Superstitions and beliefs whether true or not run down for generations and turn into scariest phenomena. One such is about Friday the 13th which started centuries and decades ago and has now created a frenzy among people. The day is often combined with bad luck and misfortunes: rotten number 13 with Friday,
This superstition became more popular after a movie about the same was created. It was in 1980, just before summer, that a film by Victor Miller and Sean Cunningham was released that would change the history of horror forever.
Considered a classic in horror and slasher genres, Friday the 13th’s popularity has led to the making of many more films in this series, and has turned Camp Crystal Lake into the most dangerous site in the United States.
But years after the release of the film, have you wondered whether or not the film is based on a true story? Here’s bringing you a theory in the debate about the authenticity of the film!
Is the Original “Friday the 13th” Movie Based on a True Story?
Though the reach of this saga has extended with sequels and reboots, the terrifying reputation of the original films in the series, as opposed to films made after them, lies in the fact that such horrible actions could almost happen in real life.
However, the way these killings are depicted begs the question of whether the original Friday the 13th film is a depiction of actual events.
Friday the 13th (1980) is not a real story and is entirely fictional. It does not depict any events based on actual events. Even the makers have denied claims of the story being based on real-life incidents. On the other hand, it has not yet been proved how or when exactly the ideas about Friday the 13th started being considered tragic.
What is the plot of the original Friday the 13th?
The plot of Friday the 13th starts in 1957 when a young Jason Voorhees meets his tragic demise by drowning at Camp Crystal’s lake after many of the campers bully him. Later in 1958, two camp counselors were killed. By 1962, the camp was unable to reopen due to fires and contaminated water.
However, twenty years later, the murderous past of Crystal Lake, doesn’t stop a group of counselors from setting up a summer camp in the mysterious and scary woods. Some locals and superstitious people advise otherwise.
However, Jack (Kevin Bacon), Alice (Adrienne King), Bill (Harry Crosby), Marcie (Jeannine Taylor), Ned (Mark Nelson), and the rest of the crew hardly listen to the locals.
Things start going downhill when they are hunted down by a psychopathic maniac. Pamela Voorhees (Betsy Palmer) kills three teenage counselors who were about to start preparations for reopening Camp Crystal Lake.
This was after she vowed that the camp would not be opened again following the tragic incident in which her son Jason (Ari Lehman) drowned in the lake because of the two careless staff members.
In the second part of the movie, Pamela is executed. However, it appears that Jason Voorhees isn’t entirely gone after all. Alice, the only survivor, remembers a child who is likely Jason attempting to pull her into the crushing waters of Crystal Lake.
Later, in the sequel, Alice will be killed by the real Jason, now older and taking revenge for her mother’s death. From this point, he does several violent killings mentioned in most of the installments of the franchise.
Almost at the end of that, he also finds himself in hell, sometime far in the future in space, and even comes up against inducted sister slasher, Freddy Krueger.
The sequels reached further than the imagination, but speculation remains, for some, was Friday the 13th based on true events? Perhaps the answer lies in a well-known Finland Massacre which may have given rise to the character of Jason Voorhees.
What is the story of the Finland Massacre?
During one of the Finnish summers in 1960, three teenagers went camping at the secluded place known as Lake Bodom and pitched tents by the banks of the lake.
This arrangement in itself is quite similar to that of the Crystal Lake of the movie Friday the 13th, in which a group of young adults who went on camping tour presented in the film. Unfortunately for these campers however, who made their way into the tents for the night, the similarities did not end there.
On June 5, 1960, a crew of birdwatches saw a tent collapse from far away along with a blond man. Later, a local carpenter accidentally visited the place and saw the entire horrible scene.
Nils Gustafsson, one of the group members was discovered alive with cuts on his face and multiple fractures. The other three campers were brutally stabbed to death. Soon after the police arrived, Gustafsson told them that someone attacked their tent in the early hours.
However, the catch here is the description of the killer by Gustafsson, he revealed seeing a man dressed in black with a red eye after he woke up. The similarities between the film’s antagonist, Jason Voorhees, and the described killer in Finland Massacre somewhere draws a connection.
How did the superstition of Friday the 13th begin?
There is no proof of how the belief about Friday the 13th began. However, many theories suggest that the emergence of the superstition could date back to the day of the Knights Templar’s imprisonment on Friday the 13th of October in 1307.
It does not appear that there is one true story upon which the film Friday the 13th is based. Over the years, pop culture and entertainment have added to the tale, the most aggressive of them being the film, slasher sub-genre.
However, an upcoming show which is said to be a prequel to Friday the 13th also connects the dots of the film to be inspired by Finland Massacre.
Does Crystal Lake prove the origin of Friday the 13th to be in Finland Massacre?
As fans await the release of the Peacock-centric streaming series, Crystal Lake, which is believed to be set as a prequel and build-up to the 1980 first movie, has piqued the audience’s curiosity about the possible origin of the tale.
While the franchise’s production heads have mostly claimed that there was no basis from actual occurrences, one particular incident from the 1960s in Finland has patterns that revert well to the films.
Such patterns have raised conjectures that Finland is the birthplace of the concept of Friday the 13th motion picture. Hence, it is highly debatable that based on the Finland massacre, there existed a real-life Jason who can be a factor in the plot of the new series.
