Jason X DVD Review
Posted by Ian Challis on 10.30.2002
A real treat for those who’ve doggedly sat through the previous nine chapters, Jason X is a wholely entertaining slice of unpretentious post-modern nonsense.
Jason X DVD
Release Date: October 8th, 2002
The Film
Being an avid fan of B-movie bloodfests, the recent spate of franchise revivals has pleased me no end. Having said that, Jason Vorhees was always the weediest of the Eighties slash-tastic bad guys; the hulking hockey fan was often left in the dust by the dry wit of Freddy and the sheer spookiness of Michael Myers. A string of dire sequels really didn’t help matters (Jason Takes Manhattan? Piss off, you balding bastard), and the quite frankly bizarre Jason Goes To Hell seemed to finish off Crystal Lake’s maddest son for good. So you can imagine my shock when the first rumours of Friday Part Ten began cropping up nigh-on two years ago. Where could they possibly go with the concept? What cliches were there left for them to wield with careless abandon? Questions that were soon answered, with blinding simplicity: Jason...In SPACE.
And so we arrive at Jason X, the tenth (and probably not the last) Friday spawn. The film opens with a nice little sequence: After failing to get the job done with every conceivable form of execution, bewildered officials have detained Jason (Kane Hodder) in a research centre at-you guessed it-Crystal Lake, to study his unique ability to regenerate flesh. Only problem is, government bigwig Dr. Wimmer (David Cronenberg, in an intriguing cameo) has decided to move Jason to a more advanced area of study, and he’s not taking "no" for an answer. Spunky technician Rowan (Lexa Doig) warns of the dangers, but of course it’s all in vain; Jason gets in some slice ‘n’ dice action on his captors, and looks set to make a break for it. Rowan, however, has other plans, and lures Jason into the cryogenic unit, trapping both of them in a deep freeze. It’s here that the narrative kicks in with it’s central conceit: Flash forward 400 years, to a time when Earth has become a barren wasteland visited only by high-school field trips. One such party unearths the frosty pair by chance, and before long screams CAN be heard in space...
It’s an inventive opener that grounds the invincible Jason in some semblance of reality, only to hurtle him into a fantastical scenario where his imperviousness to punishment is the least of the outlandish novelties on display. It also totally rejuvenates a tired concept, supplanting the hapless antihero into a post-modern, self-aware environment. The comedic targets here aren’t just confined to slasher movies, either; the outer-space setting allows potshots at shoot-‘em-ups, action movies and sci-fi. Alien, Predator and even Top Gun (check the marines’ ridiculous nicknames) all come in for a bit of a roasting, to great effect. And of course, the Friday series itself gets sent up in style-notable in-jokes include Jason being brought back to life by the sound of teens having sex, and the hilarious "virtual Crystal Lake" scene.
For die-hard Friday fans, the futuristic setting also allows for a wealth of new gallows-humour death scenes; Jason’s machete takes a back seat to a liquid nitrogen facial, a gigantic drill-bit, and death-by-vacuum, amongst others. The script is littered with intentionally bad puns and some genuinely funny dialogue (example: Hardened Marine, After A Spike Through The Gut: "It’ll take more than a poke in the ribs to stop this old dog." Jason promptly responds with his machete. Marine: "Yeah, that’ll do it."). And Kane Hodder as Jason is, as ever, marvellous. Wit, flair and imagination are all on display here, things which are sorely lacking from most bargain-basement slasher flicks.
Okay, so the acting is sub–Jerry Springer, the CGI wouldn’t look out of place on reruns of Seaquest, and the android/Jason fight is a truly stinky piece of camp cinema, but who cares? This is the pinnacle of what bad horror films are meant to be: inventive, knowing, and deliberately hilarious.
Video Quality
As is revealed in the extras, Jason X is the very first film to be totally transferred to digital from it’s original footage. As such, the picture quality is superb for a low-budget production , with no notable complaints to be made. Score one for digital!
Audio Quality
Dolby 5.1 or DTS Surround, your choice, and aside from a few jolts early-on you’re not really going to miss much. As per usual there are a few dips in quality on the extra documentaries, but nothing substantial enough to spoil your enjoyment.
Special Features
After getting off to a good start with the film, here’s where the disc hits a home-run. At first glance, the supplementals appear a little on the thin side-two documentaries, a commentary track and the usual trailer. The commentary, with director Jim Isaac, scripter Todd Farmer and producer Noel Cunningham, is an enjoyable and amusing listen; Isaac is bursting with opinion and information, which Farmer provides a dry, sardonic counterpoint to, whilst Cunningham chimes in whenever he feels like it. By Any Means Necessary, meanwhile, is a seventeen-minute making-of that provides a few more laughs (other possibilities considered included Jason At The North Pole and Jason Goes To Africa) and some interesting tidbits on the visual effects. And The Many Lives Of Jason Vorhees is a real treat for fans of the franchise, taking a detailed, nostalgic look back at Friday’s impact on the public imagination. Playing host to a plethora of experts, amongst them Friday series patriarch Sean Cunningham, New Line CEO Robert Shaye, Kane Hodder himself, and even infamous ‘net geek Moriarty, and taking into account the enthusiasm of all involved and it’s generous half-hour running time, this is one of the best made-for-DVD featurettes in recent memory. Where the disc really comes into it’s own, however, is with the little things; the trailer, that oft-maligned extra, is actually well worth a look, and the menus are some of the best ever produced. And, of course, the crowning glory: Jump To A Death, a feature that takes you straight to any one of the twenty-eight murder scenes that the film boasts. Informative, good-looking and just plain fun, this is simply a great package.
Film: 6.0
Video Quality: 9.0
Audio Quality: 7.5
Special Features: 8.5
The 411: A real treat for those who’ve doggedly sat through the previous nine chapters, Jason X is a wholely entertaining slice of unpretentious post-modern nonsense. That, coupled with the quality of the extra material, make this disc a must-have for any horror enthusiast. For those of you with a more tasteful sensibility, this is a cut above the usual stab-happy fare, and well worth at least a rental. Recommended.
