Camp Crystal Lake is not the best Friday the 13th fan film, but it
might just be this author’s sentimental favorite. The film was
purportedly made in one night, but watching it, you’d think it took a full three or four days’ work. There’s not much of a storyline here
beyond a “Mr. K” having purchased the camp with hopes of fixing it
up. There are, however, lots of lovely visuals. The director, Rickey Bird, found
some prime abandoned camp locations, to which the editors have
overlaid various augmentations, including on-the-fly VHS tracking
fixups. Perhaps the finest piece of cinematography in all the Friday
the 13th fandom is this film's shot of Jason
in a meadow in the moonlight, looking perplexed. Also easy on the eyes
are the female cast members. Your author doesn’t mean to get caught
up in matters of male gazing here, but the female lead, one Erica
Morgan, is so pretty that she almost takes on a translucent quality.
Her runway-ready beauty in combination with her pixyish voice
establish her as a truly unforgettable fan-film female lead (if not
the only one). When she (mild spoiler alert here) finds Mr. K’s
corpse and squawks “Mr. K! Holy fuck!” it is one of the most
hilarious and unvarnished moments in any Friday the 13th fan film. And while Camp Crystal Lake doesn’t have much of a
plot to resolve, it does clear up some questions circling around (at least for this reviewer) Jason’s sexuality. The final image
(another mild spoiler alert) has Jason taking an incapacitated Erica
Morgan back into the lake as a prize, of sorts, suggesting that the
hockey-masked maniac is moving towards a more distinctly heteronormative
sexuality. And although I’ve given several spoilers in this review,
this shouldn’t deter anyone from watching Camp Crystal Lake.
Among Friday the 13th fan films, it’s
an atmospheric triumph that must be experienced.
Watch it here.