Editorials
The Last Voyage of the Lazarus: Was ‘Jason Takes Manhattan’ Inspired by ‘Dracula’?
Contrary to what many people assume, most forms of film criticism are indifferent to whether or not the ideas present within a movie were placed there intentionally. The only “rule” is that the critic should be able to justify their personal interpretation with examples taken from whatever is being examined. After all, art discourse usually says more about the people discussing the work than the artist themself, and that’s why I don’t mind it if you read this article and end up thinking that I’m reading too much into a silly slasher flick.
Naturally, the slasher in question is Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. And with the film celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, this seems like the perfect opportunity to discuss why I believe this over-hated sequel deserves to be re-evaluated as an oddly fascinating (and likely accidental) homage to Bram Stoker’s Dracula. So please join me as I attempt to unravel the possible inspiration for one of the most hated entries in the F13 franchise.
In order to properly dive into this wild comparison, it’s only appropriate that we look back on the ideas that originally informed Stoker as he wrote Dracula, which is why our journey begins long before the iconic Count was even a twinkle in the author’s eye.
In the days before the industrial revolution, it was believed that horror exclusively lurked outside human settlements, taking the form of Big Bad Wolves and Baba Yagas that would patiently wait for naïve children to step out of the safety of their close-knit communities. Whatever mysteries that lay beyond familiar population centers was seen as dangerous and otherworldly, which is what led to the legends and superstitions that eventually gave birth to both blood-sucking vampires and murderous revenants with a penchant for hockey masks.
Of course, this idealized black-and-white view of the world couldn’t last forever, and the population boom of the 18th century (the result of an abundance of resources spawned by technological innovation) led to larger cities and our first taste of true urban chaos. From the widely reported horrors of Jack the Ripper to the fantastical rumors concerning Spring-Heeled Jack – as well the horrors of abusive capitalism – it seemed like evil was finally managing to seep in through the cracks, infecting society like the (then) new diseases attracted to crowded living spaces. And as our fears evolved, urban legends began to replace the witches and werewolves of old.
This is where Bram Stoker comes in, with the legendary author realizing that the late 19th century no longer had room for the superstitions of yesteryear and deciding to write a story where the old-fashioned horrors of pre-industrialized society would attempt to invade what was then the largest and most technologically advanced city in the world.
In case you need a refresher, Dracula follows an ensemble of “modern” professionals (including lawyers, doctors and Texan gunslingers) as they band together to prevent a demonic foreigner from turning London into his new playground. In many ways, Count Dracula himself represents an antiquated and superstitious view of the world, which is why it’s only appropriate that his old-fashioned evil is ultimately thwarted by scientific advances like blood transfusions (which were still experimental back when the book was released) and rational, scientifically minded protagonists.
And this is where slasher flicks enter the picture. Better writers have documented how cultural events like the Vietnam war, celebrity serial killers and the civil rights movement led to both studios and audiences craving for simpler times, but suffice to say that there was yet another shift in how storytellers saw the world. People once again wanted to believe that evil only lurked out in the middle of the woods and targeted those who foolishly engaged in chaotic behavior.
This is one of the main reasons that the Friday the 13th franchise saw so many sequels, as villainizing “backwoods” regions made the cities seem safer by comparison. But when the time came for an 8th entry, newcomer writer/director Rob Hedden wanted to do things differently, coming up with two completely different pitches that would finally free Jason from Crystal Lake. One of these ideas was meant to be a claustrophobic homage to Alien set on a cruise ship, while the other was an urban exploitation flick set in an over-the-top version of Manhattan. Due to budgetary constraints (and a desire to hold onto his favorite ideas), Hedden ended up combining both concepts – though many critics argue that we ended up getting the worst of both worlds.
In case you haven’t seen the finished film, Jason Takes Manhattan follows a group of High School graduates and their chaperones as they embark on a celebratory cruise to New York City. Unfortunately, the undead killer Jason Voorhees has just been revived and is now stuck on the ship alongside them, with the inevitable bloodshed eventually spilling over into the City That Never Sleeps.
