Friday the 13th: A New Beginning
Encyclopedia
Friday the 13th: A New Beginning is a 1985 slasher film
. It was released on March 22, 1985. It is the fifth film in the Friday the 13th film series. Despite the previous film claiming to be the "final chapter", this installment set out to live up to its title by being a "new beginning" for the franchise.
) stumbles upon a graveyard on a rainy night. Two graverobbers Neil (Todd Bryant
) and Les (Curtis Conaway) are digging up the corpse of Jason Voorhees. Jason rises from the grave and Tommy witnesses Jason murder Neil and Les, and then Jason advances towards Tommy.
The graveyard sequence turns out to be a dream and an older Tommy (John Shepherd) awakens from the dream in the back of a van. Tommy has been shifted from various mental institutions after killing the mass murderer Jason Voorhees four years earlier, who attacked him and Tommy's sister Trish and murdered his mother. Tommy still hallucinates the hockey-mask wearing killer and it is unclear what happened to Trish. Tommy arrives at a secluded house for troubled teens in the woods, called Pinehurst Halfway House. The house is owned by Dr. Matt Letter (Richard Young
) and Tommy is shown to his room by Pam Roberts (Melanie Kinnaman
). There, he meets a young boy Reggie (Shavar Ross
) whose grandfather George (Vernon Washington
) works as the camp cook. The other teens at the halfway house include lovers Tina (Debi Sue Voorhees
) and Eddie (John Robert Dixon), redhead Robin (Juliette Cummins
), goth chick Violet (Tiffany Helm
), and shy and stuttering Jake (Jerry Pavlon).
Meanwhile, a teenager at the halfway house Joey (Dominick Brascia) is killed with an axe by another teenager at the house Vic (Mark Venturini
). One paramedic Duke (Caskey Swaim) jokes, but another medic Roy Burns (Dick Wieand) is obviously saddened by the death. Two hicks that live near the halfway house, Ethel Hubbard (Carol Locatell
) and her son Junior (Ron Sloan
) threaten to shut the place down if the teens don't quit sneaking onto their property. That night, two punks Vinnie (Anthony Barrile
) and Pete (Corey Parker
) are murdered by someone unseen after their car stalls, Vinnie has a lit road flare shoved in his mouth and Pete has his throat slit. Also, Billy (Bob DeSimone
) is waiting for his girlfriend Lana (Rebecca Wood) to finish her shift at a diner and is killed with an axe to the head. Lana comes outside only to be killed with an axe to the stomach.
The next day, more murders begin when Tina and Eddie go off into the woods to have sex. Ethel's farmhand Raymond (Sonny Shields) is killed while spying on Tina and Eddie. After sex, Eddie retreats to wash off in the creek and Tina is murdered when a pair of hedge shears plunge into her eyes. Eddie returns and finds her dead, only to have his head crushed against a tree by a leather strap. Pam, Tommy and Reggie go to a nearby trailer park to see Reggie's Brother Demon (Miguel A. Núñez, Jr.) and his girlfriend Anita (Jere Fields
). Tommy gets in a fight with Junior and runs off, forcing Pam and Reggie to leave. Pam leaves Reggie at the halfway house and then goes to search for Tommy. Demon and Anita are murdered, Anita has her throat slit and Demon is stabbed with a spear while inside an outhouse. Junior races back to the Hubbard House, crying to Ethel about what Tommy did but the killer kills him and then murders Ethel.
