DAN CURRY, Title Designer:
I first came to be involved with the Friday the 13th series when Paramount called me in to work on Part 2. Traditionally the Friday titles were white letters over black, and the intent was that, working in tandem with the music, they would pop on the screen in different places and unsettle the audience. And for Part 2, Frank Mancuso, Jr. had the idea that we would see this block of wood that said "Friday the 13th," then it would explode, and inside it would say "Part 2."
We had some wax copies made of the block of wood, and a pyrotechnic expert, Pete Gerard, wired that up for us. Then we mounted it on a motion control rig. We did one "hero shot" of the actual wood block that looked great, and once it was in its final position, we replaced that and shot the same thing over with the wax one. Then we rigged a charge and blew it up. Finally, we did a third pass with "Part 2" in virtual space, in the same position where it would have been inside the original block.
The funny thing was, we had invited a bunch of Paramount executives over to watch the effect. And right before the charge was about to go off, I saw Pete dive behind a stack of plywood. So I ducked, too, and then the explosion shot molten wax pellets shot all over the place that embedded themselves into the suits of the executives. Which they were far from happy about.
AMY STEEL:
Over the years, fans have come up and asked me what happened with the ending of the movie. There are all these stories about John Furey fighting with Steve Miner and storming off the set, and because of that, it was changed and there really is a different ending. I wish I had a really good story about it, but I don't remember that happening.
JOHN FUREY:
That's not true. That's bullshit. I got along well with Steve. We did get into discussions on set, and might have raised our voices once or twice, but I was friendlier with him than anyone else on that movie. And we've been friends ever since.
The ending in the movie, we shot as is. I do remember an alternate ending, but it was only discussed. Where I fight Jason, and Amy and I are hugging at the end, like we've killed him. They also thought about killing me, and just letting Amy survive. But then they were like, "No, let's leave it as a mystery."
STEVE MINER:
John was a total professional and he did everything that was asked of him. If the ending was vague, that was the film's fault, not his.
RON KURZ:
There remains confusion among fans about Part 2's ending. Jason's coming through the window was written as reality. My intent was this: Paul is, in fact, killed by Jason. Ginny survives. She asks, when found, "Paul! Paul! Where's Paul?" Then we cut to Jason's shack, and a close-up on Mrs. Voorhees' head. It's bathed in faint light, staring at the camera. Slowly, distinctly, a diabolical smile forms at the corners of its mouth. In other words, in answer to Ginny's question, the smile tells us that Jason has killed Paul. That is how I wrote it and that's how Steve Miner filmed it. Granted, as it appeared on screen, shot and edited as it was, I can see cause for some confusion. So whether it came across as such for the audience is up for debate.
"There remains confusion among fans about Part 2's ending," says screenwriter Ron Kurz. "Jason's coming through the window was written as reality. My intent was this: Paul is, in fact, killed by Jason. Ginny survives. She asks, when found, 'Paul! Paul! Where's Paul?' Then we cut to Jason's shack, and a close-up on Mrs. Voorhees' head. It's bathed in faint light, staring at the camera. Slowly, distinctly, a diabolical smile forms at the corners of its mouth. In other words, in answer to Ginny's question, the smile tells us that Jason has killed Paul. That is how I wrote it and that's how Steve Miner filmed it. Granted, as it appeared on screen, shot and edited as it was, I can see cause for some confusion. So whether it came across as such for the audience is up for debate."
CARL FULLERTON:
Stan Winston had originally cast Betsy Palmer's head, the one that is seen at the film's beginning. But because Georgetown Productions wouldn't fly Betsy out to the East Coast, I had to totally re-sculpt her likeness from a photograph and create a new fake head for the climax. Steve Miner also wanted some movement in the film's final shot—he wanted Mrs. Voorhees' head to smile and for her eyes to open. So we hired an actress, Connie Hogan, and built the head so she could fit into it. Connie was then positioned in a false bottom altar, which created all kinds of unnecessary problems, considering the way the picture was cut. We had to cheat Mrs. Voorhees' neckline, which, in my opinion, makes the shot look a little awkward—if we had just used Stan's dummy head from the beginning, the last shot would be much better. Although I'm glad that, ultimately, they chose not to use that footage of the head opening its eyes and smiling, because quite frankly, it looked humorous rather than scary.