Even on the surface, you can already find a few similarities between this story and Dracula. For starters, the setup of Jason on a ship is clearly reminiscent of the Last Voyage of the Demeter section of the novel, with the SS Lazarus (named in honor of the villain’s “miraculous” revival) serving as an isolated slaughterhouse before unwittingly releasing a killer upon an unsuspecting city. There’s also the psychic connection between Jason and Rennie, which is arguably similar to Dracula’s connection to Mina Harker.
Diving a little deeper, however, you may start to recognize some surprising thematic similarities – especially concerning Jason’s relationship with the Big Apple itself. Much like Dracula was forced to hide out in secret estates while relying on a madman to do his dirty work – a far cry from his noble status in Transylvania – Jason’s work is also made much harder when he finally makes it to New York. Jaded citizens ignore the rotting killer as he stomps after his prey, and he even has to deal with law enforcement aiding the survivors now that they’re in a bustling city instead of a remote campground.
Then there’s that ending. The toxic waste that saves our heroes may be a hilariously contrived plot device (“it floods every night at midnight!”), but it can also be argued that the green sludge represents the very same rational thinking that ultimately defeated Dracula – just with some added post-nuclear flavor. Life in an oppressive metropolis was simply too much for Jason to bear, and what better way of showing this than by having him be killed by the toxic byproduct of the city’s seedy underbelly? After all, the spawn of superstitious legends simply can’t survive in a modern society already jaded by urban evil.
There are a few more common points between the stories, such as the villains’ seemingly arbitrary obsession with a virtuous woman and the recurring imagery of water as a weakness, but I’m not actually here to convince anyone that the film is an unhinged take on Dracula. Instead, I’d only like to suggest that there may be more to this ill-fated pleasure cruise than meets the eye, and there are enough similarities here that it might not be a mere coincidence. Like Milla Jovovich said at the end of The Fourth Kind: “In the end, what you believe is yours to decide.” And while I can’t be sure that Hedden intentionally set out to recreate the O.G. story about an unkillable monster reaching the big city only to be defeated by it, I don’t think that really matters.
Personally, I’m way more interested in how the ideas that inspired Jason Takes Manhattan have a common origin with the themes present in Dracula – which is why I’d argue that these yarns are undoubtedly connected despite existing nearly a century apart. Friday the 13th Part VIII may not be an excellent film, suffering from severe pacing issues and lackluster production value, but on this Friday the 13th, I recommend setting expectations aside and revisiting this over-maligned sequel from a slightly different point of view.
Just don’t expect a Jason vs. Dracula crossover anytime soon…
‘The Last Voyage of the Demeter’ (2023)
The problem with filming sequels back-to-back is that, unless you can afford expensive reshoots, there’s no easy way to adjust course in between movies if fans react badly to where the story is headed. That’s why it’s important to have a complete narrative thought out well in advance lest you accidentally kill a budding franchise.
However, this isn’t always the case. Every once in a while, it seems like the cinema gods smile upon certain chaotic productions and gift moviegoers with complete franchises that feel like more than the sum of their hastily produced parts. Ted Nicolaou’s Bloodlust: Subspecies III is precisely one of these miraculous pictures, with the raw talents of the artists involved (as well as the continued support from Romania) turning the feature into an effective conclusion for a series that kind of made things up as the filmmakers went along.
That’s why I’d like to invite my fellow readers to join me on this third part of our journey through the Subspecies franchise as we look into Bloodlust and talk about how it remains a surprisingly satisfying finale to the original trilogy.
A Trilogy Planned on the Fly
Released only a year after Bloodstone found plenty of success in rental stores and mail-in VHS catalogues worldwide, 1994’s Bloodlust was produced at the same time as its predecessor in (mostly) the same locations and with the same team. This means that the movie benefited from all the same upgrades as Bloodstone, with the crew now being more experienced with the ins and outs of surviving a low-budget Romanian production and the cast really settling into their characters.
At this point, everything from location scouting to the makeup process had been streamlined, with Wayne Toth and Norman Cabrera, the main duo behind special effects, even switching out time-consuming prosthetics for latex gloves in order to speed up Anders Hove’s monstrous transformation. The titular “subspecies” demons were also once again relegated to a mere cameo appearance due to the laborious puppetry required to bring them to life.
