O.K. so slight disclaimer (and not much of a surprise to anyone who knows me): I am a huge fan of “Friday the 13th.”  Like many horror fans, it was my first real introduction to the genre.  With that said, when I saw the trailer for “The Final Girls,” well, let’s just say the only reason I decided to give it a chance is because of its cast.  I like Mailin Akerman, and Adam DeVine.  But also like many horror fans, I’ve been burned by the over-abundance of poorly-produced (and simply not funny) horror-parody films that seem to be all over Netflix like bad episodes of (insert your least favorite TV program with way too many episodes produced here).  So the good news with this film is that it actually seems to have been produced by people who truly love the (yeah, bad pun coming) “campiness” of the early ’80s original that began so many horror movie conventions.  The charm of this movie is that it celebrates the essence of not only the films, but the era that created them: the scratched-up movie prints, really bad clothes and hairstyles, the trope that only a virgin survives to “kill” the killer, and even the totally tubular dialogue that dates these aging horror classics.

The film begins by introducing us to typical late teen Max (Taissa Farmiga) and her (can’t escape her cinematic past) single actress mother, Amanda (Malin Akerman), who is only known for her role as ’80s scream queen Nancy in a slasher film called “Camp Bloodbath.”  It’s a film that is enough of a cult-classic to keep her in every casting director’s memory, but is bad enough to have totally killed her acting career.  After a particularly bad audition, they are in a car accident and Max is the only one to survive.

Fast forward a few years and Max is still trying to cope with the loss of her mom. It’s film festival time in their college town, and wouldn’t you know it, Duncan (Thomas Middleditch), the local way-too-much-of-a-horror-fan with a cause is unrelenting in his efforts to convince Max to attend a double-feature showing of her mom’s films, Camp Bloodbath and its sequel, Camp Bloodbath 2: Cruel Summer.  She only agrees to go if her new boyfriend Chris (Alexander Ludwig) and her best friend Gertie (Alia Shawkat) agree to attend with her.

That night in the theater, the most contrived theater fire in the history of cinema somehow creates a rift in time and dimension and Max and her friends find themselves trapped in the movie itself, living through an endlessly-looping “Camp Bloodbath,” complete with a full set of ’80s camp counselor stereotypes. It’s a touch of “Last Action Hero” and a “Dash of Back to the Future” as Max is reunited with not her mother, but the hopelessly optimistic (soon to be devirginized and murdered) character her mother played in the film.

Blood is spilled (in silly and wonderful ways).  There are some great jokes and jabs at the pop culture disaster that was the ’80s, and some fun is poked at the conventions of horror film making. But what makes “The Final Girls” stand out is that rather than dismantling and making fun of the films that we love, “The Final Girls” celebrates them and finds a way to make them into something new.

This film is really worth watching–and you can catch it on Video On Demand. I certainly hope it does well enough to bring us the sequel it merits.

DONE FORGET! If you are in New York, you can stop streaming and start screaming!  Get your tickets for the screening tonight and let’s hear “Bette Davis Eyes” one more time.