Reggie falls asleep and the killer quickly murders Jake with a meat cleaver, impales Robin from underneath the bed with a machete, and then enters Violet's bedroom and murders her as well. Reggie awakens and finds the dead bodies. Pam arrives and also sees the bodies. They try to flee, but encounter the killer, who appears to be Jason risen from the dead. Pam and Reggie flee the halfway house and are separated in the woods. Pam finds Duke's body with his throat slit and Matt's body nailed to a tree with a spike in his forehead. Pam also finds George dead with his eyes gouged out. The chase finally leads to the barn where Reggie rams Jason with a bulldozer. But Jason rises and attacks them inside the barn. Pam fends Jason off with a chainsaw and retreats to the upper loft with Reggie. Tommy appears, and is stabbed by Jason. Still alive, Tommy stabs Jason in the leg with a switchblade and climbs up to the loft as well, but passes out, severely wounded. Jason comes into the loft and finds Pam and Reggie, but Reggie manages to knock Jason off the hayloft. As they embrace, Jason pops back up and tries to drag Reggie off the loft, but Tommy musters enough strength to seize the machete and hack Jason in the hand, sending him falling down onto sharp farm equipment. The mask and prosthetic face are removed to reveal Roy Burns, the paramedic as the killer.
In the hospital, it is explained Joey, the boy who was killed with the axe was Roy's son and it drove him to go mad, dress up as Jason and go on a killing spree. Pam goes to check on Tommy, who is asleep, but suddenly, Tommy pops up and stabs Pam with a butcher knife. It turns out to be Tommy's dream and Pam comes in, only to see the window broken and Tommy stands behind her wielding a knife and wearing a hockey mask. The movie ends.
.
. Feldman filmed his Friday the 13th Part V cameo on a Sunday as that was his off day of filming The Goonies.
Slasher film
A slasher film is a type of horror film typically involving a psychopathic killer stalking and killing a sequence of victims in a graphically violent manner, often with a cutting tool such as a knife or axe...
. It was released on March 22, 1985. It is the fifth film in the Friday the 13th film series. Despite the previous film claiming to be the "final chapter", this installment set out to live up to its title by being a "new beginning" for the franchise.
Plot
A young Tommy Jarvis (Corey FeldmanCorey Feldman
Corey Scott Feldman is an American film and television actor. He became known during the 1980s, with roles in the Hollywood films Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, The Goonies, Stand by Me, The Lost Boys, License to Drive, Dream a Little Dream, Gremlins and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...
) stumbles upon a graveyard on a rainy night. Two graverobbers Neil (Todd Bryant
Todd Bryant
Todd Bryant is an American actor and stuntman who is perhaps most notable for having appeared in three Star Trek movies. He played one of the engineering cadets in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, the part of Klingon Captain Klaa in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, and the Klingon courtroom...
) and Les (Curtis Conaway) are digging up the corpse of Jason Voorhees. Jason rises from the grave and Tommy witnesses Jason murder Neil and Les, and then Jason advances towards Tommy.
The graveyard sequence turns out to be a dream and an older Tommy (John Shepherd) awakens from the dream in the back of a van. Tommy has been shifted from various mental institutions after killing the mass murderer Jason Voorhees four years earlier, who attacked him and Tommy's sister Trish and murdered his mother. Tommy still hallucinates the hockey-mask wearing killer and it is unclear what happened to Trish. Tommy arrives at a secluded house for troubled teens in the woods, called Pinehurst Halfway House. The house is owned by Dr. Matt Letter (Richard Young
Richard Young (actor)
Richard Young is an American actor who has starred in film and in television. His first feature film part was in 1972. Among his best known films are the 1984 movie The Ice Pirates and in the 1985 horror film Friday the 13th: A New Beginning...
) and Tommy is shown to his room by Pam Roberts (Melanie Kinnaman
Melanie Kinnaman
Melanie Kinnaman is an American dancer and film and stage actress.A native of Holyoke, Massachusetts, she has starred in a couple of films...
). There, he meets a young boy Reggie (Shavar Ross
Shavar Ross
Shavar Malik Ross is an American actor, film director, screenwriter, film producer, editor, photographer, author, and entrepreneur. He is known for his recurring television roles as Dudley Ramsey on the NBC sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, and as Weasel on the ABC sitcom Family Matters.-Biography:Ross...
