Putting the camp in "campy": "Friday the 13th"

C'mon, after all of the sequels, how can you resist watching the movie that spawned this unholy series? I actually had seen the first "Friday the 13th" way back when -- not when it came out, but still a while back. But when it was on cable not long ago, I hopped to TiVo it, if only to cast a critic's eye on one of the seminal horror movies of the last 25 years.

We all know the unholy trinity: Michael Myers (Halloween), Freddy Krueger (A Nightmare on Elm Street) and Jason (Friday the 13th). Together they dominated horror movies for a good quarter-century, and slams by movie critics notwithstanding, that's saying something. Really ... nobody talks about "Troll" or "Ghoulies," and other serial killer fun, such as "I Know What You Did Last Summer," is just stupid. But looking back on the "Friday the 13th" series, you can't help but admire the simplicity and silliness. I mean, there's no way that could have been lost on the folks making this crap, right?

The first installment of the venerated (sic) series is almost quaint. We have a pre-credit scene showing that Camp Crystal Lake isn't without its dark secrets, followed by a crew of nubile teens heading up the very site several years later. Of course, this now a tired cliche. Tired? Hell, this cliche has dropped dead from exhaustion. But back in 1980 -- that's right, "Friday the 13th" is 25 years old -- this wasn't old hat. Sure, there had been horror movies, but nothing that had so streamlined the empty-headed kids looking to goof off and get laid while an unseen predator picked them off one by one.

That beauty in simplicity makes "Friday the 13th" eminently watchable, as does the heavy use of the "killer-cam." Again, we had seen this before, but "13th" took it to a new level. Some scenes -- OK, most scenes -- were almost comedic with the camera following people around corners, peeking through windows, going through phone lines ... you know what I mean. But hey, this is low-budget horror, and I don't recall seeing Pacino or Streep belting out any monologues.

We do, however, get Kevin Bacon, which is rather funny. And the other "performances" as campers get eliminated are sufficiently second-rate. By the time Mrs. Voorhees -- played by Betsy Palmer, who had some roles in the '50s but will be linked to this role forever -- appears, we're used to forced dialogue and bizarre characters. I mean, when you're introduced to the audience an hour after the killing starts, it's not exactly a stretch to consider you Suspect No. 1.

Probably the most notable thing about the first "13th" movie, at least for the uninitiated, is that Jason doesn't do the killing and appears only near the end via a shameless ripoff of the movie "Carrie." I didn't know that the first time around, and even with that knowledge the end of the movie still provides a nice little jolt. Little did we know it also would set into motion a seemingly endless train of sequels that would have hockey mask manufacturers kicking up their heels for years.