After the absolute mess of a psychological fake-out that was Part V: A New Beginning, the fans were ready to riot. Paramount originally wanted to transition the franchise into a new trilogy with a completely different killer, hinting that a traumatized Tommy Jarvis would inherit the hockey mask. Thankfully, audiences hated that idea so much that the studio had to do a hard pivot.

Directed by Tom McLoughlin, a veteran of plenty of made-for-TV movies and Sometimes They Come Back, as well as playing the robot S.T.A.R. in The Black Hole and Katahdin in Prophecy, did his best to right the ship. This is the film where Jason fully became supernatural, and it’s also one of the few films in the series to get good reviews, probably due to the humor throughout.

The original plan was for Tommy Jarvis to become Jason, but audiences were pretty unhappy with that hint at the end of the last film. So this one begins with Tommy (Thom Matthews, Return of the Living Dead) heading to Jason’s grave to destroy his body so that he can never come back. But of course, as soon as he stabs the murderer with a metal fence post, lightning strikes him, and he’s back from the dead — and kills Tommy’s friend Alan (Ron Palillo, Horshack from TV’s Welcome Back, Kotter) right away.

Tommy loses his mind, sprints to the local police station, and meets Sheriff Garris (David Kagen). Of course, the lawman thinks Tommy is just a lunatic off his meds and locks him up. Meanwhile, the town of Crystal Lake has rebranded itself as “Forest Green” to distance itself from the body count, and actual kids are finally back at the camp. Tommy escapes with the help of the Sheriff’s rebellious daughter, Megan (Jennifer Cooke from V: The Original Series), but they’re fighting an uphill battle. To the new crop of camp counselors, Jason Voorhees is just an urban legend.

By the time the climax rolls around, Jason is an unstoppable juggernaut, cutting through deputies and counselors alike. Tommy finally lures the monster out to the center of the lake, wraps a heavy chain around its neck, and anchors it to a massive boulder at the bottom of Crystal Lake. Megan finishes the job by chewing up Jason’s face with an outboard motor propeller. But as the camera drifts underwater at the final frame, those dead eyes pop wide open. He’s home, and he’s waiting.

Again, this movie was a major big deal in my teenage years, particularly because it had a music video! “He’s Back (the Man Behind the Mask)” by Alice Cooper announced that Jason had survived the final chapter.

The working title for this installment was Aladdin Sane. I really enjoyed this installment, which even has a nod to James Bond in the beginning. In our movie basement, we have several versions of the poster for this one, which speaks to my love of this film.

You can watch this either in-person or virtually at the Chattanooga Film Festival. For more info, visit the official site.