after them. Jason kicked ass 24 yrs ago and still kicks ass today.

I very fairly give every single Friday the 13th in this set a 10/10, because I'm such a die hard fan! I love this box set, because now I have every Friday the 13th movie on DVD (I-X, plus Freddy vs. Jason).

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Not Perfect, But Probably The Best We're Gonna See
Review: I've already wote reviews for the individual films, so I'm not gonna bother with all that crap, so I'm writing about the set features. It is correct that no real restoration attempt was made on these films. They don't look terrible or anything, but it is obvious that nothing was really done to them. Four of the films do have commentaries though, which is interesting. The extras disk consists of an 8 part documentary that you can watch in pieces or in one lump sum that runs about 1hr and 40 minutes total. I like this documentary, though some of it seems kinda rushed, especially part 5. Look, I know part 5 isn't ranked so highly, but I actually like the film and wish they had spent a little more time on it. The featurette consists solely of Corey Feldman talking about his involvement in the film. Corey does mention that he actually liked part 5, and can Corey Feldman ever be wrong, people? There's a three part fx feature that runs a little over half an hour. This is fun to watch. Jason's Victims Tell All is decent, though it could have just as well been part of the original 8 part documentary. The Memorabilia section is only 10 minutes or so if I remember correctly. Kinda pointless, yet harmless too. Tales From The Cutting Room Floor is what I think drove alot of people to purchase this set, and you might be a bit disappointed if that's true. Yes, it is neat to see various cut scenes(especially those from part 7 which probably suffered the most censorship of any FT13TH film), but I have two complaints about this. First, where were the deleted scenes from part 8? There were a few scenes cut from that film. Part 2 as well. And like everyone else states, why weren't these scenes put back into the films for this set? I mean, c'mon. Ask any fan, that's what they've wanted for quite some time now. I know Paramount is embarassed by these films, but they made quite a bit of money from them, so why not give fans the benefit of the doubt if you're going to put out an Ultimate Edition. It would be more than worth the extra money to put these scenes back in(and it can't cost THAT much to do it). And of course, trailers. The Friday trailers are pretty fun. All in all I'm pleased with this set. I like the fact that it's all the "Friday" films from Paramount and not the rotten "Jason" films that New Line has been doing. If you already own all these dvds from their first run, it may not be worth your while to invest in this, unless four commentaries and 3 hours of documentary footage is too much to resist.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great, But the Audio Quality Could have been updated
Review: I've been waiting for the Friday the 13th Box Set to come out ever since I first got my DVD player a few years ago. Then when I finally found out that it was coming out, I had to have it. I've been a fan of Friday the 13th ever since I was a kid. I must have seen all of these movies at least 15 times each. Even watching them now, with all of the special effects and technology they have, these movies still amaze me.
Of course, as with most DVDs, this series has improved picture quality, and Widescreen format. Also, some of the films have added audio commentary, which is always a plus, you can hear from teh actors, and find out that some of the cheesy stuff, was intended to be cheesy.
One downfall that this box set has is that not even a handful of these movies has a high quality audio track. Some are done in Mono, two are in Ultra Stereo, and only one is in 5.1 Surround Sound. For this reason only, did this box set lose a star.
There is also a full disc of Bonus Features, including interviews, featurettes, behind the scenes, trailers, and more.
If you're a fan of Friday the 13th, or low-budget horror in general, I'd recommend "Friday the 13th: From Crystal Lake to Manhatten" be added to your DVD library.


Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best Horror Movies Ever
Review: It is about time that this came out in a box set. When they released the Nightmare series in a box set, i was waiting for this to do the same thing. This is a better set of movies than nightmare. It is about time.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good movies, but this is a little rushed
Review: Okay, let's admit it: Friday the 13th was a great popcorn flick. It didn't really have much of a plot, but it had wonderful gore effects that still impress today, and some memorable scenes, whether death or fun. Example: strip Monopoly. Paying rent in clothes was bizarre, but funny. It surprisingly managed to scare some people (even I cringed a bit) out of their seats, and went on to become the first and foremost slasher film.

Part 2 kicked it up a notch, with slightly less gore, but over-the-top deaths, say the double-impalement. Also, it had Jason in it! Jason was our murderer now, but he didn't have a goalie mask just yet. His face is shrouded in a pillowcase. We only had to wait a year...

Part 3 featured an interesting promotion gimmick: it was filmed in 3-D. Unfortunately, Paramount was too damn lazy to put in the 3-D effects for the video release. But there are some good advantages to it. Jason gets his mask. The kills are solid, even in 2-D. It had a wonderful climactic scene. And so on. But the 3-D wasn't the only trick Paramount had in their box...

The fourth film in the series was daringly subtitled "The Final Chapter". I'll leave the rest up to you. But IV still had advantages to it. Tom Savini, who did the excellent effects in the first film, returned and served up a full 10 minutes of nonstop, wildly thrilling gore, some of the best in the series. Corey Feldman, that lovable star from The Goonies, starred as Tommy Jarvis, whose character would return for the next two films and ultimately shape the series.