Friday the 13th Part 2 was released on April 30th, 1981, on 1,350 screens across the United States. It was an instant financial success, with an initial three-day gross of $6.4 million that eclipsed the opening of the original film. However, its subsequent fall-off was noticeably sharper, and by the end of its run, Part 2 would earn $21.7 million, taking in a still-impressive 7.8 million admissions. Certainly, given its modest production budget of $1.25 million, Part 2 was a moneymaker. Yet the sequel's inability to scale the box office heights of its predecessor left some industry pundits searching for a reason for the depression in ticket sales. Reviews were, predictably, atrocious. But then Friday the 13th never needed the endorsement of critics to bolster its box office appeal. More detrimental was the proliferation of slasher movies that had followed in the wake of Halloween. Had the primary appeal of the original Friday—its ultra-graphic murder sequences—already become passé? Was the character of Jason not as interesting a villain as Mrs. Voorhees? Or had the censors at the Motion Picture Association of America finally succeeded in draining the sequel of the one thing that mattered most at the box office: blood?
Forced to submit his film nearly 10 times to the ratings board, Steve Miner would excise 54 seconds of carnage from Part 2, leaving many fans to complain that it not only lacked the visceral effectiveness of the original film, but that it failed to deliver on its very raison de entré. It would be only the first of many battles between the producers of the franchise and the MPAA. Three decades later, the ratings board remains the only foe Jason has yet to defeat.
SEAN CUNNINGHAM:
When we finished Friday the 13th, we took a very strong piece of work to the MPAA. They asked us to make a couple of cuts, but they let the film through pretty much in the form we expected. And because of the film's impact, there were a lot of imitators who kept pushing the envelope, and when they submitted their films to the MPAA they would say, "You let Friday the 13th get by, and now you're tellin' us we can't do this?" Our film became held up as an example.
STEVE MINER:
After Friday the 13th, the ratings board really cracked down and it had a chilling effect. It wasn't an option to release Part 2 in an unrated form like Dawn of the Dead or Last House on the Left. This was a film that had to play in over a thousand movie theaters. We also had to watch our negative pickup deal with Paramount because they sure weren't going to release a film that was rated X.
I still feel Part 2 worked really well, but some of the cuts did rob the film of its impact. The MPAA forced us to excise much of the great work that Carl Fullerton and his team did. I was also concerned by the criticism of the first film, that it was just a bunch of mindless gore. I wanted the characters in Part 2 to be a little more realistic, and that may have taken away from some of the scares.
Right: Original theatrical poster art for Friday the 13th Part 2. This image was commissioned by Paramount Pictures and Georgetown Productions from artist Spiros Angelikas, who had also designed the poster for the original Friday the 13th. Although Part 2's producers were impressed by Angelikas' work, it was decided to save the reveal of the character of Jason Voorhees for the film itself. A new, more simplistic one-sheet (left) was hastily assembled. Angelikas' work on Part 2 would remain unseen for nearly 30 years, un
til it finally resurfaced on many internet websites.
CARL FULLERTON:
I first learned of the cuts to the film when Steve Miner called me on the phone one day in an almost apologetic tone. My first reaction was that I was disappointed and angry, but I also felt bad for Steve. I do remember being warned by him about the ratings board before the film came out, and he was genuinely apologetic. I knew that his hands were tied. I appreciated the phone call, and I thought that was a very kind thing for him to do.
I'm absolutely certain that, at the time, it was upsetting simply from a selfish point of view. The result of our efforts was taken away from us. The only saving grace is that I was presented with creative challenges and productions problems, and I did solve them. At worst, it was a learning experience. You can't buy that kind of education. However, now, in the broad scope of things, it makes absolutely no difference to my life. Right now I'm having trouble even remembering what got cut.