) whose grandfather George (Vernon Washington
Vernon Washington
Vernon Alfred Washington is an American actor who has starred in film and on television. He is best known for his roles in the 1984 science fiction movie The Last Starfighter as Otis and in the 1985 horror movie Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as George.His best known television role may have...
) works as the camp cook. The other teens at the halfway house include lovers Tina (Debi Sue Voorhees
Debi Sue Voorhees
Debi Sue Voorhees is an American actress.-Filmography:* Innocent Prey , Prostitute* Avenging Angel , Roxie* Friday the 13th: A New Beginning , Tina...
) and Eddie (John Robert Dixon), redhead Robin (Juliette Cummins
Juliette Cummins
Juliette Marie Cummins is an American actress best known for her role in the 1985 horror movie Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as Robin...
), goth chick Violet (Tiffany Helm
Tiffany Helm
Tiffany Helm is an American film and television actress. Her best known role was in the 1985 horror film Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as Violet...
), and shy and stuttering Jake (Jerry Pavlon).
Meanwhile, a teenager at the halfway house Joey (Dominick Brascia) is killed with an axe by another teenager at the house Vic (Mark Venturini
Mark Venturini
Mark Venturini was an American actor who starred in movies and appeared on television.He was perhaps best known for his role in movies like Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as Victor, and Return of the Living Dead as Suicide . Mark's final movie was in the 1995 movie Out-of-Sync...
). One paramedic Duke (Caskey Swaim) jokes, but another medic Roy Burns (Dick Wieand) is obviously saddened by the death. Two hicks that live near the halfway house, Ethel Hubbard (Carol Locatell
Carol Locatell
Carol Locatell is an American actress who has starred in films, television and on Broadway. She is perhaps best known for her role in the 1985 horror movie Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as the foul-mouthed mean lady named Ethel....
) and her son Junior (Ron Sloan
Ron Sloan
Ron Sloan is a film actor. He is perhaps best known for his role in the 1985 horror movie Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as Junior; he also starred in the 1987 movie Banzai Runner , and in the 1989 movie Warm Summer Rain....
) threaten to shut the place down if the teens don't quit sneaking onto their property. That night, two punks Vinnie (Anthony Barrile
Anthony Barrile
Anthony Barrile is an actor, musician, writer, and native New Yorker who has starred in many film and stage productions. He is well known to New York audiences for his memorable performance as 'Cousin Kevin', the twisted lout in the original Broadway production of the Tony Award winning 'The Who's...
) and Pete (Corey Parker
Corey Parker (actor)
Corey Parker is an American actor and acting coach.-Biography:Corey Parker was born in New York City, the son of acting coach Rochelle "Rocky" Parker...
) are murdered by someone unseen after their car stalls, Vinnie has a lit road flare shoved in his mouth and Pete has his throat slit. Also, Billy (Bob DeSimone
Bob DeSimone
Bob DeSimone is an American actor who has starred in several movies. He is perhaps best known for his role as Billy, the cocaine-snorting mental health worker, in the 1985 horror movie Friday the 13th: A New Beginning. His other films were Savage Streets , and Angel III: The Final Chapter...
) is waiting for his girlfriend Lana (Rebecca Wood) to finish her shift at a diner and is killed with an axe to the head. Lana comes outside only to be killed with an axe to the stomach.
The next day, more murders begin when Tina and Eddie go off into the woods to have sex. Ethel's farmhand Raymond (Sonny Shields) is killed while spying on Tina and Eddie. After sex, Eddie retreats to wash off in the creek and Tina is murdered when a pair of hedge shears plunge into her eyes. Eddie returns and finds her dead, only to have his head crushed against a tree by a leather strap. Pam, Tommy and Reggie go to a nearby trailer park to see Reggie's Brother Demon (Miguel A. Núñez, Jr.) and his girlfriend Anita (Jere Fields
Jere Fields
Jerelyn Fields is an American actress. As a child, she guest-starred on such iconic television programmes as Gunsmoke and The Brady Bunch. She also starred on Curiosity Shop and did voice work for the animated series Kid Superpower Hour with Shazam! as well as Scooby and Scrappy-Doo. She also...
