Editorials
The Craziest Thing You’ve Probably Never Noticed About ‘Friday the 13th Part 2’
Did you revisit Friday the 13th Part 2 this past Friday the 13th? We bet you didn’t notice this.
Before cutting ahead to several years after the events of the original classic, 1981 sequel Friday the 13th Part 2 first provides us with a little insight into what Alice Hardy’s life is like in the immediate wake of her being forced to decapitate the vengeful Mrs. Voorhees. In the film’s opening sequence, which is set just a couple months after Pamela’s murder spree, Jason breaks into a still-traumatized Alice’s apartment and makes quick work of her, first reminding her of what she did to his mother (not that she could ever forget) and then sticking an ice pick into her temple. Just like that, the first film’s final girl uneventfully takes her final breath.
Five years later, a new group of counselors arrive at Crystal Lake, and as we learn courtesy of a campfire story told by Paul Holt, Alice Hardy had mysteriously vanished two months after surviving her hellish ordeal on that fateful Friday the 13th. Of course, we know what the police do not – Alice’s isn’t “missing” so much as she is dead – but Paul’s spooky tale does indicate that Alice’s body was never found. In other words, Jason didn’t just kill her and leave her corpse in her apartment, but rather he must’ve disposed of it in some way. So what the hell did he do with it?
If you’re paying VERY close attention, the film goes on to subtly answer that question.
Towards the end of Friday the 13th Part 2, Ginny Field stumbles into Jason’s dilapidated shack out in the woods, and there she discovers that the masked maniac has kept his mom’s severed head all these years. Furthermore, he has used his mother’s head as the centerpiece of a tribute to her, and you may have spotted that a couple freshly-killed bodies surround the altar – namely, the corpses of Terry and the cop who had found Jason’s shack earlier in the film. But there’s another dead body that’s positioned front and center, and it’s clear that the victim has been dead a whole lot longer than the others.
The camera doesn’t linger on it for more than a couple seconds, but if you freeze frame at just the right moment, you’ll see that the corpse at the base of Mrs. Voorhees’ altar has something sticking out of its head. Embedded into the weathered and worn skull is what certainly appears to be an ice pick, and wouldn’t you know it, it’s sticking out of the exact spot where Alice Hardy was stabbed years prior.
Yes, five years after murdering her, Jason is still in possession of Alice’s corpse, and in a bizarre tribute to his mother, he has made it a part of the very same altar that proudly displays Pamela’s head. Putting yourself in Jason’s mindset for just a minute, it actually makes perfect sense, with Pamela’s killer being offered up to her in the afterlife. It’s still unclear how far Jason traveled to track down and kill Alice, and the thought of him hitching a ride on the Greyhound is nothing if not a humorous one, but there’s something sweet about him getting revenge and then presenting his kill to his mommy, isn’t there?
I’m kidding. It’s totally sick and creepy.
Did you ever notice this?!
Editorials
‘The Vampire Lestat’ Concert Event Launches New Season With The Ultimate Expression Of Fandom
There are thousands of passionate fans decked out in gothic chic and champing at the bit like feral creatures. They’re screaming for Lestat, a legendary vampire-turned-rock star, as if the entire crowd has been glamored into submission.
The entire experience is magic, but not because some supernatural thrall has been activated. What’s going on is even more special. It’s the power of the effusive fandom that’s been authentically assembled by AMC’s sublime Immortal Universe, namely Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire, now, The Vampire Lestat.
The Vampire Lestat is far from the first Anne Rice adaptation, and it’s not as if there’s been a lack of erotic vampire material for audiences to sink their teeth into. On June 2nd, during a one-night-only spectacle, New York City’s prestigious Beacon Theatre shook from Sam Reid’s bravado performance and an audience full of adoring fans who had already memorized Lestat’s songs.
It’s clear that The Vampire Lestat just hits differently than its predecessors. It’s become more than just a TV series at this point, and this opulent display of ego, swagger, and pure sex is the perfect way to premiere the new season and give back to the fans who helped make Interview with the Vampire/The Vampire Lestat such a breakout success. It’s exactly the sort of hyperbolized hedonism that would make Lestat cackle.
For all intents and purposes, AMC has successfully created the illusion that this concert/premiere is just one of the many destinations on Lestat and his band’s 54-stop tour that is simultaneously playing out on this season of television. It’s such a sophisticated and thorough level of interactive fan engagement that the audience doesn’t just understand, but also manages to accentuate through its involvement.
It’s a level of seamless synergy that’s not unlike the give-and-take relationship of vampire and victim.
Before the concert started, “LeStans” were sitting in the Beacon and flipping through a fake Rolling Stone issue with Lestat emblazoned on the cover, complete with interviews with the undead frontman inside. Other fans were admiring the vinyl pressing of Lestat’s EP as they walked past a section of undead band merch. Fandom and fantasy blur together, and it all becomes this elaborate, immersive experience. Fan celebration, erotic gothic fantasy, and a lavish rock concert transform into one beautiful thing.
To this point, AMC Global Media’s Chief Content Officer and President of AMC Studios, Dan McDermott, introduced the event by reiterating to fans, “You are the heartbeat of the series.” That’s abundantly clear on nights like this as that heartbeat collectively pulses to this performance. In terms of how AMC engages with The Vampire Lestat’s fans, it’s as bold a reinvention as the season itself.
This intuitive gamble speaks to AMC’s creativity in this department and a fandom that is eager to seize such opportunities. It’s the same innovation that led to zombie walks for The Walking Dead and real-life Los Pollos Hermanos restaurant pop-ups from Breaking Bad. It’s a great way to pump up the audience for The Vampire Lestat and then maintain that enthusiasm for the whole season.
For most series, a rock ‘n’ roll concert just doesn’t make any sense as a promotional tool. The Vampire Lestat finds itself in a very unique position where it can deliver an excellent concert at an iconic theater, but also use it to showcase The Vampire Lestat’s music by Daniel Hart (who was shredding on stage alongside Reid and the rest of their band) and, more than anything, Sam Reid’s endless charisma.
The way in which Reid feeds off of the crowd’s energy, modulating his performance and giving different sections of the Beacon life, is a perfect distillation of the series’ thoughtful relationship with its audience and how it’s become such a breakout success for AMC. AMC Studios President Dan McDermott emphasized that the fans are the reason that the show is still here and why an event like this is even possible. It’s rare to see a series in which every single cog in the machine is so perfectly attuned to its fans. Reid’s fans already cheer whenever they see him, so why not translate that to a concert setting?
It’s clear in this season of television that Reid was born to be a rock star, but it’s surreal to see him effortlessly command the stage — and the audience — at every step of the concert. He recites Shakespeare monologues and bitches out Armand between songs, all while the audience screams in support. For the duration of this concert, Reid is Lestat, and he’s given thousands of fans a memory that’s as immortal as any vampire.
Now bring on the encore and get this show on the road!
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