GREG NICTOERO, Effects Supervisor, Jason Goes to Hell:
At the time, I was just about to start my first film, Day of the Dead, with George Romero and Tom Savini. I had to drive to New York to rent molds from Carl Fullerton. Later, at his house, Carl said, "Hey, do you guys want to see some of the stuff from Friday the 13th Part 2?"
It was the unedited version of the scene where the couple is lying in bed and they get speared. The original effect as it was is now not even in the movie: you see the spear go in the guy's back, then you see her react, then you see more struggling, then the spear comes back out. And it was one of the most shocking things I had ever seen. To this day. Because the girl is lying there, the guy is on top of her, and as Jason comes in, the girl sees him—what was disturbing was the look on her face, and her struggling to get the guy off of her to save her own life before the spear goes in.
I remember watching that and being horrified because I realized that it wasn't the effect that disturbed me the most, but the woman's reaction to her impending death. I think that's where a lot of people sort of get confused: it's not the gore that really is offensive, as much as it is the circumstance in which we see it.
SEAN CUNNINGHAM:
I think the MPAA may have thought that it had thrown a softball with Friday the 13th and then lived to regret it. The truth is that the MPAA is, as far as censorship goes, a political committee. And it's meant to evolve, to ride along with public opinion.
I know many will disagree with me on this, but in the MPAA we have one of the greatest political gifts to artists in the world. I think it's wonderful we live in a culture where you can do anything in a movie. Nobody tells you that you can't do something, except the marketplace. Anybody who goes out and makes a film that is just bathed in blood is trying to make an exploitation film. The only thing he or she can complain about is that they went so close to the edge they fell off. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to know what you're allowed to do. I think that the people complaining about it are the ones who are getting caught.
DENNIS MURPHY:
I thought Part 2 was fun. I thought we did a good job. And there is no reveling in the violence. But I forgot how sanitized these films were. I don't remember thinking of it that way when I saw it at the time, however.
WARRINGTON GILLETTE:
They had a premiere party in New York, at a theater on 86th street. I brought my family, and we took Andy Warhol and some friends. It was a letdown because I had built it up to be something more than it was going to be. Everybody was saying, "Where are you?" I thought I had this really great part, and there I was on the big screen, saying absolutely nothing, just killing a bunch of kids.
STEVE DASKAWICZ:
There was a wrap party in New York City at some club. I went to that, and then we all went to the premiere after. I hate those things. Everyone's like, "I love you, and you're so nice! The movie's great!" Give me a break!
JOHN FUREY:
I went to see it at the premiere screening and it was unbelievable, because I think 60 or 70 percent of the crowd was black, and they all were rooting for Jason. They got a kick out of Jason killing white people. They liked the mayhem. It was amazing.
CARL FULLERTON:
At the time, 42nd Street was like a carnival in the worst sense. And it was loaded with movie houses. I recall going to see Part 2 there and it was a very hot summer day. People were jammed in the theatre—perhaps, if for no other reason, than to keep cool. They were walking over the seats to get to different seats. And they were participants. They would call out to the screen and scream out loud. It was one of the best moviegoing experiences I have ever had in my entire life.
LAUREN-MARIE TAYLOR:
I went to a regular movie theater to see it and freaked out: "Oh, no! I showed my private parts! Look at my butt!" That's all I could think.
RUSSELL TODD:
To go to the premiere, in a packed theatre, and then when my name came up in the credits and everyone applauded—I couldn't believe it. It was very exciting. I went a number of subsequent times to see it in the Times Square area, just to see it with a paying audience, and hear people screaming and reacting to it. Though I don't really like seeing myself onscreen—I'm so critical of myself. Sometimes you give your best performance and sometimes you don't. Yet, there's still an excitement to see yourself up there. You grow up wanting to be an actor, and you watch other people on the big screen—it's never supposed to be you.