A New Beginning was an interesting attempt to make a slasher film with as little gore as possible. However, Tommy is unstable after martyring Jason, and is now a mental patient. After learning of his son's death in the mental hospital, a paramedic named Roy goes on a rampage, using Jason's M.O. Unfortunately, the mask is not the more famous "red V on forehead and two red marks around nose" mask. It is a "two blue marks around nose" mask. The kills-- including a road flare in the mouth and hedgeclippers in the eyes-- are among the best in the series. It remains my personal favorite sequel.

Jason Lives brought back the guy with the mask, with a full revenge factor, i.e. Jason going after Tommy. It had some wonderful deaths, and CJ Graham, the second-best Jason actor in the series. But the best? Let's move to the next film, and talk about it...

The New Blood was made under extreme pressure, as the film had one of the best makeup artists in the industry working on the film, as well as directing it (John Carl Buechler). The MPAA at this time was getting more and more strict about slasher films, thus less gore than the previous films. Kane Hodder was now behind the mask. Any F13 fan can tell you he's the best Jason actor in the series, as well as the most prolific (four films, all the others did one). But the "end" was fast approaching...

Jason Takes Manhattan was a desperate attempt to save the series from isolation. Paramount was annoyed with these films now, because they felt their other films were their real works. And I don't blame 'em! JTM was still a half-decent movie, though. It now had very little gore, but the next film would fix that. After this film, Paramount gave the series to their rival New Line Cinema, who had made their millions off Elm Street.

The extras in this set are pretty good! We have our familiar actors talking about the films, deleted gore (exactly what the fans have wanted), and more! A pretty good set overall. Get it with Elm Street to experience the best slashers on film.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: "Friday the 13th" DVD Collection Review!
Review: Paramount has always treated the Friday the 13th movies like an unwanted child. Despite the impressive box-office numbers that it earned for the studio during the 80's, they always seemed to be embarassed by it. By the 90's, they had its rights to the more slasher-friendly New Line Cinema who were already making nice bank off the "Nightmare On Elm Street" series though Paramount still held claim to the video rights to the first eight "Friday" films. The first DVD releases for these titles were noticeably short on extras and fans were begging for updated versions. Paramount answered the calls of the fans but in typical fashion, they rushed to put out a half-baked deluxe package. Originally rumored to feature the uncut versions of all eight films, the final product puts the movies together (two on each disc) over four discs with a fifth disc featuring bonus material. The deleted scenes are in pretty poor quality and aside from the unedited death sequences in "Part VII", there isn't much to write home about. There are commentary tracks for four of the films (III, VI, VII, VIII) and cast interviews for each movie with Corey Feldman, Tom Savini, Kane Hodder, and others. Not a bad collection but one can't help feeling short-changed when comparing the original plan for this boxed set with the end result.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Friday the 13th DVD box set
Review: So this is what all of us "Friday the 13th" fans have been waiting years for. Finally, the first eight movies in a box set; and I must say, for the most part, I am pretty satisfied with it. The story behind all the movies is about how sometimes psychotic, sometimes zombie-like Jason Vorhees returns from the dead from time to time to brutally murder camp councilors and vacationing campers around his home of Crystal Lake, NY (I guess New York, anyway). The graphic violence and sex elements became the sterotypical standard for the slasher movie thanks to this series (well, I guess there were the other "Friday" knock-offs, but those don't count). Now, on to the technical details of the DVD set. There are five disks, with two movies on each disk, and the fifth has several featurs ("Killer Features" they are called) like cast and crew comments on their particulor film, an inside look at Tom Savini's contribution to the make-up effects in his two movies (Parts 1 and 4), and also there is a feature about some of the props from the movies that have ended up in the crews possession (like the guitar from Part 8 and the machete from Part 4; that show was a little dull, but gives you an idea of what to look for on e-bay). The best feature was the deleted scenes. Part 1 was nothing special, just a few extra seconds of gore when Kevin Bacon died. Part 4 had an extra scene where two doomed lovers talked a lot (very dull). Part 7 was the best of the batch; the MPAA made the producers remove a lot of the gore, and from what I saw, the scenes would have made the movie much, much better than the final cut (in fact, Part 7 is one of my least favorites; I like to say that the censors did more slashing than Jason did). Of the movies themselves only four of them (Parts 3,6,7, and 8) have cast and crew commentaries; but to their credit, all four commentary tracks are interesting to listen to (Parts 7 and 8 are my favorite, but all of them are good). I am unhappy because I thought that, for one thing, Paramount could have incorperated the deleted scenes back into the movies. That is one thing that I want to see. Another is why wasn't there a audio commentery with Part 1? I know that they had Sean Cunningham and Tom Savini there for the interviews; would it have been so hard to have them talk about film? But, box set is still a real treat for all of us who were raised on "Friday the 13th" back in the glorious (and gory) '80s. An absolute must for Jason fans everywhere.


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