Evil Dead 2 and the 15 greatest horror movie sequels of all time
By Mads Lennon
15. Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
- Directed by: Steve Milner
- Starring: Amy Steel, John Furey, Steve Daskewisz, Stu Charno, Lauren-Marie Taylor, Tom McBride, Adrienne King, and Bill Randolph
Friday the 13th Part 2, released in 1981, was the second official entry into the soon-to-be iconic series at the time. A group of counselors returns to Camp Crystal Lake, where the story of Jason Voorhees is whispered around the campfire.
No one believes it’s real until it’s much too late and Jason has found them and begun systematically killing them. This is the first movie in the franchise where Jason was the main killer.
One of the great things about this sequel is that it takes many components of the first film and improves on them, or at least pays homage. The female characters are also given lots more to do and in general, have a surprising amount of agency in this movie compared to many other slashers at the time.
There is a great deal of Friday the13th fans who consider Part 2 to be the superior of the first films in the franchise. There is stronger characterization all around, even including Jason, which helped make him become such an iconic figure. Plus the movie does a great job of establishing the central mystery and enigma of Jason Voorhees that would carry on for many more films.