I know this question has been raised before but I'm tired of HALLOWEEN fans saying how much more sophisticated that franchise is than the FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise. I know fans will be fans but that has to be one of the most ridiculous assertions ever. The FRIDAY THE 13TH remake is SO much better than the HALLOWEEN remake. I liked Rob Zombie's direction in it but they took away a very tangible element that made the first movie so chilling. Michael Myers' story is never explained and we are left to assume that he was just an average kid from an average family. Rob Zombie does what Ronny Yu did in FREDDY VS. JASON and turned him into a sympathetic character. The only time the movie implies that Michael is pure evil is when he murders the janitor who was friendly towards him during his time in Smith's Grove. The FRIDAY THE 13TH remake expands upon the original story while following the same basic formula as the rest of the franchise. I love the first two HALLOWEEN movies and I also like the fifth, third, seventh, and fourth in that order. The sixth, eighth, and both remakes are tolerable. I just think that, as far as quality goes, the FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise wins hands-down. I get the feeling that I'm watching a straight-to video horror movie when I watch the fourth HALLOWEEN. The fourth and fifth are so predictable. The FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise was always fresh. The copycat killer in A NEW BEGINNING, the self-referential humor in JASON LIVES, the telekinesis subplot in THE NEW BLOOD, and the body-jumping in JASON GOES TO HELL are all elements that put the FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise one step ahead of the HALLOWEEN franchise as far as quality goes. The FRIDAY THE 13TH franchise has also been put under the microscope much more than the HALLOWEEN franchise and the directors actually seemed to give a damn about the subject matter.

I love and respect the Halloween franchise, but I will always have a better love for the Friday the 13th franchise. I never compare the two because they both serve their own purposes and not the same. Some might say they do but I say they don't. All you have to do is watch each series and you will see the difference between the two. I agree I think Rob Zombie basically over-explored Michael Myers origins more than he really should have, but then again this is a new series so those rules don't have to apply. They didn't do that with Friday the 13th (2009) because I believe the mystery of Jason Voorhees is far more greater than that of Michael Myers simply because Michael Myers was originally thought of as a normal boy where Jason was never thought of as normal.

They both started with classic movies. However, as far as sequels went, Halloween didn't really know where it was going, but Friday the 13th introduced us to this Jason fellow. There was always new stuff, and between both series', they had their ups and downs. But for me, Friday the 13th is my favorite.

I don't think it was Ronnie Yu and Freddy vs Jason that turned Jason into a sympathetic character. It would be more Shannon and Swifts doing if you need to say it was anyone.
But regardless, the elements of Jason as a sympathetic character were there as far back as part 2. Jason is killing to avenge his mother and is putting bodies in front of her head on a make-shift alter as one would who was making offerings.
If anything, Freddy vs Jason just reminded us that Jason has a purpose, which is something we haven't seen since part 2.

The Friday the 13th reboot was very good. It had its problems, but no more so then most of the original series so it's right on par for me.
The Halloween remake was terrible. I don't like Zombie's film-making style and think his writing is terrible. He really took something that could have been great (and originally was) and made it very sub-par with his trashy hillbilly style. I also agree that too much exploration of Myer's family did ruin the mystique of the character. Zombie made him into an average psycho with a cliched terrible environment to grow up in. When Michael finally kills his first victim the whole "pure evil" thing is lessened to the point of non-existence because the viewer can argue now that he's become a product of his environment and upbringing.
Within the original series however I'd say the original Halloween is a better over all film then the original Friday the 13th, but not by much.
Both series taken as a whole though (not including the remakes\reboots) Friday the 13th comes out far better.
These are slasher flics, so I think sophistication goes out the window. I see nothing "sophisticated" in either series - originals, remakes or series as a whole.

Rob Zombie did the Halloween franchise no favors in my opinion. F13 will always be better.

Any Halloween fan who doesn't admit that the overall franchise was influenced by Friday the 13th is in great denial. The "Friday the 13th" producers and fans always admit that the original Friday was directly influenced by Halloween. However the Halloween sequels were only made to play catch up to Friday the 13th. You can see a direct Jason influence in Michael Myers in the Halloween sequels. The Halloween fans want to play it up like their series is more sophisticated when in fact Michael became a JASON 2.0 From Halloween 4 and onward.

I am one of the most Die Hard Friday the 13th fans, and I will say that there is no doubt that F13 franchise is much better then Halloweens. The only thing I will say is I give the slight edge to Halloween when it comes to the original. I thought Halloween was slightly better than Friday the 13th part 1. F13 is still much better franchise and my favorite movies of all time.

Allow me to respond. I like Halloween because of the unknown mystery behind Michael's desire to kill. Everyone and their mothers know why Jason kills. This is where Halloween has over Friday the 13th. .However Jason's nearly uncanny strenght and hatred is what I like about the Friday series. Plus Cystral Lake is a scarier place than rural Illioins town.. Rob Zombie ruined the magic in the remake as well as the Platuim Dune with Jason.

Def. agree with ya there. The first Halloween movies is far better than the first Friday13th movie. I would almost go as far as to say that the original sequel to Halloween was better than the Friday pt. 2...BUT, SHIT, both of those movies freaked me out. Jason actually RUNNING through the woods after Ginny, with a fucking Burlap bag over his head. Jesus, who wouldnt shit thier pants after seing that? Those three movies that I just mentioned, are in my opinion the 3 scariest movies ever. Maybe NOES pt. 1 can get thrown in there as well. But as to say one franchise is better than the other....that arguement could go on for years, but I would say that the Friday franchise is more interesting, but both are good. Both are great. and both franchises have lasted the test of 30 plus years. EVIL NEVER DIES!