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Directed By
Danny Steinmann
Written By:
Danny Steinmann, Martin Kitrosser, David M. Cohen
Cast:
Richard Young, Corey Feldman, Anthony Barrile, Dominick Brascia, Todd Bryant, Tiffany Helm, Richard Lineback, Ric Mancini, John Shepherd, Juliette Cummins, Bob DeSimone, Shavar Ross, Melanie Kinnaman, Shavar Ross, Carol Lacatell, Vernon Washington, Suzanne Bateman, Curtis Conaway .... Les, Jere Fields
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Friday the 13th Part 5: A New Beginning (1985)
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Movie Review by Ben
October 11th, 2009
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I remember watching television with my brother when a commercial for this unexpected sequel came on. I don't know, maybe we were watching "T.J. Hooker," the original "Battlestar Galactica" or something else. This was back before I really followed movies ever so closely, so I was stunned. Another "Friday the 13th" movie?! What happened to Part IV being "The Final Chapter"? Whatever the reason, I actually thought it was cool that Jason was coming back from the dead, and this was regardless of the fact that I had not seen a single movie from this franchise at that point (I was only 10). "The Final Chapter" turned out to be the biggest hit of the series at that point, so the money train couldn't just stop there. This is further proof that evil never dies, certainly not when a sh*tload of money is involved.
The "Friday the 13th" movies have always divided critics and moviegoers. The utter hatred of movies like these from critics like Siskel & Ebert actually gave people (young adults especially) more reason to see them when they opened. But that's the great thing about Part V, because it's the one movie in this endless slasher series that both critics and fans can agree one in that is truly horrible. "Friday the 13th Part V: A New Beginning" is the pits of the bunch, and this still remains the case 25 years after its release. It was a pathetic attempt to keep the series going, just like when Blake Edwards kept "The Pink Panther" going without Peter Sellers. Granted, these movies have never been known to be artistic triumphs, so you have to admit that it's pretty significant that this one actually brought about the same level of backlash from two opposing forces. That's the great thing about "A New Beginning," it actually succeeds in bringing people together through it being so bad.
This sequel is actually the second in the Tommy Jarvis trilogy (Parts IV, V & VI), and Corey Feldman returns as that same character who killed Jason in the last one. We see him visiting Jason Voorhees' grave and then hiding in the trees when two guys with shovels come over. They are the first of the many stupid characters introduced to us as they dig up Jason's grave, and he immediately rises again, slashing these two dumb guys with a minimum of vicious effort. After he gets up, Jason then spots little Tommy and goes over to get his revenge... and then Tommy wakes up. From there he is played by John Shepherd who gives us an older Tommy who we see is still dealing with the psychological aftermath of bashing Jason with that machete years after it happened. Corey's presence in the film is just a mere cameo as he was busy making a much better film called "The Goonies."
Tommy has apparently been shuffled from mental hospital to the next, and he is now on his way to a new one called Pinehurst halfway house. Basically, it's Crystal Lake as a mental hospital. Poor Tommy has been given just about just about antidepressant and anti-psychotic drug ever to known to man to keep him sane. Still, it apparently didn't stop him from working out in the gym because he really has developed a nice set of abs and a very prominent six pack. It's enough to help him beat the crap out of others for no good reason. We should at least admire this kid for managing to survive puberty as this incident has forever changed him.
Here's the thing that separates "A New Beginning" from the others; Jason Voorhees is actually not the killer in this one. This is the first one since the original where that hockey-masked momma's boy is not the killer. As a result, Part V is actually a whodunit where you won't know who the real killer is until the very end. Or maybe you will if you look at the suspects very closely, especially their eyes. The Scooby Doo ending is unbelievably ridiculous as we learn the killer's motive and how that person used Jason's MO to keep from being caught. This is made clear when the local police find newspaper clippings this person kept regarding Jason's reign of terror. Come on! I was laughing my ass off for all the wrong reasons! I somehow doubt that anyone can become that creative of a killer in record time. But I guess anything is possible, especially when money is involved.
Characters in the "Friday the 13th" movies have never been more than one-dimensional human beings who are out to go party and get laid, and this one doesn't really change that dynamic. What is different though is how utterly annoying they all are. This is probably the first of the sequels where the audience was more than happy to some of these characters get killed off. Anything to stop them from whining such cringe inducing dialogue!
In terms of the kills presented "A New Beginning," they actually seem unimaginative and puny compared to the last three films. That gag with the flare going into a guy's mouth was put to much better use several years later in "Dead Calm." Same thing with those gardening shears plucking out the eyes, as there have many knock offs that used this because the machete was already taken by Jason. Then there are the machete killings themselves which almost convinced me that Jason really did come back from the dead. I guess what the sequel is missing most is the work of Tom Savini who gave us deaths and copious amounts of blood and gore with a vicious sense of reality. But Savini stuck to his word that Part IV would be his last one since it allowed him to kill off Jason for good (lol). The ones who took over for him from here on out still cannot equal what he did.
Jason Voorhees, or whoever appears as Jason Voorhees in this sequel, is played by Tom Morga, a stuntman who has since worked on various projects like "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Spider-Man" among others. His work as Jason in this film is not bad, but it's hardly memorable compared to what other actors later brought to it, especially Kane Hodder. Then again, this is not a role that requires too much in terms of method acting. Of course, if someone were to try method acting in this role (eat your heart out Daniel Day Lewis) they would end up in solitary confinement or death row.
As Tommy Jarvis, John Shepherd gives us the most intense and screwed up version of this character. We're not talking Oscar worthy acting here, and he does overdo it at times, but he manages to convey the extreme mental state of this guy without having to say too much. In fact, Shepherd only has 24 words of dialogue throughout the whole movie, not including the laughing or yelling he does. It's almost ironic that he became a born again Christian some time after doing "A New Beginning." I guess it was a new beginning for John in a whole other way!
The director of this fiasco of a sequel is Danny Steinmann whose other credits include "Savage Streets" and "The Unseen." It should be noted that "A New Beginning" was also his last film as a director, and his file in IMDB indicates that he has not worked on movies since.
You have to at least give Paramount credit though for not immediately resurrecting Jason for Part V, for that would have made the lie of "The Final Chapter" all the more insulting to our intelligence. It was a no win situation for them, so they had to go back to what worked best. I never thought I would be so relieved to see Jason come back after this cringe inducing sequel. It almost makes me say "thank god!" Of course, that is kind of ironic considering... well, you know... Don't deny you've seen these movies!
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