CLIFF CUDNEY:
When I saw it, I thought, "What the hell is this?" It looked like somebody's home movie. It always astounds me that the film is still popular because I don't think there's much to it, and the acting is not that great. But some of the cinematography was good, and I was pleased with the way the stunts came out.
From left: Turkish one-sheet, Japanese video poster, and Danish one-sheet
PETER STEIN:
I have only seen the film once in my life, on 48th Street and Broadway, right in the heart of Times Square. I was appalled. There were all these people coming with their 10-year-old kids. I couldn't believe it! I even got into a fight with the projectionist. The film wasn't quite in focus, so I got out of my seat and I walked to the projection booth and I said, "It's not sharp." And he said, "Well, I focused it." And I said, "Listen, I shot this film. I know it's sharper than that!"
AMY STEEL:
I remember when the film came out, I was 21 years old, I had already moved on to being in a TV series. It was like, all of a sudden, my moons and stars were aligned. It was a really great time. I was excited to see Part 2. I saw it at 86th Street and Lexington in New York. I remember there were two people behind me going, "Don't go in there, you dumb bitch!"
Technically, I think it is almost archaic compared to what they make now. But I thought Steve Miner brought class to it, and he seemed to have a good grip on what the genre was, what the public wanted to see and what Paramount wanted from it. I think he got all of that, and raised the bar.
STU CHARNO:
I had a blast seeing what Steve did with the film, and how he directed all of our performances. Part 2, to me, was—and is—great example of the genre.
JACK MARKS:
I was taken aback when I saw it. It's not the kind of film I would go to, ordinarily. I can't say I regret doing it, because I tried to do as professional a job as I could. It's just the kind of thing that I would not usually be caught dead seeing.
BILL RANDOLPH:
I went to a screening with my agent. I had a blast, and I think my agent did, too, because I didn't embarrass myself. Though I thought it was going to do gangbusters for my career—I think he had a much more realistic viewpoint on the situation. I remember I had thought the first Friday the 13th was great, and Part 2 was fun. The thing that's great about the movies is that they work. They do what they're supposed to do, even though they're obviously setting you up. Like, at start of our film, with the cat jumping in through the window at Adrienne King—that still makes me jump. That kind of stuff I thought was very skillfully done.
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RON KURZ:
My personal opinion is that Steve Miner is a much better director than Sean Cunningham. Steve's proven that with the films he's done since the two Fridays. On balance, I think Part 2 is a better film than Friday the 13th. Brighter, smarter, better acted, better directed. Of course, the original did have the scene of Jason coming out of the water at the end...
STEVE MINER:
What we did was set out to try and top Friday the 13th, and in many respects we did. And I feel that Part 2 showed people that I could direct. Ultimately, the film did very well, because you have to consider that it was released less than a year after the original. And if you combine both films into one, you've got a blockbuster level of success. Everyone was happy.
While the Friday the 13th camp was celebrating, Sean Cunningham was finding that his attempts to distance himself from the film that had made him famous were being met largely with indifference. In the initial months following the success of Friday the 13th, Cunningham was heavily courted by the Hollywood establishment, and the doors that had remained shut to him for over a decade had suddenly opened. But success can be as limiting as it is liberating, especially in Hollywood, where the obligation to repeat the past often outweighs all other artistic considerations. The film Cunningham eventually chose as his follow-up to Friday the 13th, the adult thriller A Stranger is Watching, based on the best-selling novel by Mary Higgins Clark, was released by United Artists in 1982—and quietly flopped. Cunningham's subsequent efforts likewise found little favor with the moviegoing public: only Spring Break, a teen sex comedy he directed for Columbia Pictures, gave him a minor hit when it was released in August 1983. And Cunningham, still based on the East Coast, saw his once tightly knit filmmaking family begin to unravel. Following the release of Part 2, Steve Miner, like Wes Craven before him, would make the move to Los Angeles to pursue mainstream success, while Cunningham's once-thriving partnership with Victor Miller deteriorated into acrimony and, eventually, a lawsuit.
Crystal Lake Memories: The Complete History of Friday the 13th (Enhanced Edition) Page 20