). Tommy gets in a fight with Junior and runs off, forcing Pam and Reggie to leave. Pam leaves Reggie at the halfway house and then goes to search for Tommy. Demon and Anita are murdered, Anita has her throat slit and Demon is stabbed with a spear while inside an outhouse. Junior races back to the Hubbard House, crying to Ethel about what Tommy did but the killer kills him and then murders Ethel.
Reggie falls asleep and the killer quickly murders Jake with a meat cleaver, impales Robin from underneath the bed with a machete, and then enters Violet's bedroom and murders her as well. Reggie awakens and finds the dead bodies. Pam arrives and also sees the bodies. They try to flee, but encounter the killer, who appears to be Jason risen from the dead. Pam and Reggie flee the halfway house and are separated in the woods. Pam finds Duke's body with his throat slit and Matt's body nailed to a tree with a spike in his forehead. Pam also finds George dead with his eyes gouged out. The chase finally leads to the barn where Reggie rams Jason with a bulldozer. But Jason rises and attacks them inside the barn. Pam fends Jason off with a chainsaw and retreats to the upper loft with Reggie. Tommy appears, and is stabbed by Jason. Still alive, Tommy stabs Jason in the leg with a switchblade and climbs up to the loft as well, but passes out, severely wounded. Jason comes into the loft and finds Pam and Reggie, but Reggie manages to knock Jason off the hayloft. As they embrace, Jason pops back up and tries to drag Reggie off the loft, but Tommy musters enough strength to seize the machete and hack Jason in the hand, sending him falling down onto sharp farm equipment. The mask and prosthetic face are removed to reveal Roy Burns, the paramedic as the killer.
In the hospital, it is explained Joey, the boy who was killed with the axe was Roy's son and it drove him to go mad, dress up as Jason and go on a killing spree. Pam goes to check on Tommy, who is asleep, but suddenly, Tommy pops up and stabs Pam with a butcher knife. It turns out to be Tommy's dream and Pam comes in, only to see the window broken and Tommy stands behind her wielding a knife and wearing a hockey mask. The movie ends.
Cast
- Melanie KinnamanMelanie KinnamanMelanie Kinnaman is an American dancer and film and stage actress.A native of Holyoke, Massachusetts, she has starred in a couple of films...
as Pam Roberts - John ShepherdJohn Shepherd (actor)John Shepherd is an American actor and producer who has starred in film and on television. He is best known for his role in the 1985 horror film Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as Tommy Jarvis and speaks in the commentary of the Deluxe Edition of the film in 2009.Other movies he starred in were...
as Tommy Jarvis - Shavar RossShavar RossShavar Malik Ross is an American actor, film director, screenwriter, film producer, editor, photographer, author, and entrepreneur. He is known for his recurring television roles as Dudley Ramsey on the NBC sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, and as Weasel on the ABC sitcom Family Matters.-Biography:Ross...
as Reggie - Richard YoungRichard Young (actor)Richard Young is an American actor who has starred in film and in television. His first feature film part was in 1972. Among his best known films are the 1984 movie The Ice Pirates and in the 1985 horror film Friday the 13th: A New Beginning...
as Matt - Marco St. JohnMarco St. JohnMarco St. John is an American actor who has starred in many films and on television. He is best known for his role as the perverted truck driver in the 1991 hit film Thelma & Louise. St. John is also well known in the horror fan community for playing Sheriff Tucker in the 1985 horror film Friday...
as Sheriff Tucker - Juliette CumminsJuliette CumminsJuliette Marie Cummins is an American actress best known for her role in the 1985 horror movie Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as Robin...
as Robin - Carol LocatellCarol LocatellCarol Locatell is an American actress who has starred in films, television and on Broadway. She is perhaps best known for her role in the 1985 horror movie Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as the foul-mouthed mean lady named Ethel....
