Connect with us

Editorials

13 Unlikable ‘Friday the 13th’ Victims Whose Deaths We Cheered

Published

on

Jason Friday the 13th Part III Anniversary

Because sometimes, a little machete justice is well deserved.

October this year not only brings with it the Halloween holiday we ache for 364 days out of the year, but a bonus Friday the 13th as well; it doesn’t get any better than that folks. And while Michael Myers eats up most of the glory this month, the Shape takes a breather for a day as our special, special boy Jason takes the reigns as we focus on one-third of the unholy trinity (Freddy, Jason, and Michael) on his day of reckoning. Also, let’s talk science here- some of that violent reckoning felt great to those who really had it coming.

Yes, like most horror films, you have a hero, best buddy, comic relief, and of course, a serious douchebag. Classic standards that make up the cast for a horror movie, right? And the beloved Friday the 13th franchise had more than its fair share of scum sharing the screen with Camp Crystal Lake’s most notorious mama’s boy, who when met face-to-face with the machete of justice, we cheered as if our hometown sports team won the state championship.

In celebration of one of our favorite ongoing (hopefully) series of slasher films and the second greatest day of the year, instead of weeping for the innocents’ fate at the hands (or power tool) of Jason, we rejoice in the much-welcomed departure of 13 of Crystal Lake’s biggest assholes.


13. Shelly Finkelstein

Some people love the character of Shelly, while some find him insufferable. I almost feel like a prick for putting him on this list, however, when I hear him speak after a recent rewatch, I don’t feel as bad for including the “Franklin” of the F13 franchise. His ongoing bad pranks of “the boy who cried wolf”, ended abruptly and ever so adequately with a slash to the throat rendering him unable to speak- thank fucks…


12. Axle Burns

Axle had a bit part in The Final Chapter, but the little time he spent on screen, made us hate this dirty creep enough to crack a smile when Jason served him his just desserts with a throat slash and bonus head twist. Sorry Axle, weirdo-sexy-booty-rump time is over. Jackass.


11. Tamara Mason

The mean girl award of 1989 definitely goes to Tamara Mason. This manipulative chick who also peer pressures her friend into using drugs, attempts to use her looks and sexuality to advance in life, giving zero fucks who gets hurt in the process. Ironically enough, Jason kills her with pieces of a broken mirror in her bathroom. Poetic justice? Absolutely.


10. Ethel Hubbard

Ethel Hubbard, the foul-mouthed redneck down the road brings the sanctity of bitchdom to a whole other level of crazy in The New Beginning. While her oddball mama’s boy of a son could rival Jason’s own admiration for his mother, he couldn’t even hold a candle to this broad. She acted as if the kids in the group home shit in her cheerios on a daily basis, and if ole Roy hadn’t killed the teens, she probably would have eventually. Also, I was pretty relieved once her shrilling voice fell silent in her soup slop.


9. Trent Sutton

Man, Trent was such a narcissistic douchebag. He’s like the popular guy in high school who got off on making people who he deemed beneath him lives so goddamn miserable, and you wanted to see the shithead trip and fall flat on his face, breaking his nose so badly. He’s a controlling boyfriend and a cheating scum. Jenna deserved way better- and Trent deserved that trip down Crystal Lake Justice Lane.


8. Melissa Paur

Snobby Melissa from The New Blood may have been a match made in Heaven for ole Trent before her on this list. How the people that had to be in close proximity of this character didn’t knock her teeth out, is beyond my comprehension. Manipulative and sneaky, this bitch tried to play all her cards to get her way; and that way resulted in an ax to her forehead. A glorious end to miss pink and pearls if you’re asking me.


7. Robert Campbell

This sleazy journalist from Jason Goes to Hell gives us all a bad name. Hijacking the body of his girlfriend’s mother for the purposes of fame and job advancement is pretty damn despicable. The guy never passed Ethics 101 I’m guessing. Campbell being possessed by Jason makes him just over the top cringe-worthy, if that were even possible, yet here we are. And his place, along with his body resulting in a puddle of melted goo per the Jason possession, is well deserved indeed.


6. Ali, Fox, and Loco

Three of the most memorable characters from the third Friday installment, wouldn’t have deserved their fate had they just left shit alone. But turning the other tattooed cheek has no place in the Crystal Lake universe! They roughed up Shelly, which was kind of refreshing, but they crossed the line when trying to burn down the barn that could have resulted in seriously hurting innocent people. Eh, they had it coming.


5. Charles McCulloch

Jason taking out the trash in Manhattan indeed! Ok, Canada but let’s pretend that wasn’t a thing. The abusive, cold-hearted uncle of the sweet Rennie almost let his niece who he retains guardianship over, drown as a young child; resulting in a crippling anxiety of the water Rennie carried into her young adulthood. Jason planting Charles headfirst into what looks like a toxic waste barrel from a TMNT cartoon, seemed like a suitable ending for this piece of shit.


