Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th (2013)

From the same creative team who crafted the deliciously entertaining and incredibly engaging "Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy", "Crystal Lake Memories" is a thorough and fairly absorbing documentary that covers the entirety of the famous (and infamous) horror film franchise "Friday the 13th." Loaded with hundreds of interviews, seemingly thousands of clips and behind-the-scenes photos and a metric ton of information and informative tid-bits of trivia, this is definitely a must-see for all fans of the hockey-masked maniac Jason Voorhees.From series creator Sean Cunningham to the plethora of men behind the mask including fan-favorite Kane Hodder, there are dozens upon dozens of interview subjects who spin yarns and fondly recall the creation of every single film in the franchise. All the while, Corey Feldman narrates with glee and we're treated to all sorts of fascinating making-of images and video. Want to know exactly how that infamous "Ki-Ki-Ki, Ma-Ma-Ma" sound effect was created? Wanna know what the incidental actors thought of one another? Want to know how hard it was to film "Part III" in state-of-the-art 3D? It's all here, along with countless other factoids.Unfortunately, all of this comes with a pretty severe trade-off. That being that the film has a punishingly bloated run-time of nearly seven hours. Yup, you read that right! Seven. Hours. Part of what made the prior film about the "Nightmare on Elm Street" franchise work was that it knew when to get in and when to get out. And even then, it was still pushing it with a four-hour runtime. But the facts presented felt relevant and fascinating, the structure was sound and the pacing was fairly brisk. I can't necessarily say the same about "Crystal Lake Memories." This one just pushes it too far. Sure, you could argue that with nearly twice the films to cover, it needed to be nearly twice the length. But given how repetitive the interviews become over time, and how the same basic ideas are revisited over and over... it's easy to see that at least a full hour could have been cut out. Maybe even two. And the pacing is way too slow for its own good. There's so much more droning on in this movie... it can occasionally become hard to stay invested.Still, that can't detract from the fact that on the whole... yeah, "Crystal Lake Memories" is a really fun experience. It's informative, mostly engaging and you'll learn quite a bit by the time the credits roll. Just don't plan to watch it all in one sitting! I'm giving it a pretty good 7 out of 10.

When studios make DVD extras they hire people who most of the time are not "Fans of the Film" that they are working on. The First Release "Twin Peaks Fire Walk With Me" is an example of a passionless produced product. That is not the case here. "Crystal Lake Memories" is a professionally produced product that happened to be made by people who love the films and that comes across hear "LOUD AND CLEAR".Each film is covered here. There is interviews of the cast as well returning to certain locations. I found the most entertaining segments were the ones devoted to "Friday the 13th Part IV" and "Friday the 13th Part VII" I have no complaints about this documentary. I just wish that the fans could raise the funds and restore the gore that was edited out of each film. You don't need the actors to come back. Body doubles and insert shots is all we need.

I am a huge fan of the 'Friday the 13th' franchise. Watching this documentary was just so enlightening! See how everything started, one of the biggest horror films ever made,is amazing, and while watching the documentary I felt like part of that. Seeing all my favorite characters, the stunts, and even how the hockey mask became a thing was fantastic.From all the actors who portrayed Jason Voorhees , my favorite is Steve Dash. This guy was such a professional. (watch the documentary and you will understand) :)I don't usually write reviews, but this doc was amazing!

Being a long time fan of "Friday the 13th" and, well of course, Jason Voorhees, I was thrilled to sit down to watch this documentary, although I had no idea about the length of the feature. It was a pleasant surprise that it ran for just about 400 minutes, because this was just cramped with goodies and inside information crucial and long sought by the hardcore fans of the franchise.I am not going to go into detail here about every single installment, but you have one for each of the movies and for the TV series as well. Each is done with a lot of care, determination and touch of details. And it was a real treat to sit through the entire franchise from the very first movie up to the reboot in 2009.We all have our own individual favorites in the franchise, being it complete movie, singular moment, kill scene, and what not. And "Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th" does get around just about everything crucial to each movie."Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th" is a definite MUST own and watch for everyone who enjoys the "Friday the 13th" franchise.This is an 8 out of 10 stars from me, no questions asked.