as Ethel - Vernon WashingtonVernon WashingtonVernon Alfred Washington is an American actor who has starred in film and on television. He is best known for his roles in the 1984 science fiction movie The Last Starfighter as Otis and in the 1985 horror movie Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as George.His best known television role may have...
as George - John Robert Dixon as Eddie
- Tiffany HelmTiffany HelmTiffany Helm is an American film and television actress. Her best known role was in the 1985 horror film Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as Violet...
as Violet - Jerry Pavlon as Jake
- Caskey Swaim as Duke
- Mark VenturiniMark VenturiniMark Venturini was an American actor who starred in movies and appeared on television.He was perhaps best known for his role in movies like Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as Victor, and Return of the Living Dead as Suicide . Mark's final movie was in the 1995 movie Out-of-Sync...
as Vic - Anthony BarrileAnthony BarrileAnthony Barrile is an actor, musician, writer, and native New Yorker who has starred in many film and stage productions. He is well known to New York audiences for his memorable performance as 'Cousin Kevin', the twisted lout in the original Broadway production of the Tony Award winning 'The Who's...
as Vinnie - Dominick Brascia as Joey
- Richard LinebackRichard LinebackRichard D. Lineback is an American actor. He has performed in character roles in such blockbuster films as Speed, Twister and Varsity Blues. He played Deputy Dodd in Friday the 13th: A New Beginning....
as Deputy Dodd - Corey FeldmanCorey FeldmanCorey Scott Feldman is an American film and television actor. He became known during the 1980s, with roles in the Hollywood films Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, The Goonies, Stand by Me, The Lost Boys, License to Drive, Dream a Little Dream, Gremlins and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles...
as Tommy Jarvis (age 12) - Bob DeSimoneBob DeSimoneBob DeSimone is an American actor who has starred in several movies. He is perhaps best known for his role as Billy, the cocaine-snorting mental health worker, in the 1985 horror movie Friday the 13th: A New Beginning. His other films were Savage Streets , and Angel III: The Final Chapter...
as Billy - Jere FieldsJere FieldsJerelyn Fields is an American actress. As a child, she guest-starred on such iconic television programmes as Gunsmoke and The Brady Bunch. She also starred on Curiosity Shop and did voice work for the animated series Kid Superpower Hour with Shazam! as well as Scooby and Scrappy-Doo. She also...
as Anita - Ric Mancini as Mayor Cobb
- Miguel A. Núñez, Jr. as Demon
- Corey ParkerCorey Parker (actor)Corey Parker is an American actor and acting coach.-Biography:Corey Parker was born in New York City, the son of acting coach Rochelle "Rocky" Parker...
as Pete - Rebecca Wood as Lana
- Ron SloanRon SloanRon Sloan is a film actor. He is perhaps best known for his role in the 1985 horror movie Friday the 13th: A New Beginning as Junior; he also starred in the 1987 movie Banzai Runner , and in the 1989 movie Warm Summer Rain....
as Junior - Debi Sue VoorheesDebi Sue VoorheesDebi Sue Voorhees is an American actress.-Filmography:* Innocent Prey , Prostitute* Avenging Angel , Roxie* Friday the 13th: A New Beginning , Tina...
as Tina - Dick Wieand as Roy Burns
Reception
Like its predecessors, except the original film, the film received mostly negative reviews, earning a "rotten" 18% rating at Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.
Other notes
According to the Friday the 13th: Return to Crystal Lake DVD Box set, Corey Feldman was only able to make a cameo in this film as a result of him filming The GooniesThe Goonies
The Goonies is a 1985 American adventure-comedy film directed by Richard Donner. The screenplay was written by Chris Columbus from a story by executive producer Steven Spielberg. The premise surrounds a band of pre-teens who live in the "Goon Docks" neighborhood of Astoria, Oregon hoping to save...
. Feldman filmed his Friday the 13th Part V cameo on a Sunday as that was his off day of filming The Goonies.