Friday the 13th: Part 3 3-D literally starts with the last ten minutes of the previous film in order to catch anyone up to speed. For those that don't know, Jason Voorhees is everyone's favorite mass murdering mama's boy that lets his frustration out on not-so-innocent teens. This time, a group of friends decides to get away for the weekend to just have fun. What they didn't know was the cabin they were staying at wasn't too far away from Camp Blood and the woods might still be haunted by the killer they heard about from the news.
You have your typical garden variety teenagers here; there is the over-sexed jock and his hot girlfriend, a couple of stoners that share a love for the pipe, and the slightly awkward fat friend Shelly (played by Larry Zerner). Shelly doesn't have the best luck with women and when his friends bring along a blind date for him, he doesn't see any chances with her either. Shelly resorts to practical jokes and cheap scares to make himself feel important around his friends. As it turns out, Shelly is the most important character in the entire series because he is responsible for giving Jason his iconic hockey mask.
What matters to most fans is still intact. The kills are gruesome and entertaining and there is just a hint of nudity to make sure it fills its T & A quota. People are impaled on pitchforks, a girl has a very unprofessional eye exam with a speargun, and the most unfortunate of all is treated for his headache by Jason's enormous hands. Friday the 13th: Part 3 3-D is full of cheesy and campy goodness for any fan. Friday the 13th: Part 3 3-D is the first, and only, F13 movie to be shot in 3-D. Being that I suffer from color blindness, 3-D has never worked for me and unfortunately, the effects are wasted on me with classic red and blue 3-D glasses. I have heard mixed reviews about the effects though. Some people say it is fine, while others say the transition doesn't line up the two images right and causes a blurred effect. All I can comment on is Friday the 13th: Part 3 3-D with 3-D glasses is nearly unwatchable, but thankfully both the 2-D and 3-D version of the film are included on the Blu-ray.
I feel like whoever decided to re-release the Friday the 13th series on Blu-ray stopped trying after Part 1. Part 3 falls prey to the same mistakes as the previous Blu-ray releases. Grainy images and visible celluloid markings break any attempt to jump to HD. Which, out of all the movies in the series, you would assume the only one in 3-D would be done right in HD.
Other than both versions of the film, you also get a few more documentaries about cast and crew and the lasting effects of what was new about this entry. What I liked most was a short extra on the reception of Jason's mask. He had the burlap sack in Part 2 and the producers wanted something more to attract moviegoers. I love in-depth analysis of horror movies and I am still waiting for a retrospective of all of the films with commentary from the original cast of Part 1. I guess the short piece about Jason's place among horror icons like Michael Myers and Freddy Krueger is good enough, but I want more next time.
Friday the 13th: Part 3 3-D is exactly like the last two releases on Blu-ray. There isn't enough HD transfer to make it a showcase for your new TV, but if you are a fan of the franchise and you haven't picked these up yet in any form, then you need to stop what you are doing and pick up the next chapter of Crystal Lake's machete-wielding maniac.
