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Ultra HD : Recommended
Ranking:
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Release Date: September 13th, 2022 Movie Release Year: 1980

Friday the 13th (1980) - 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray

Overview -

Over forty years later, Sean S. Cunningham's Friday the 13th is a bona fide horror slasher classic that remains as wildly entertaining as ever. The dearly beloved classic machetes its way to 4K Ultra HD with an excellent Dolby Vision video, the same DTS-HD track and the same assortment of supplements as before. Nevertheless, this UHD edition gives fans the best presentation of the horror favorite of any format and makes for a Recommended addition to the 4K horror library. 

The thrills start when a new owner and several young counselors gather to reopen Camp Crystal Lake, despite locals’ warnings that the place has a “death curse.” One by one, they find out how unlucky Friday the 13th can be as they are stalked by a violent killer.

OVERALL:
Recommended
Rating Breakdown
STORY
VIDEO
AUDIO
SPECIAL FEATURES
Tech Specs & Release Details
Technical Specs:
Region Free
Video Resolution/Codec:
HDR10
Aspect Ratio(s):
1.85:1
Audio Formats:
English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Subtitles/Captions:
English SDH
Special Features:
Digital Copy
Release Date:
September 13th, 2022

Storyline: Our Reviewer's Take

Ranking:

While Black Christmas (1974) and Halloween (1978) paved the way for what later became the holiday-themed "slasher" movie, it was Sean S. Cunningham's Friday the 13th (1980) that cemented the relatively-new-at-the-time subgenre into a viable blueprint that could be easily imitated. The horror at Camp Crystal Lake is almost single-handedly responsible for kick-starting a craze of scary movies that flooded theaters in the early part of the 1980s, a short period of time sometimes affectionately referred to as "The Golden Age of the Slasher" by horror aficionados. It also introduced the setting of youth camps, the sort bursting with misbehaving, reckless teenagers too preoccupied with their hormones to notice a killer on the loose.

Although its all-too-familiar formula has largely lost its effectiveness, especially with modern audiences, Cunningham's film still possesses some small semblance of originality. The story's "Final Girl" is very plainly defined with a thick air of innocence and vulnerability so that when it comes time to fight the killer, it's somewhat surprising to see her also be resourceful, quick on her feet, and capable of defending herself. None of the characters do stupid things purely for narrative convenience; they are hunted and attacked while in the middle of regular activities. The plot keeps its killer's identity a mystery for a shocking reveal, one which owes a great deal to Hitchcock's Psycho (1960). With memorable music by Harry Manfredini and gory effects by legendary makeup maestro Tom Savini, Friday the 13th remains a blast.

Scream Factory Blu-ray

Paramount Ultra HD

For a more in-depth take on the film and the entire series, check out our review of Scream Factory’s Friday the 13th: The Ultimate Collection Part 1 & Part 2

Vital Disc Stats: The Ultra HD Blu-ray

Paramount Home Entertainment brings Sean S. Cunningham's Friday the 13th (1980) as a single-disc Ultra HD edition with a flyer for a Digital Copy. When redeeming said code, owners are granted access only to the R-rated Theatrical Cut but not the Unrated Version, but at least, it comes in Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 audio. The dual-layered, Region-Free BD66 disc contains both cuts of the movie, which is an 8-minute difference of graphic gore, and it is housed inside a black, eco-vortex case with a glossy slipcover. At startup, viewers are taken to a static screen of the cover art, the usual selection along the bottom and music playing in the background.

Video Review

Ranking:

Scream Factory Blu-ray

Paramount Ultra HD

The slasher classic machetes its way to 4K Ultra HD with an excellent if not also somewhat puzzling HEVC H.265 encode, which was struck from a fresh restoration and remaster of the original 35mm camera negatives. 

Switching back and forth between this and Scream Factory's 2020 Blu-ray release, the improvements are immediately apparent with the brightness levels being the most blatant and noticeable change. The opening moments leading up to the movie's first kill of the camp counselors are significantly darker, drenched in pitch-black, stygian shadows that nearly come close to crushing but thankfully never do and maintain good visibility of the finer details within the darkest, murkiest corners of the frame. This remains true throughout while blacks are accurate with strong gradational differences between the various shades. Comparatively, the picture is overall darker than its HD SDR counterparts. But surprisingly, it's to the movie's advantage, adding to the atmosphere of creepiness while also feeling more natural and authentic to the experience of camping with limited light sources, like a campfire or those crappy yellow lightbulbs from the 70s. 