The only real hiccup came from the fact that actress Denice Duff had replaced the first film’s Michelle (Laura Mae Tate) and was immediately expected to portray the character as both an innocent victim in part II and as a secondary villain in part III. According to behind-the-scenes interviews, the hectic production schedule that blended two different movies meant that Duff would often find herself having to alternate between two incredibly different versions of Michelle during the same shooting day – though it’s obvious that she’s having more fun with Bloodlust’s more traditionally vampiric version of her character.
In the finished film, we pick things up immediately where the previous entry left off as Rebecca (Melanie Shatner) is forced to leave her vampire sister Michelle (Duff) behind in the dungeons of Castle Vladislav due to the rising sun. This allows Mummy (Pamela Gordon) to use Michelle’s blood to revive the vicious Radu (Hove) so that he may continue his quest for the coveted Bloodstone – a magical artifact that perpetually drips the Blood of Saints.
Meanwhile, the dreamy US embassy agent Mel (Kevin Blair) agrees to help Rebecca plan a rescue mission, though they’re unaware that Radu has become infatuated with Michelle during his attempts to guide her growing bloodlust. This all culminates in a climactic confrontation meant to tie up all of the series’ loose ends in one of Full Moon Pictures’ most ambitious productions.
The Evolution of Radu
Like its predecessor, Bloodlust: Subspecies III was also warmly received by fans who argued that the series was an even bigger success than Full Moon’s other major horror franchise, Puppet Master. This praise wasn’t unanimous, however, as 1994 had seen the rise of a more modern breed of sexy vampire popularized by Anne Rice, with old-school Nosferatu like Radu being viewed as obsolete when compared to the likes of Lestat and Gary Oldman’s take on Dracula.
In a way, one might argue that Nicolaou’s film is something of a swan song for the classic vampire story, as Bloodlust combines all of the traditional elements we tend to associate with these tales into a single tragic yarn that ties a neat little bow on Radu’s story as well as the old-fashioned monster movies that he represents. The finale remains shocking despite the fact that this is the third time we see Radu get brutally killed onscreen, with the brief tease that he may one day return feeling more like a nod towards the nature of evil rather than sequel bait.
The film dabbles a bit in gothic romance and even explores the inherent power fantasy behind transforming into an immortal creature of the night, but the filmmakers never lose sight of Radu as a demonic force even when he’s willing to betray his beloved Mummy for Michelle’s sake. In fact, his twisted “love” for his fledgling makes him even creepier as we get the feeling that his passion comes from a dark and disturbing place.
Anders Hove is at his absolute best in this film, with the effects department boosting his moments of what the younger generation would call “aura farming” whenever Radu emerges from shadows like a 90s version of Count Orlok. There are even a couple of surprisingly effective jump-scares here, which is why I’d argue that Bloodlust cements Radu as one of the most memorable cinematic vampires of all time despite his humble origins.
Subspecies Saves Its Best For Last
Nicolaou and Vlad Panescu also saved the best for “last” (more on that in a bit) regarding the film’s visuals, with the cinematography and overall atmosphere of Bloodlust absolutely surpassing what we saw in the previous films. Everything feels appropriately climactic this time around (including the wonderful soundtrack that was co-composed alongside an authentic Romanian orchestra), and I appreciate how this is the fastest-paced entry in the trilogy since the film doesn’t need to waste time setting anything up.
Bloodlust still suffers from some of the same low-budget blemishes as its predecessors, but there’s so much creative passion here that no amount of wonky effects work or stilted dialogue can get in the way of appreciating the flick’s gothic grandeur. That’s why it’s not surprising that the movie’s definitive(-ish) ending would later be retconned as fans begged for more Radu.
Of course, the next entry in this series would be a different kind of vampiric endeavor altogether, with the filmmakers attempting to engage with the same trends that ultimately killed Radu and his antiquated kin. That, however, is a story for another time. For now, I’ll merely insist that Bloodlust: Subspecies III remains a highlight of Full Moon’s expansive catalogue and is definitely worth seeking out today.
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