4. Dr. Crews

Crews, the physiatrist of telekinetic Tina Shepherd is a flat out first-rate asshole. It’s pretty easy to hate the guy, as similar to Jason Goes to Hell douche Robert Campbell, uses others to gain notoriety; and he’s not even slick about it. Crews lures Tina and her mother to Crystal Lake for some special therapy, but he’s only trying to exploit the poor, damaged girl. Plus, he gets Tina’s mother killed due to his recklessness. Can’t say I didn’t chuckle when he got mowed down with a hand-held motor saw.


3. Junkie Criminals

I really don’t think I need to make too much of an argument here on these two pieces of sexual assaulting, junkie pieces of shit. The pair of junkie alleyway thugs that abducted Rennie, stuck a needle in her, and attempting to have their way with her, deserved much more than a needle through their back and a face smash into a pipe. However, Jason, albeit unintentionally, saves the day again by ridding the world of serious trash.


2. Raver Rapist

As if his clothing choices weren’t reason enough to kill this little shit, the raving rapist pretty much ties places here with the junkie thugs from Manhattan. The only difference here is the cowardly approach sneaking up on a girl while she’s indisposed. Although poor Gibb suffered in the crossfire between Voorhees and the raver predator, we can only look at it as taking one for the team for the greater good of humanity.


1. Roy Burns

Picking up right where Jason left off, paramedic Roy Burns loses his shit when he sees his son has been murdered quite violently by one of the troubled kids at the group home cabin. He snaps, grabs a hockey mask, and poses as Voorhees killing off anyone connected to his son, no matter how minor. So yeah, not only did he deserve his fate because of his wild killing spree, but where exactly the fuck was he when his son needed him? Allowing this poor kid to jump from foster home to foster home, never having stability? All of a sudden this dude wants to give a shit? Pfft, what a terrible deadbeat dad.


As I leave you here with one of the greatest musical contributions to horror movie history by the fabulous Metropolis, let’s talk below about Jason taking on the heroic role in the Friday films by ridding the planet of complete wastes of oxygen. Who do you think was the worst of the worst?

Editorials

‘Immaculate’ – A Companion Watch Guide to the Religious Horror Movie and Its Cinematic Influences

Published

on

The Devils - Immaculate companion guide
Pictured: 'The Devils' 1971

The religious horror movie Immaculate, starring Sydney Sweeney and directed by Michael Mohan, wears its horror influences on its sleeves. NEON’s new horror movie is now available on Digital and PVOD, making it easier to catch up with the buzzy title. If you’ve already seen Immaculate, this companion watch guide highlights horror movies to pair with it.

Sweeney stars in Immaculate as Cecilia, a woman of devout faith who is offered a fulfilling new role at an illustrious Italian convent. Cecilia’s warm welcome to the picture-perfect Italian countryside gets derailed soon enough when she discovers she’s become pregnant and realizes the convent harbors disturbing secrets.

From Will Bates’ gothic score to the filming locations and even shot compositions, Immaculate owes a lot to its cinematic influences. Mohan pulls from more than just religious horror, though. While Immaculate pays tribute to the classics, the horror movie surprises for the way it leans so heavily into Italian horror and New French Extremity. Let’s dig into many of the film’s most prominent horror influences with a companion watch guide.

Warning: Immaculate spoilers ahead.


Rosemary’s Baby

'Rosemary's Baby' - Is Paramount's 'Apartment 7A' a Secret Remake?! [Exclusive]

The mother of all pregnancy horror movies introduces Rosemary Woodhouse (Mia Farrow), an eager-to-please housewife who’s supportive of her husband, Guy, and thrilled he landed them a spot in the coveted Bramford apartment building. Guy proposes a romantic evening, which gives way to a hallucinogenic nightmare scenario that leaves Rosemary confused and pregnant. Rosemary’s suspicions and paranoia mount as she’s gaslit by everyone around her, all attempting to distract her from her deeply abnormal pregnancy. While Cecilia follows a similar emotional journey to Rosemary, from the confusion over her baby’s conception to being gaslit by those who claim to have her best interests in mind, Immaculate inverts the iconic final frame of Rosemary’s Baby to great effect.


The Exorcist

Dick Smith makeup The Exorcist

William Friedkin’s horror classic shook audiences to their core upon release in the ’70s, largely for its shocking imagery. A grim battle over faith is waged between demon Pazuzu and priests Damien Karras (Jason Miller) and Lankester Merrin (Max von Sydow). The battleground happens to be a 12-year-old, Regan MacNeil (Linda Blair), whose possessed form commits blasphemy often, including violently masturbating with a crucifix. Yet Friedkin captures the horrifying events with stunning cinematography; the emotional complexity and shot composition lend elegance to a film that counterbalances the horror. That balance between transgressive imagery and artful form permeates Immaculate as well.


