Never Hike Alone

A hiker takes his camcorder to a nature reserve & embarks on a long hike but soon stumbles across Camp Crystal Lake from Friday the 13th. It may be all dilapidated but he's not alone.... This is a fan movie which could well spell trouble but in this case we get some rather excellent production values. There's much impressive camera work, making great use of the beautiful countryside, it's well acted, packs some suspense and the make -up is of a high quality. It even stars Thom Matthews reprising his role as Tommy Jarvis. The only downside for me was that for most of the film there are only two characters, the hiker and Jason, and even at only 54 minutes long it did feel like an over stretched chase sequence. But that's just a minor quibble. As a fan I'd love to see some new Friday movies but until then this will do nicely. Well done!

This is super unique. I love the concept, and it would have been nice to see the official franchise move in this direction instead of always playing it safe and having a group of 6 or 7 caricatures to kill off. We have a single character, so it's easy to identify with him and genuinely get scared when he's in danger.

That's one of the main reasons this movie works, our feelings of empathy with the protagonist, feeling scared when he's scared, relieved when he's safe, anxious when the tension is building. This film might have been made on a shoestring budget but they put their all into it. Jason is massive, a truly horror invoking presence, and the chase and slash episodes really feel dangerous and painful and destructive; the way the camera moves with and against the actors, the way they move on screen.

This movie is, at the end of the day, just a fan tribute to the slasher series. There isn't much more than chase and hiding scenes after the setting is established. But really, isn't that the way all of the F13 films are? Isn't that one of the reasons we love them so much? It is clear (especially in the incredible end scenes) that the filmmakers made this movie out of a genuine love for the Friday franchise, and it shows in their work. Despite being made on a very low budget and with workers who are inexperienced, this was genuinely a really fun movie. And when taken as part of the F13 entity, it's not only fun, but good as well. When you love what you do, it shines through.

Oh yeah, also the mask looks effing great.

I saw one bad review and figured that being an indie film maybe this was an honest review and all the other reviews were possibly friends of the filmmakers or cast mates trying to get some positive ratings on IMDB. I'm glad that I decided to take a chance and give this nice little gem a look for myself. I have no idea what that reviewer's problem was, but this was actually a very entertaining fan film. The build up to the confrontation between the main character and Jason was well done. And the fight scenes were actually quite entertaining. I would really like to see what these people are able to accomplish in the future if someone will give them a decent budget and a good script. Well done and keep up the good work.

Wow! I have seen a few "fan films" and they can often be fun but amateurish. This flick manages to set the bar very high for any fan films that may follow. If you're a fan of the franchise then you will love this well-made addition. It might not be perfect but it has more heart than a lot of horror movies coming out of Hollywood and deserves accolades. For Jason's sake....give this man a feature film!!

(This film was featured at the Third Annual Sin City Horror Fest.)

Say the phrase "fan film", and usually it's enough to inspire cringing and lots of eye-rolling responses, especially when they're as awful as they can possibly get. But good news! NEVER HIKE ALONE isn't one of them!

A pleasant diversion from the recent legal SNAFUS entangling the FRIDAY franchise, director Di Santi's "love letter to Jason Voorhees" stars DREW LEIGHTY as social media sensation "Kyle McLeod", whose specialty is taking on the Great Outdoors, and photographing his adventures for his fans in real time. His latest hike takes him into uncharted territory, where he decides to cut his traveling time in half, through an area clearly marked with a "NO TRESSPASSING" sign. (There's Red Flag Numero UNO.) It gets really dicey, once he realizes that the actual place he's ventured into is...the spot where a certain camp was once located, and has been attached to some pretty gruesomely legendary stories...stories which he soon discovers were all too true.

With a minimal cast (including a franchise icon whom fans will love seeing), Di Santi manages to keep the suspense taut and gets maximum scares out of the scenario that don't feel cheap or unearned. He also does triple duty here, not just by writing and directing, but also by putting his own spin on Jason, in a way that other "Jason" actors (especially Kane Hodder) would gladly stamp with their 'Seal Of Approval'. And the ending implies a possible sequel...one I personally wouldn't mind seeing one little bit. New Line could do a lot worse than to give Vincente a shot at doing whatever the next installment in the franchise is...he's certainly proven himself with a film that excels beyond what normally passes for a "fan film".