Friday the 13th
At a reopened lakeside camp, young counselors face a vengeful and unidentified murderer emerging from a buried tragedy.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Graphic
- foreboding
- tense
- visceral
- late night horror marathon
- halloween viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly regarded the film as a low-budget, exploitative slasher with effective suspense and music but weak writing and technical limitations.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The counselors are murdered one by one by an unidentified person, with the question of the killer's identity driving the suspense.
The reopened Camp Crystal Lake is surrounded by woods and a lake, cutting the counselors off from safety as killings escalate.
Jason's drowning and the earlier counselor deaths establish the grievance behind the violence at Crystal Lake.
The film combines summer-camp leisure, teenage counselors, stalking, sadism, and graphic murders in an early slasher formula.
Films like Friday the 13th, and why
The Burning
foundational summer-camp slasher with a mysterious killer, stalking suspense, and graphic set pieces
The Prowler
teen-centered slasher structure combining isolated youth characters, escalating murders, and exploitation-horror thrills
Halloween
influential masked-killer horror built around suspense, sexualized peril, and a remote setting
Psycho
mystery-driven horror with a concealed murderer, psychological menace, and a backstory rooted in an earlier death
Movie Details
- Director
- Sean S. Cunningham
- Release Date
- 1980-05-09
- Runtime
- 95 min
- Rating
- 6.4 / 10 (3476)
Cast
- Adrienne King
- Betsy Palmer
- Kevin Bacon
- Jeannine Taylor
- Harry Crosby
- Laurie Bartram
- Mark Nelson
- Peter Brouwer
- Robbi Morgan
- Rex Everhart
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel
- Rent
- JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Plex
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Friday the 13th about?
- At a reopened lakeside camp, young counselors face a vengeful and unidentified murderer emerging from a buried tragedy.
- What is Friday the 13th like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Friday the 13th as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Friday the 13th violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Friday the 13th as graphic.
- What did critics think of Friday the 13th?
- Critics broadly regarded the film as a low-budget, exploitative slasher with effective suspense and music but weak writing and technical limitations.
- Which films are like Friday the 13th?
- Films with a similar feel include The Burning, The Prowler, Halloween, and Psycho.
- How long is Friday the 13th?
- Friday the 13th runs 95 minutes.
- Where can I watch Friday the 13th?
- In United States, Friday the 13th streams on Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel.
In Ember's collections
Movies like Friday the 13th
- Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan1989
- The Burning1981
- Jason Lives - Friday the 13th Part VI1986
- Sleepaway Camp III: Teenage Wasteland1989
- Return to Sleepaway Camp2008
- Just Before Dawn1981
- Sleepaway Camp II: Unhappy Campers1988
- Friday the 13th: A New Beginning1985
- Friday the 13th Part III1982
- Sleepaway Camp IV: The Survivor2012
