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Peacock’s “Crystal Lake” takes the story of the Voorhees family back to the beginning.
It’s a full-circle moment revisiting Pamela Voorhees (Linda Cardellini), who’s the real star of 1980’s “Friday the 13th” and the catalyst for all the murder and mayhem. While it’s a welcome shake-up to the timeline of the horror franchise, nothing tops the originality of the slasher-in-space spectacle known as “Jason X”.
It was 2001, and the “Friday the 13th” franchise had hit a bit of a snag. Audiences had seen Jason Voorhees go everywhere from Crystal Lake to Manhattan and Hell, but where else could this hockey-masked killer go? Screenwriter Todd Farmer had the answer: space.
“Jason X” says the quiet part out loud: Jason (Kane Hodder) can’t die. In this movie, we find Jason being held at the Crystal Lake Research Facility in 2010. The head of the facility, Rowan LaFontaine (Lexa Doig), wants to put him in a cryogenic chamber, but the government has other plans for him.
Things go as well as can be expected, with Jason freeing himself and slaughtering military men like they’re pancakes at a buffet. Fortunately, Rowan manages to lure Jason into a cryogenic chamber as he stabs her, leaving them both frozen in time.
Fast forward to 2455, when a group of space explorers — led by Professor Brandon Lowe (Jonathan Potts) — discover the research facility and the frozen bodies. They bring Rowan and Jason on board their ship, the Grendel.
While they believe Jason to be dead, they’re able to revive Rowan using nanotechnology. As it so happens, Jason isn’t dead at all (what a shocker); he was just catching up on some sleep and dreaming about stuffing teens in sleeping bags and whacking them against each other. He rises from his slumber and goes on a killing spree in the spaceship.
It’s not the slasher-in-space concept alone that elevates this flick (it’s pretty much a running joke that every horror franchise ends up in space eventually). No, it’s the brave (and honestly wild) turns that Jason X takes towards the end.
They turn the movie’s android KM-14 (played by Lisa Ryder of “Andromeda” fame) into a Rambo-esque action hero in the third act, whereby she annihilates Jason with a combination of hokey martial arts moves and ridiculously overpowered weapons.
Sadly, KM-14 makes a critical mistake: she obliterates the silent but violent killer near the medical station where the nanites reside. Not only does Jason get rebuilt bigger and stronger than before, but he’s also now a cyborg with a brand-new metal mask and armor.
Needless to say, “Jason X” fully commits to every eccentric idea and bonkers premise. From the “Kung Pow”-before-“Kung Pow” face-off between KM-14 and Jason to the totally ludicrous and gory kills that border on implausible, this is the “Friday the 13th” movie that you’d dream up after eating too much cheese at midnight.
Most importantly, though, it’s never afraid to embrace the shlock and humor that’s evidently part of its DNA. “Jason X” is a B-movie through and through, and it waters its roots to grow wilder rather than hide or trim them down.
For instance, when Condor (Steve Lucescu) fights against Jason, he throws a bunch of stiff attacks at Crystal Lake’s most famous citizen. However, Jason simply pushes him into a giant drill that’s conveniently placed there (where are the health and safety regulations on the Grendel?!).
That isn’t even the best part here, because when Elijah Brodski (Peter Mensah) asks the others about Condor’s status, he gets met with the sensational line, “He’s screwed.” How this movie didn’t get an Oscar nomination for best screenplay is still a mystery…
It would also be remiss to not mention the greatest kill in “Jason X” — and maybe the “Friday the 13th” franchise as a whole — as Jason freezes Adrienne’s (Kristi Angus) head in liquid nitrogen then shatters it against the counter. It’s a scene so iconic that even the “MythBusters” became fascinated with this idea and had to try it themselves, though without actual human heads being used, of course.
What “Jason X” represents is a different time in Hollywood, when studios and filmmakers weren’t afraid to take outlandish risks with their franchises. Think about it: What else was there left for “Friday the 13th” to do? Let Jason murder more teens who cross his path?
Instead of just repeating the same formula over and over again, these filmmakers decided to think outside of the box and venture into an unexpected direction. Whether you like it or not, you have to appreciate the commitment to trying something new and reinventing the franchise.
When all is said and done, “Crystal Lake” will be remembered as a more cerebral examination of the Voorhees family, but “Jason X” might be seen as the pinnacle of creativity in the series that’s never going to be reached again. It’s so goofy and silly, but the concept of taking an unkillable killer, chucking him into space, and making him a cyborg deserves a standing ovation.
We’re once again left wondering: Why aren’t we making horror movies like this anymore?
Want to relive the madness of “Jason X” for Halloween? You can catch it on Philo, and you can watch the new Jason/Friday the 13th prequel “Crystal Lake” on Peacock.
