Hands-down the definitive way to watch the Friday the 13th series
I originally wasn't going to purchase this set, simply because I own the previous sets on both DVD and Blu-ray (From Crystal Lake to Manhattan as well as the tin that was released by Warner Bros. a few years back). I used to double-dip all the time when Blu-ray was a new format, and lately I've had little desire to shell out hard-earned cash for upgrades to movies I already own. That being said, something that is sorely lacking on most physical media today are the special features that made DVD collecting such a joy back in the day. When I saw how many new features were being added to this set, not to mention that most, if not all of the features from prior releases were being carried over, it was a no-brainer. Not even the Star Wars Blu-ray sets were that generous. I'm not big on audio commentaries, but Shout! went way overboard here. Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives has four (!) audio commentaries alone. I noticed many of the new commentaries feature people who until now have been pretty elusive, like actress Kerry Noonan (Paula from Part VI) and Steve Miner (director of Parts 2 and 3). The two bonus discs would have been enough to satisfy most fans, but each film comes with its own batch of new and old interviews. The big selling point for me was getting both R-rated and unrated cuts of the original film and Jason Goes to Hell. With Part 1, I actually prefer the theatrical version. With the additional shots added to the unrated cut, Tom Savini's killer make-up is exposed more than it should be, which ruins the illusion for me. To my knowledge, this is the first time both versions have been available on Blu-ray, so it's nice to finally have the option (although most of the new special features ARE on the unrated disc). I still own my Jason Goes to Hell DVD, which DOES include the unrated cut, so I was a little bummed when they didn't carry it over to the original Blu-ray release. It's been reported that one shot is actually missing, which is where Shout's disc replacement program comes into play. The shot in question, where the character Ward has his wrist snapped in half, is undeniably one of the more gruesome shots of the unrated cut, so I understand why it's a an issue that it wasn't included. But we are talking about two or three seconds, so it isn't a particular deal breaker. The other nice addition, which would have been great about five years ago, is the inclusion of Friday the 13th Part III in stereoscopic 3D. It's bittersweet to see this, because they don't quite make 3D TVs anymore, so most of the people who want to see the film in true 3D already own these televisions. It would have been nice if Shout! included both the newer 3D version, as well as the anaglyph (the blue and red) 3D for those of us who missed out on the 3D revolution (sarcasm). As far as the 4K scans of the first four films go, understand that these are not 4K Blu-rays. You're still getting a 1080p presentation, but they were sourced from new 4K masters, so technically they should look superior to the last Blu-ray release. Personally, I didn't notice a huge difference, since these films were made on shoestring budgets and were mostly shot at night. That being said, the picture quality gets a slight boost during the daytime scenes, but I wouldn't go after this set merely for the new transfers. There's only so much you can do to low-budget 80's horror films. Each movie also gets its own disc, as opposed to the previous sets where two movies shared a single disc. That in itself should give each film a bump in quality. I also dig the artwork on each individual Blu-ray, as the covers mostly resemble what the films looked like back in the VHS glory days (with the exception of Part V, which uses that awesome theatrical poster as opposed to that weird VHS cover with the strange hockey mask that never appears in the actual film). Bottom line: aside from the extremely minute errors with three of the films (which Shout! has already addressed with a disc replacement program, free of charge), I can't see any reason to pass this up, especially given how rare these kinds of sets can be a year or so after the fact. If you're still interested in watching Part III in 3D without an expensive set, keep your old tin, but this makes a great addition to your horror collection. However, buy it for the extensive features and the awesome presentation, and not for the 4K scans, because unless you're a huge stickler for detail, I don't think the new scans makes a ton of difference, given that these are still technically standard Blu-rays. Great job from Shout! Read more
