 In 1991, things finally came to an end for Freddy Krueger, and it was time for horror to move on. That is until just three years later, it was discovered that there was still a fanbase for Freddy. So, in a solid move, producer Bob Shaye and director/creator Wes Craven got together in order to give Freddy a proper send-off, because despite 'Freddy's Dead' being financially successful, it was a critical flop, and to this day one of the more ridiculed Freddy flicks, even though for yours truly, it remains a guilty pleasure.
Perhaps the most important thing about this movie is the fact that Wes Craven was not only back as writer/director for the first time since the original '84 movie, but he was given a fair shake at closing his creation off his way. And God bless the man, he came up with something spectacular, and the 'Elm Street' series managed to actually close the way it should have, not only taking things a step further with Freddy's development (in a way), but coming up with something truly firghtening and original. It's not only one of the best Freddy flicks of all time, I'd argue it's one of the best horror movies of all time, in concept alone. The film features Heather Langenkamp ("Nancy" from the original and 'Dream Warriors') living her celebrity life in L.A., complete with the concept of a stalker she once had. She and her husband, special effects wiz, Chase Porter (David Newsom) have a son, Dylan (Miko Hughes), and live a happy, albeit moderately stressful Hollywood lifestyle. One night, Heather has a nightmare about a new and improved Freddy glove going haywire and attacking Chase and other crew members, and just like the 'Elm Street' concept, Chase does end up with a cut on his hand that matches what Heather saw in her dream. To make matters even more crazy, the family encounters a fair share of quakes, which Heather believes are contributing to her nightmares as well. Due to her busy life, Heather often leaves Dylan in the care of her friend, Julie (Tracy Middendorf), who ends up playing a pretty great homage to the original film, but I won't spoil anything here. She (and Heather) start noticing Dylan having a few of his own nightmares about an entity who seems to be trying to get into their reality, held at bay by Dylan's stuffed T-rex he keeps at the end of his bed. And from ther, things just get weirder. Heather soon gets called by New Line Cinemas to meet with producer Bob Shaye and get invited to return to a new 'Elm Street' film as Nancy to give Freddy fans the sendoff they deserve. It turns out, however, that Dylan's nightmares and the new 'Nightmare on Elm Street' film Wes Craven is writing are interlinked, and an ancient evil is using the image of a much scarier Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund) to come through to everyone's reality. This falls into the concept of being able to give something so much power that something dangerous can cross over into reality, conceptually predating things like "Slender Man." I will say that if you've come here for the gore, you might be a little disappointed. It's there, but the kills are few, as it's a horror movie that relies a little more on psychology. I can also admit that, at times, it can be a little slow moving at times, but when it picks up, it really picks up... like 'Titanic', but with claws! Really though, my criticisms are few and far between with this one. I didn't love it at first, but over the years, it has really grown on me, and is just further evidence that sometimes you need to give things another chance. I really appreciate what Wes Craven did with this. He still uses the idea of fear making Freddy stronger, except that here, it's the image of Freddy that comes through to reality. In many ways, it's reminiscent of the concept of a tulpa, leading me to think that much like with the original film, Craven learned a thing or two about something from reality that would make his fantasy film much scarier, and I must say, it worked here as well. It's a bit of a convoluted concept, and I may not have explained things with a lot of sense, but I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt that this is one horror flick I can highly recommend to horror fans, whether they follow the Freddy franchise or not. 5/5
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