Ah the magic of summer camp. The dust that never leaves your eyes when kicked up by fellow campers on the trails, the sound of the lake brushing up against the rocks on a calm cool summer night, Mrs. Voorhees standing behind an evergreen while her knife glistens in the moonlight. The memories come flooding back.

My parents never had extra funds to send me to camp when I was young. So when I was a freshman in high school and a camp a few hours away needed someone to work there and live on site for the summer, I was the first one to show up. I ended up working at that camp for all 4 summers of high school. It was a dream. This August, my beloved birthday month, I got to take a road trip back to that camp and it was surreal to see it again. The lake looked exactly the same, the cabins were all right where I left them and the smell of the familiar woods was overwhelming.

So, it was only fate when this month we were given a Friday the 13^th on a bright moonlit night. I went to a double feature horror viewing of the original Friday and the 2009 remake at the Egyptian Theater downtown. It was exactly what I needed, and only my second time going back into a theater since covid began. It brought back all the wonders and terrors of working at camp. With summer gradually coming to an end, it’s time to close it out in true HFR style. So get your flashlight, your itchy blanket, and follow me into the woods as I breakdown the ‘fits and characters of the original Friday the 13^th from 1980.

Out of the five girls in this film, only three of them I would consider to be main characters. And that’s what we know and love about the horror genre, no real surprises in the recipe, until we reach that ending 😉 We have, Jeannine Taylor as Marcie, Laurie Bartram as Brenda, Adrienne King as Alice, Robbie Morgan as Annie (who unfortunately never makes it to camp), and of course, last but never least, Betsy Palmer as the mystifying and horrifying Mrs. Pamela Voorhees.

Let’s start with Annie.

Freckled face, too trusting, getting in all sorts of cars with strange fucking people, Annie. INCREDIBLE hair, killer smile, and too much determination to think straight. Orange is her pallet, and I DIE for orange, it’s one of my favorite colors. But is that enough to back her outfit? Idk. The high waisted blue jeans that have a slight flair are great, very on pointe with the time of year. The orange long sleeve tee and an orange blue and yellow plaid button up over top is also cute and the combination of colors here are working well. It becomes too much orange once we see her shoulder bag that is also an orange, only a darker shade.

What I don’t understand is the additional orange in the hoodie choice. We don’t see much of Annie but what we get is wholesome, the oranges remind us of that subtle spice but mostly nice attitude that Annie carries. I would say that the reason she gets killed early on is because of her burnt salmon colored hoodie that’s wrapped around her waist. Even Mrs. Voorhees had enough of the fucking oranges and had to kill her.

R.I.P. Annie, we wish you a heaven full of orange hues.

Next up, is Brenda.

Stripes is her thing. We meet her in bright red shorts that match her red and white stripped tank and she completes it with a light chambray tied in the front. Fully backing these choices! It’s screaming summer time, but it’s also just the right touch of modesty at the same time. It’s so Brenda.

When we see her again, she covers up even more in a pair of light wash denim jeans that fit her perfectly but they are boot cut because she’s not trying to have them be too tight. What can I say about the rainbow stripes here with the bright red trim?

Well, we know that red is a seductive and sensual color, it’s a loud and bold color, and for Brenda, it makes sense. She’s the kinda girl that is outwardly modest but has a secret sultry side to her. She’s drawn to reds because that connects with her true identity, the one that she tries to keep hidden and buried.

The rainbow stripes are playful, honest, and low-key. She’s a sexy babe but she’s not a high maintenance one. The only thing that would scare the boys and girls away from her is that tiny gold cross necklace. And maybe also that hairdo.

When she gets into the strip-Monopoly game, that’s when we see more of her hidden self. Eager to take it off and show off her pink bra with a white lace trim. VERY feminine, VERY sexy, but the gold necklace still hangs and she’s forever stuck between her two selves.

The choice of the green raincoat is an odd one. It’s perplexed me ever since I saw it. Everyone else has yellow raincoats and also the thinner light red style. But Brenda has a vibrant crayon box green. Why? To further set herself apart from the others? Possibly. To show that she doesn’t care about clashing colors? Probably. Or is it because she knows that green is the eternal color for “go”, and that all of her wants to be a babe that is free from form and shape and structure and religion. We may never know the inner-workings of Brenda’s struggles, or the raincoat choice, but we do know it lives on in between frames, waiting to be discovered.

The last outfit she wears is iconic Brenda. The long, down to the floor, godly nighty with the lace embellishments. For her death to come shortly after she puts on the white gown is symbolic. The true virgin at camp sacrifice.

Next, we have Marcie. Marcie is girl next door. Calm and cool, serene and charming. Elegant but doesn’t mind getting her clothes dirty. That’s her vibe.

We see her mainly in one outfit, a tiny cameo pink colored tee with brown pants. Let’s talk for a quick second about the versatility of a brown and pink color combo. First, it is stunning. Second, it can be worn in EVERY. SINGLE. SEASON. Prove me wrong.

If you have the right shades, it’s the most versatile and powerful color combination because it can be worn all year long. Third, the choice of cameo pink over any other shade was a magical call because cameo is the pink you’d want to see at camp and you wouldn’t bat an eye because it makes the most sense.

The tiny tee and high waisted brown pants are iconic. The no bra choice with this cameo tee is classic late 70s early 80s and I am all for it. She’s a babe and she knows it.

Let me die in pink and brown!

With the face like that, who cares how frizzy your hair is?

Next up is Alice, sweet and structured Alice. She’s the kinda girl we would call a granola eater, she uses reusable bags and donates monthly to a children’s organization. We see you Alice, woman of the Earth, brown boots and matching brown leather belt to keep you grounded.

This outfit says that she’s the girl that becomes friends with all the guys she knows and ends up dating some older nerd from a nearby college but that she’s not gonna give it up for just anyone so a year into it she will let him go to 3rd base.

We knew she was a turquoise girl the second we saw her haircut. Think about it.

I do love this top for her, it’s exactly what she would be wearing, just a sprinkle of femininity in the embroidery and silk fabric. The high waisted straight leg jeans is screaming Alice here because modern style isn’t her thing.

The color pallet for Alice is exactly what we would want. Colorless, neutrals and naturals, nothing crazy, nothing daring. She’s confident in those jeans and button up and we are all here watching her live her best life, even if that includes making a horrible cup of coffee.

Lastly, we have Pamela, oh terrifying Pamela Voorhees. Look at you.

What is more horrifying than a grieving psycho killer mother? One that wears this fucking outfit while killing people. I LOVE how full mother hen casual she’s getting on us.

A long sleeve plaid button up with a chunky knitted blue and sleet-grey colored sweater with argyle print over top and short mom hair (that is totally mom hair because it’s based off of the more mod looks from the 60s so the fact that she is still about it is absolutely perfect and makes complete sense). This is the ULTIMATE killer vibe. Understated, uninteresting, unparalleled. A true moment of horror fashion for Mrs. Voorhees. We are thankful to her for letting us close out this months HFR in full appreciation of a bad-ass older woman who can rock a god damn chunky sweater while killing campers.

Of course, none of this would have been possible to nerd out on without the costume and wardrobe department for this film. Shout out to Jan Shoebridge and Anne King for making these outfits possible and bringing all of the characters into fruition with these choices.

That’s all for now horror babes, I’ll see you again next month for a much more modern Horror Fashion Review that I can’t wait to share.

xo,

Grace Lovera