Suspiria

Suspiria

Jessica Harper stars as Suzy Bannion, an American newcomer at a prestigious dance academy in Germany who uncovers a supernatural conspiracy amid a series of grisly murders. It’s a dance academy so disciplined in its art form that its students and faculty live their full time, spending nearly every waking hour there, including built-in meals and scheduled bedtimes. Like Suzy Bannion, Cecilia is a novitiate committed to learning her chosen trade, so much so that she travels to a foreign country to continue her training. Also, like Suzy, Cecilia quickly realizes the pristine façade of her new setting belies sinister secrets that mean her harm. 


What Have You Done to Solange?

What Have You Done to Solange

This 1972 Italian horror film follows a college professor who gets embroiled in a bizarre series of murders when his mistress, a student, witnesses one taking place. The professor starts his own investigation to discover what happened to the young woman, Solange. Sex, murder, and religion course through this Giallo’s veins, which features I Spit on Your Grave’s Camille Keaton as Solange. Immaculate director Michael Mohan revealed to The Wrap that he emulated director Massimo Dallamano’s techniques, particularly in a key scene that sees Cecilia alone in a crowded room of male superiors, all interrogating her on her immaculate status.


The Red Queen Kills Seven Times

The Red Queen Kills Seven Times

In this Giallo, two sisters inherit their family’s castle that’s also cursed. When a dark-haired, red-robed woman begins killing people around them, the sisters begin to wonder if the castle’s mysterious curse has resurfaced. Director Emilio Miraglia infuses his Giallo with vibrant style, with the titular Red Queen instantly eye-catching in design. While the killer’s design and use of red no doubt played an influential role in some of Immaculate’s nightmare imagery, its biggest inspiration in Mohan’s film is its score. Immaculate pays tribute to The Red Queen Kills Seven Times through specific music cues.


The Vanishing

The Vanishing

Rex’s life is irrevocably changed when the love of his life is abducted from a rest stop. Three years later, he begins receiving letters from his girlfriend’s abductor. Director George Sluizer infuses his simple premise with bone-chilling dread and psychological terror as the kidnapper toys with Red. It builds to a harrowing finale you won’t forget; and neither did Mohan, who cited The Vanishing as an influence on Immaculate. Likely for its surprise closing moments, but mostly for the way Sluizer filmed from inside a coffin. 


The Other Hell

The Other Hell

This nunsploitation film begins where Immaculate ends: in the catacombs of a convent that leads to an underground laboratory. The Other Hell sees a priest investigating the seemingly paranormal activity surrounding the convent as possessed nuns get violent toward others. But is this a case of the Devil or simply nuns run amok? Immaculate opts to ground its horrors in reality, where The Other Hell leans into the supernatural, but the surprise lab setting beneath the holy grounds evokes the same sense of blasphemous shock. 


Inside

Inside 2007

During Immaculate‘s freakout climax, Cecilia sets the underground lab on fire with Father Sal Tedeschi (Álvaro Morte) locked inside. He manages to escape, though badly burned, and chases Cecilia through the catacombs. When Father Tedeschi catches Cecilia, he attempts to cut her baby out of her womb, and the stark imagery instantly calls Alexandre Bustillo and Julien Maury’s seminal French horror movie to mind. Like Tedeschi, Inside’s La Femme (Béatrice Dalle) will stop at nothing to get the baby, badly burned and all. 


Burial Ground

Burial Ground creepy kid

At first glance, this Italian zombie movie bears little resemblance to Immaculate. The plot sees an eclectic group forced to band together against a wave of undead, offering no shortage of zombie gore and wild character quirks. What connects them is the setting; both employed the Villa Parisi as a filming location. The Villa Parisi happens to be a prominent filming spot for Italian horror; also pair the new horror movie with Mario Bava’s A Bay of Blood or Blood for Dracula for additional boundary-pushing horror titles shot at the Villa Parisi.


The Devils

The Devils 1971 religious horror

The Devils was always intended to be incendiary. Horror, at its most depraved and sadistic, tends to make casual viewers uncomfortable. Ken Russell’s 1971 epic takes it to a whole new squeamish level with its nightmarish visuals steeped in some historical accuracy. There are the horror classics, like The Exorcist, and there are definitive transgressive horror cult classics. The Devils falls squarely in the latter, and Russell’s fearlessness in exploring taboos and wielding unholy imagery inspired Mohan’s approach to the escalating horror in Immaculate

Continue Reading