Saturday the 14th certainly brings my mind to the everlasting Horror series Friday the 13th where Jason Voorhees haunted the premises in film after film. I find it highly improbable that it’s not a play on words with a title like this. It’s obvious from the very start that Saturday the 14th is a comedy from the very first frame though. Still, there is every reference in the book to the horror elements in the first few minutes alone. Every time with a humorous twist.
I first became aware of it in my youth when I and my friends were about to rent some movies. I never got around to seeing it back then though. That must have been in the early 90’s.
There’s no boogeyman on the loose in Saturday the 14th
In Saturday the 14th, there’s not a killer on the loose though, but there is an inherited house with a curse. That’s a great premise for making fun of the horror genre don’t you think? And I don’t think that it’s just the Friday the 13th film series that lays a foundation here either. I also think that some of it is inspired by The Evil Dead. I realize I’m out on a limb here since they’re both released in the same year. And, for that matter, maybe not The Evil Dead’s foundation is that original anyway. I mean, it’s certainly become a classic but I guess the demons and the Necronomicon wasn’t really invented for that movie.
Don’t get me wrong- Saturday the 14th is a stupid film and it doesn’t shy away from it. It takes every possibility to make fun of itself. It can be with really cheesy effects or by über overacted situations. This is a movie that doesn’t really care if it’s so bad, but it’s good. In fact, it takes it into consideration.
So, I think it’s fair to say that Saturday the 14th doesn’t take itself too seriously. That’s a good thing. It kind of reminds me of when I saw The Rocky Horror Picture Show for the first time. There are no musical numbers in this one of course but the feel to it is very much alike. A parodic horror feel with an underlying horror story. And they obviously aim to make it as stupid as possible.
Haunted House, Slapstick, Dracula, you name it!
It doesn’t hold back either. There’s a haunted house, monsters, Dracula, vampire bats, and a fair amount of slapstick too. I think that if you’re into classic horror films you will find this hysterical. There are scenes for every archetype of horror in here. There are Jaws references and The Creature from the Black Lagoon. I’m even starting to wonder if Saturday the 14th actually inspired some scenes in A Nightmare on Elm Street since the opposite is not possible as A Nightmare on Elm Street came out in 1984.
Saturday the 14th is a hysterically funny movie. I don’t think that it’s a film for everyone though. I think you have to have a pretty twisted sense of humor and I think you need to be really into old horror cliches. But that’s always the thing with parodies, isn’t it? Even if it’s not as cheesy as this one, they all require you the know something about the subject they parodying.
I’m glad I finally got around to watching this movie. I really enjoyed it. Please take the rating with a little grain of salt. It is a stupid movie, but hilariously funny if you’re in the right mood. I can’t wait to get my hand on the sequel. I wonder how they imagined the continuation of the story. That’ll be a real treat!