Of more interest is the contrast balance. After the opening credits and switching to the daylight scenes with Annie's arrival in to town, the difference is also immediately apparent, looking brighter and more dynamic than ever before. On the whole, contrast is stable and consistent, allowing for better clarity and visibility into the far distance. However, there are times when the whites seem to run abnormally hot in some areas, looking a little unnatural and radioactively beaming, almost to the point of blooming or clipping. But like the shadows, this thankfully never happens, and the smaller features in the foliage, the glare through the windows and in the clothing are never washed over. All the while, specular highlights remain crisp and brilliant with a tight, narrow glow, furnishing those scenes of the sunlight glistening off the lake with a dazzling sparkle. The tiny bulbs inside the flashlights and the fabric of the mantles inside the lanterns are even easy to see when they are turned on. 

The best part of the Dolby Vision HDR presentation is the improved palette, displaying a richer, more sumptuous selection of colors from start to finish. The green of the surrounding foliage is more varied and lively while the blues are better rendered and more energetic. While the red of the blood and the fiery oranges of the campfire are fuller and more spirited, the yellows are particularly standout, supplying the visuals with a striking, flamboyant pop that stays true during the darkest, poorly-lit sequences. Facial complexions have a healthy, peachy-rose tone with lifelike textures that reveal the most minute wrinkles, pores and negligible blemishes. The native 4K transfer is also terrifically detailed and sharp, exposing the tiniest pebble on the ground, the individual leaves of trees and the small imperfections in the wooden cabins of the camp. There are the occasional soft moments, which are to be expected, but overall, the video is relatively sharp with excellent definition, awash in a fine layer of natural grain that's also consistent, providing the 1.85:1 image with a beautiful film-like quality that fans will appreciate. 

On an interesting side note, when comparing the Dolby Vision video on a television set versus the HDR10 version on the projector, the contrast and brightness balance appear better controlled and more accurate. The black levels remain very strong, but the minor details in the pitch-black shadows are a bit more visible while whites are not as near to clipping, looking more natural with the same excellent specular highlights. Overall definition and colors also remain about the same. In the end, it's a nominal and arguably insignificant difference, but I found myself really enjoying the 4K presentation on the projector in a completely darkened room because it felt like watching the movie at the drive-in. Or at least, it gave me that nostalgic feeling. But in either case, this is the best the movie has ever looked in any format and is probably the best it could ever look. (Dolby Vision HDR Video Rating: 76/100)

Audio Review

Ranking:

Scream Factory Blu-ray

Paramount Ultra HD

It is unknown at this time if the audio design received the same treatment as the video, but back and forth comparisons with the Scream Factory release suggest this might be the same DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack as the one enjoyed on the Deluxe Edition Blu-ray set. I did not detect any major or significant discernible differences between the two, but I will add that when applying the receivers' Auro-3D up-mixing functionality, many of the ambient effects convincingly bleed into the top front heights, nicely expanding the soundfield and creating a more engaging soundstage. For a more in-depth take on the audio quality, you can read our review of Scream Factory's Blu-ray box set HERE. (Audio Rating: 86/100)

Special Features

Ranking:

Scream Factory Blu-ray

Paramount Ultra HD

For this UHD edition, Paramount Home Entertainment ports over the same collection of bonus material found on previous releases, but now adds the audio commentary that was weirdly missing in the studio's 8-Film Collection Blu-ray set.

  • Audio Commentary 
  • The Friday the 13th Chronicles (HD, 21 min)
  • Friday the 13th Reunion (HD, 17 min)
  • Fresh Cuts: New Tales from Friday the 13th (HD, 14 min)
  • Secrets Galore Behind the Gore (HD, 10 min)
  • The Man Behind the Legacy: Sean S. Cunningham (HD, 9 min)
  • Lost Tales From Camp Blood Part I (HD, 8 min)

Scream Factory Blu-ray

Paramount Ultra HD

Sean S. Cunningham's Friday the 13th may not be original and was essentially made as a cash-grab that capitalized on a growing movie trend, but the slasher flick is a bona fide horror classic that cemented a viable blueprint that could be easily imitated. The horror at Camp Crystal Lake is almost single-handedly responsible for kick-starting the craze of scary movies during the early part of the 1980s and remains to this day wildly entertaining. The dearly beloved classic machetes its way to 4K Ultra HD with an excellent Dolby Vision HDR presentation, offering an appreciable upgrade over its HD SDR predecessors. The same DTS-HD MA soundtrack and the same assortment of supplements are ported over, but this UHD edition gives fans the best presentation of the horror favorite ever and makes for a recommended addition to the 4K horror library. 

All disc reviews at High-Def Digest are completed using the best consumer HD home theater products currently on the market. More about the gear used for this review.