WHY this is one of the most entertaining installments

The deep woods halfway house for teens with emotional problems is an interesting set-up and caught my attention right away; it sets this installment apart from all the others.

Moreover, Tommy, played by John Shepherd, is an interesting character: He's understandably troubled and there's a mystique about him (is he a hero or a mad killer or potentially both?), not to mention he can kick some arse when he has to. Speaking of which, a critic complained about Tommy's fighting skills being unrealistic, but it makes sense that he would do something like learn martial arts over the past several years to occupy his time and cope with emotional trauma and loss. So there's nothing unrealistic about it.

The film is also notable for featuring perhaps the best assortment of females in the series -- three blondes, a brunette and a redhead, no less. The lead blonde "Pam" is played by Melanie Kinnaman, the protagonist of the story, who's so striking it's hard to take your eyes off her. What's interesting is that Melanie is one of the few comely females in the cast that is never shown nude or partially nude. She's fully clothed the entire picture proving that a woman doesn't have to flaunt her beauty cheaply to get attention or instill awe.

***SPOILER ALERT***

Aside from being entertaining like most of the installments, it should be pointed out that Part V does something better than any other film in the series -- it shows the long term negative EFFECT Jason (and his mother) can have on people. Jason isn't physically present but his lingering (haunting?) diabolic presence permeates the atmosphere; so much so that Jason de-creates in his own lunatic image -- the killer and Tommy Jarvis donning the mask at the end.

Speaking of the ending, it leads one to the conclusion that either Tommy has gone psycho or that he is the new embodiment of Jason, although Part VI implies that it was a dream or Tommy's imagination and not reality. This isn't that outlandish of a theory given that "Jason Goes To Hell" (Part IX) explains that Jason -- or the demonic entity that possesses Jason -- has body-leaping powers. It may very well be concluded that Roy and, later, Tommy were possessed by this diabolic being in some manner.

Adding support to this theory is the superhuman strength displayed by the killer throughout. For example, he literally smashes through a door, breaking it to pieces, he hurls an adult man up and through a window, he decapitates a guy with one swipe of a cleaver, etc. No ordinary human being could do these feats, unless they were possessed by a malevolent force.