Although the slasher genre has long been regarded as the stepchild of film, such movies get made for two simple reasons: They're cheap to produce and they often turn a huge profit (even the bad ones).

That's the only reason for the release of "Jason X," the latest chapter in the Friday the 13th series. Eight years after "Jason Goes to Hell" promised us we'd see no more of the murderous Jason Voorhees, Chapter 10 sends him where no undead, hockey-mask wearing serial killer has gone before. It's no "Leprechaun 4: In Space," but darn it, it tries pretty hard.

"Jason X" gets the ball rolling quickly, and, like an expert shell game, keeps things moving so fast you're less likely to realize you're being hustled. Voorhees (Kane Hodder), the grand poobah of psycho killers, is cryogenically frozen and put into long-term storage, but not until after he has wasted everyone in the building except scientist Rowan (Lexa Doig). The two are flash-frozen colder than a TV dinner, seemingly for eternity.

Skip ahead to the year 2455. A cadre of space marines escorts a group of students on a field trip (seriously) to the remains of Crystal Lake on a barren Earth. They discover the remains of Jason and Rowan, take them back to their ship, thaw them and, well, you can much guess the rest.

"Jason X" is a much-touted attempt to revamp the series. But the sci-fi elements don't mesh with hoary slasher conventions, and screenwriter Todd Farmer relies so heavily on the "Alien" and "Terminator" franchises that there's little in the way of originality. It's a fanboy "what if?" fantasy brought to life on the big screen.

While there aren't many plot holes - that would, of course, require an actual plot - "Jason X" does have some logic gaps big enough to fly a starship through without nicking the paint. For example: It's four-and-a-half centuries into the future, yet mankind can't quite field the technology to vaporize a lumbering killer with a machete. And space marines fire scores of live rounds with all the zeal of someone who's never heard the terms "stray bullet" and "explosive decompression" used in the same sentence.

But, then again, this is a movie for people who don't want to ponder the details more than they have to. Why should they? The filmmakers certainly didn't. And for those of us hoping that Jason and his unholy franchise have finally, finally bitten the proverbial dust, consider this: Last month New Line gave the green light to a film that pits Voorhees against "A Nightmare on Elm Street's" Freddy Krueger.

Be afraid. Be very afraid.

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JASON X

Grade: D-

Starring Kane Hodder, Lexa Doig, Lisa Ryder. Directed James Isaac. Rated R (sexuality, nudity, violence, language). 95 min.

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(c) 2002, The Dallas Morning News.

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