7 Key Mistakes Upcoming Movie Reboots Must Avoid
4. Friday The 13th – Trying To Rewrite The Tried And Tested Formula (Again)
People love a good slasher flick, how else do you explain the fact that the Friday the 13th franchise has managed to reach twelve instalments. For a voiceless, uninspired villain, Jason Voorhees certainly commands a lot of respect in the horror community.
As the number of films stack up and get increasingly ridiculous with each fresh attempt, there's now the landmark thirteenth entry in the series to look forward to this year. Obviously, this is an extra special milestone for Voorhees and the trail of destruction he's left behind over the decades so don’t be surprised if they use the opportunity to try and start things afresh.
The problem is, it’s already a tough sell. This is the third movie in the series to be titled Friday the 13th after all and the magic it once commanded has faded more with each schlocky attempt. The best thing they could do is make a no-frills gore fest that pays homage to what has come before and please, for the love of all that is scary, not send him back into space.
Aside from launching him back in time, having him fight the entity from It Follows or something equally reeking of desperation, one of the worst things they could possibly do is to revisit his origins as a wrinkly lake gremlin with an overbearing mother.
The only viable route for a successful remake of Friday the 13th is to go back to basics and look to recent claustrophobic thrillers like Don’t Breath and The Green Room for notes on how to do it properly.