Jason X (2001)
He's been drowned, chainsawed, knifed, axed, hammered, shocked, burnt, spiked, nailed, shot and frozen. Now he's back for more.
Starring: Kane Hodder, Lexa Doig, Chuck Campbell, Lisa Ryder, Peter Mensah, Melyssa Ade, Derwin Jordan, Jonathan Potts, Dov Tiefenbach
Director: Jim Asaac
Running Time: 92 minutes
US MPAA rating: N/AUK BBFC rating: 15
Action, Comedy, Horror, Science Fiction, Thriller
On DVD It is the near future. Camp Crystal Lake has long been closed and is now the location for the Crystal Lake Research Facility. This unit has been set up solely to look into the options for dealing with Jason Voorhees (Kane Hodder) - the indestructible serial killer of hundreds. A number of attempts have been made to execute Jason, but he has defied them all and now hangs in chains in the high-security facility waiting to be cryogenically frozen. However, Dr Wimmer (David Cronenberg) arrives to take Jason away, wanting to do further research into his indestructibility. One of the facility's scientists, a woman called Rowan (Lexa Doig), attempts to make the case for freezing Jason but she is too late - Jason has escaped once more and has already started a new round of killings.
Using herself as bait, Rowan lures Jason into the cryogenic chamber and traps him. However, he pierces the chamber with his machete and, when the freezing process takes place, Rowan too is put into suspension. The action moves forward more than 400 years and a group of students on a field trip to the now-devastated Earth find the frozen bodies and take them back to their spaceship for study. They manage to revive Rowan, but think that Jason is dead. However, allowing Jason to thaw out may not be the wisest thing they could do.
This is a reasonable addition to the 'Friday the 13th' stable of films. There are few surprises in it, of course, because Jason has always been somewhat limited in scope - he kills people and does nothing else. Moving him into space makes the film feel like a cross between Alien and Hellraiser: Bloodline, but both of those movies feature more inventive evil foes. However, the movie is not all bad. It does have a lighter touch than many of its predecessors, with some genuinely funny moments, and does provide some genuine entertainment.
Features a cameo appearance by David Cronenberg as Dr Wimmer.
DVD Extras: The 'Jump to a Death' scene selection feature makes an amusing, if gory, addition to the disc.
Extras: Filmmakers' commentary, 2 documentaries, 'Jump to a Death' scene selection, Theatrical trailers
It's Got: Some funny moments and an upgrade for Jason.
It Needs: Some new and more inventive means of going about the killing.
Alternatives: Freddy vs Jason, Halloween, Alien, Hellraiser: Bloodline
Summary: There is little that is new in the movie and you always know what's coming, but that's not really the point with the films in this series. Slasher movie fans are likely to turn it into a cult classic anyway.
Review by Andrea Chee
Review Date: 17th May 2003
External Links
Jason X at the IMDB
