Slasher film was a big thing in the 80´s, and as a kid you would run around the VHS shelves looking at VHS covers. Unfortunately, here in Sweden, a lot of slasher film was censored so bad, that you did not really see a lot of kills. And even if i was too young to see some of these films, i knew where to go to watch horror films, The Robertson Family and to my Grandmother May. You could basically say that this is where i saw all the important films of the 80´s. But there was one franchise, that i actually did not see until pretty late in the 80´s, and that was Friday The 13th. My first film that i saw in this franchise was Friday The 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, and this was from a VHS copy that The Robertson Family have managed to get their hands on from the UK. To see killer Jason Voorhees slaughter young teenagers was fun, and i must have watched that film at least 15 times. I remember we got our hands on Friday The 13th: The Final Chapter ( 4th film in the franchise ) in a VHS store, that was released on a Swedish VHS cover. But of course the film was cut, and that made the film less fun to watch. As the years went by, i did manage to get a hold on some uncut VHS releases from the UK in this franchise, and i eventually saw every film. The first film released in 1980, is still one of the iconic slasher films of that generation. The character of Jason Voorhees will always be mysterious character, and the simple but effective look of Jason will continue to entertain audiences worldwide. Friday The 13th franchise have gone on for a long time, and i would not be surprised if we will see him return in the future. A lot of fan films have been made of Friday The 13th, and one of those that i have heard lot about over recent years is Never Hike Alone. With very positive Reviews, i have planned to watch this film for a while. And when a sequel called Never Hike In The Snow came out last year, i realised that i have to review both short films. Is it possible that Never Hike Alone is the best fan film made so far in the Friday The 13th universe, or is this even worse than i expected?
Adventure hiker Kyle McLeod ( Drew Leighty ) is on a journey to hike through a well known forest area, to a certain lake. But he have no idea, that this lake is actually known as Camp Crystal Lake, where legendary killer Jason Voorhees murdered so many victims. He begins to explore the area, hoping to find some answers.
I have seen fan films made from different classic horror franchises in the past, where some of them have turned out to be good, and some not so great. But i have to say, Never Hike Alone could be one of the better ones. Not only does this film take it´s source material seriously but this film also try and give a portrait of Jason Voorhees that we are all familiar with. I am actually impressed how they managed to make this film feel like a Friday The 13th film, considering the budget. But that really proves that you can make a professional film, if you have a passion for the project and clearly love the franchise. The biggest strength of this film, is in my opinion the portrait of Jason Voorhees. His body language, and when he stares at his victim, looks exactly like we used to see him in the 80´s. Actor Vincent DiSanti ( who is actually the director of this film as well ) does a really good job with his acting performance as Jason Voorhees. To be able to capture the personality of such an iconic slasher killer is not easy, but Vincent really went all in for this character. To make this film like a vlog adventure, is actually not a bad idea. It gives this film a modern touch, while keeping some of the ingredients from the old school films towards the end. You could probably say that this is film have a found footage vibe over the production, but in a positive way. This is the first time i have seen actor Drew Leighty, as the character Kyle McLeod. Since he is the lead character, i think he did a good job with his performance. Kyle is clearly the right character for a film like this, considering he loves hiking and exploring such a big forest area. Friday The 13th will always be one of the biggest slasher classics in the slasher genres, and Never Hike Alone deserves respect for trying to bring the classic concept back on track ( especially after the 2009 reboot failed to deliver ). If you are a fan of the franchise of Friday The 13th, you should see Never Hike Alone. As a fan film, this is better than i expected. Director Vincente DiSanti could be the right director to bring back Jason Voorhees into a real studio film, let´s just hope that this could become reality.
Rating: DDDD
If you want to see Never Hike Alone, check out the film for free on YouTube on the following link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7K_wkQSM8xM&t=1s
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