At long last, Jason Voorhees has returned to slice and dice teens at Camp Crystal Lake in the short film Sweet Revenge. While the "vignette," as it's being called by the Jason Universe folks, isn't quite a new Friday the 13th film, it's something, at least. It's also a pretty decent resurrection of everyone's favorite mama's boy, and hopefully, it's a tease of more things to come.
Because it's been 16 long years since Jason has been featured in any sort of film in an official, licensed capacity, it's worth unpacking Sweet Revenge, including the good, the bad, and the simply weird. Directed by Mike P. Nelson (Wrong Turn, forthcoming Silent Night, Deadly Night remake), the film stars stuntman Schuyler White as Jason. A group of teens, led by final girl Eve (Ally Ioannides), arrive at Camp Crystal Lake, and well, we all know what happens next. Because the film is only 13 minutes, there's not a lot of room for character development, but there's still some positives and promise.
This article includes spoilers for Sweet Revenge.
The Good
At least part of Sweet Revenge will feel familiar to Friday the 13th fans. Teens arrive at Camp Crystal Lake. They're warned by a local about the site's grisly history, and well, most of them wind up dead. It's a familiar premise, and for at least part of the movie, Nelson sticks to what works well and what people want to see, namely Jason hacking and slashing victims.
Prior to Sweet Revenge's release, fans griped about Jason's new look. Simply put, it looked bad, like an AI-generated Jason. Thankfully, Jason looks pretty cool in Sweet Revenge. He's a little thinner than, say, Kane Hodder's portrayal of Jason, but he still looks rather menacing. Nelson includes a few great shots and close-ups of him throughout the film. Friday the 13th fans can rest a little easier, knowing that this recent portrayal of Jason doesn't look as sloppy as the Jason Universe reveal from earlier this year. He also maintains the supernatural, zombified quality of the franchise's later films.
As for the kills, Jason wastes no time disposing of most of the teens. Within the last few minutes, Nelson unleashes a slasher splatter fest, but most of the other kills are staged. Still, some of the effects look pretty good, especially for film that's only 13 minutes long.
The Bad
Because Sweet Revenge is a short film, there's not a lot of time for character development. Nelson had to get to the kills rather quickly. I'm not saying that Friday the 13th films are heavy on character development and nuanced plots, but some of their characters throughout the series, especially the final girls, did stand out. There's just no time to do that in this case.
Meanwhile, because Sweet Revenge was made in partnership with Angry Orchard Hard Cider, there's also unnecessary product placement. It's not gratuitous, but it is obvious. For the film's first half, there are very few scenes where Eve isn't holding a hard cider. Thankfully, they never mention the product, but it's noticeable.
I also would have liked to see a little more Jason. He doesn't really arrive in full until fairly late in the film. Most of the kills occur off-screen, and then Eve reacts to them. I wanted to see Jason in action That said, there are some decent deaths here that slasher fans should appreciate.
The Weird
Sweet Revenge differs from other Friday the 13th films and the overall lore in one big way. Eve, somehow, with no explanation, becomes like Jason. What I mean is that she drowns early in the film. Jason later stabs her with his machete, and she returns in a zombified sort of form. The film ends with her facing off against Jason, seemingly possessing some of his powers, namely his inability to die.
Nelson's change to the lore is a total wtf, head-cratching moment. He didn't have time to explore this concept more in a 13-minute film, but most likely, fans won't like it. We can only hope the franchise doesn't go in this direction. It's good to do something different, but this seems a little far-fetched, even for a franchise that sent Jason to hell and then shot him into a space a sequel later. Also, what makes Jason special if others can possess his power in zombified form?
Overall, despite its flaws, Sweet Revenge has a few gnarly kills, a decent-looking Jason, and most importantly, it marks the return of the slasher icon. Next, we'll have the Friday the 13th prequel series, Crystal Lake. Produced in conjunction with A24, the series will eventually stream on Peacock and is currently filming.
Sweet Revenge is out now and available to watch online via the Jason Universe YouTube Channel.