Boobirt Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Pacionsbo Absolutely Fantastic

AshUnow This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Jenni Devyn Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

Paul Magne Haakonsen Being a huge fan of the "Friday the 13th" franchise and finding Jason Voorhees to be the ultimate of all slashers, then of course I would eventually find my way around to sitting down to watch "His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th". Oddly enough it wasn't before now in 2017 that I actually got around to doing it."His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th" offers an extensive insight into the franchise through numerous interviews with directors, actors and actresses who performed in the movies (either as victims or as Jason himself), producers, and other such people whom has been tied in with the franchise in one way or another.This documentary didn't really reveal much of anything new that I wasn't already familiar with to the franchise. Although it did offer some nice enough experiences from cast and crew working on the "Friday the 13th" movies. And it was fun enough to hear about their experiences, but it hardly gives you anything new to bring to the movies when you watch them.Whether or not if you have seen "His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th" or not, then it doesn't really change the way you perceive the franchise, nor does it give you much of any kind of enlightenment of issues and questions that you might have for the this long-running franchise.Sure, this was entertaining enough for what it was, however this is a niche documentary, that caters only for fans of the "Friday the 13th" franchise. If you are not a fan of this franchise, then there is very little of any worth or interest for you to have by sitting down to watching it.Having seen it now, I doubt that I will return to watch it a second time. I could have wanted for a more in depth look at the production of the movies as well, with focus on the special effects. Sure, it was there, but not just as elaborate as I would have liked.This 2009 documentary hosted by Tom Savini scores a 6 out of 10 stars from me.

MisterWhiplash His Name Was Jason takes a serious (or self-serious and half-kidding) look at the horror icon, Mr. Voorhees (son of that old friend of the Christie's), and the saga of Friday the 13th and its impact on film and culture. It goes quickly through the stories and events of the films through 1980 to 2003 (since it was released on the day the remake came out- and they knew better- they left the most recent one out), and then it goes on to dissecting everything Jason. Who is this character? Why does he kill? And does he even have a soul? The cast and crew talk about Jason like he's a misunderstood being, and as well the notorious villain that he is and his status of being just another kid looking for revenge in his twisted mind (hence seeing his mother from time to time). Then it goes into talking about the legacy - the actors telling their stories, the make-up people (i.e. Tom Savini, who also graciously and wonderfully hosts) discussing techniques of killing people, and its status in popular culture.While His Name Was Jason has merits in terms of some, if not most, of the interviews accumulated from cast and critics and other filmmakers (the director of Wrong Turn 2, oddly enough, becomes something of an authority), and seeing the clips brings some nostalgia, nobody comes clean with certain things. For one thing, Sean S. Cunninghamn practically says that Friday the 13th invented the slasher genre, without noting a certain movie called Halloween a few years before (or just as inspiration), and that everyone ripped the series off as it if was, you know, always a good thing. And while everybody is quick to heap praise on certain scenes and kills and effects (some warranted if only in the slasher realm) nobody is seen criticizing anything - A New Beginning, come on! - and there's a constant nu-metal soundtrack accompanying the clips and the interviews. It almost defeats the purpose of a tribute when you can barely have the noted "Ccch-maaaa" sound effect that is the franchise's trademark.There's also the danger of having information in here that is nothing really new for die-hards of the series, whom this is marketed to most, but this isn't too much of a concern. If there is a problem with the information accumulated it's that it doesn't always have a clear focus: a topic is started up by Mr. Savini, and there's some time devoted to it (i.e. how kills are done, who Jason is) but then it trails off into something else. Some interviewees are interesting, like Kane Hodder and Savini himself. Others look like they could really use some work and desperately want anything, let alone to reprise their old characters... although an idea mentioned about bringing the surviving women from the 80's series together is a nifty idea. Certainly would be right up there in guilty-pleasure world like the bikini-girls hallucination in Jason X.So, it's not essential, and some horror fans that just find Jason "ok" may be insulted by some of the super-high adulations made to a series that is even admitted by its makers to be formulaic fantasy. But as a propped-up DVD extra, it's not too painful to watch.

kirk-246 I think that there is something very special about the 'Friday The 13th' franchise.As a huge fan of the series, I have always loved at how Jason stalked and killed his victims.Every weapon that ranges from spears to machetes and the gore and mayhem that they cause always entertains me and I don't think that I will ever be bored by it.But we all know that every movie has some haters.While the 'Friday' films may not be loved by critics, fans such as I don't care about the critics and we just watch the movies and enjoy them for what they are.There is a documentary of the slasher genre called 'Goin To Pieces: The Rise And Fall Of The Slasher Film'.This was a superb film that demonstrated how the slasher genre worked and why people like me were into horror films such as the 'Friday' films.Now we are given 'His Name Was Jason', a documentary that explains the franchise and why people love them.Although I can't say that this Doc was as good as 'Going To Pieces', I do think that it is nothing more than a good Doc and really should be seen by fans of the movies.

twostpr41 I'm feeling you guys...this is what I'm guessin' you're thinking' "...jeezum crow! Tell me somethin I didn't already know!"O.K. so this overview of the last 30 years of Jason flix is a little bit preachin' to the choir stuff. Anyone who claims themselves a fan is not going to learn anything new here, though I myself found the extras a lot more interesting than the actual doc. (The Men Behind the Mask)You know this is pretty much just a marketing thing put out for the new film which I haven't seen, though I would. Does anyone want to send me $11.00 to see it? course not. Since We'll be able to see it PPV two months from now. But I digress.Still, the doc is fun to watch a bit, seeing what former fodder has grown up to be (notice Feldman is nowhere to be seen) and their take on their experiences is interesting. Some good stories for sure.