A Nightmare On Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge Film Review

Forty years ago today we got a movie that has since gone to become a cult classic even tho it was ignored just one film later. With that film oddly enough also pushing boundaries by having homose*ual themes put into it something which would guarantee that this film would be made today and yet at the same time it's also one that's been ignored by Warner Bros as while they went all out for the fortieth anniversary of the first film in this franchise they haven't done anything inreguards to this film and so then join me as I review the film where we find out that true love wasn't between Jesse and Lisa but instead was clearly between Jesse and Ron with the film in question being called simply just "A Nightmare On Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge" enjoy.

The plot of this film is five years after the events of the first film Jesse moves into Nancy's old house with his family and starts having nightmares about Freddy and must find away to stop them before he ends up killing all of the people that he loves most in the world. Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us un this very film well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film was in all honesty not that bad as while yes this films plot does at least try to do something other then just copy the plot of the first film what it does do differently makes it feel so far removed from that of the first film that it might as well be set in a completely different film universe and yet with the way that the film does stick closely to the first films plot it makes it feel like it's just playing all of the greatest hits only without understanding what it was that made them great in the first place and while this is of course understandable as this was only the second film in the franchise there still should have been some effort into making this films plot as good if not better then the plot of the first film was as this is a plot that is more then strong enough to support an entire film it just needed the right creative people in charge of it to make it as good as it possibly could have been but to give the film some credit the new stuff that the film does add in whilst it is interesting it's just not something that works for an A Nightmare On Elm Street movie is all with the plot of this film also being really rather entertaining and as well as being really rather engaging as well in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.

Starring in this film is Mark Patton as Jesse Walsh , Kim Myers as Lisa Webber and Robert Rusler as Ron Grady. Also starring in this film is Clu Gulager as Ken Walsh , Hope Lange as Cheryl Walsh , Marshall Bell as Coach Schneider , Melinda O. Fee as Mrs. Webber , Tom McFadden as Mr. Webber , Sydney Walsh as Kerry Hellman , Christie Clark as Angela Walsh , Lyman Ward as Mr. Grady , this films producer Robert Shaye as A Bartender and Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger.

Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film was in all honesty really good. With all of this films actors turning in better performance then what was really required for this film as while of course we all know that Robert Englund is great in this movie as he is in all of these movies but so is Mark Patton and Kim Myers and alot of this films new actors with them all turning in some really good performances and while of course some will be better then others like it's clear as day that Mark Patton is struggling alot of the time there really is no one else who could play Jesse like he does with Marshall Bell being another actor that whilst he isn't that good in this film no one could play his character quite like he does with the best actor in the whole entire film of course Robert Englund as Freddy Kruger as the man was just simply born to play this character with him being so good as the character in this film that you actively notice when it's not him playing the character in the same film as the actor chosen to play him in one shot of the movie just doesn't have the same swagger that Robert brings to the character and with this being the more scary Freddy and less jokey version of the character that really does mean that Robert gets a chance to turn in a really bone chilling performance something which he really does take full advantage of doing with the acting that's in this film not really being helped by the fact that this films script is just so bad as it gives none of this films actors absolutely nothing to work with interms of what it is that there actual characters personalities are even meant to be in the first place which is something that really does harm the overall quality of the acting that's in this very film. 

To give this film some credit whilst the writing for the characters might be really bad the characters themselves are pretty good. As while this films characters aren't some of the best characters that this franchise had they also aren't the worst ones either with a good example of this being oddly enough Jesse himself as he is just the stereotypical new kid at school who is just hoping to make it to the end of the day and that's it and to be fait that's all he needed to be as he's meant to be the audience surrogate character which means that alot of the question about who Freddy is and why Freddy is the way that he is falls to Jesse but in saying that tho characters like Lisa and Ron do come across as being a bit more better then him tho as Lisa is the girl next door type of character and yet she's the one that does alot of the research about Freddy and is the one that finds out how to bring Jesse back and Freddy somehow fully takes over his body and with Ron he serves as a confidant to Jesse someone who can confide in when he can't talk to either of his parents with this being something that does strengthen there bond with them going from people who do outwardly hate each other at the start of the film to people who trust each other heck Jesse even goes to him and asks him to wake up should it look like that he's having a nightmare something which he didn't do with Lisa and while yes there some pointless characters in this film like the character of Kerry who is only just there for the films cliffhanger ending and that's really it and Jesse's parents who don't really add anything to the plot film but are also characters that you can't really remove from the film due to how important that both they and sister Angela are to the character of Jesse when the film does have an important character it makes sure that you know it as the film has them spend alot of time with Jesse. 

There's really no way to sugar coat this but this film is known as being the gay one in the franchise due to it's homoerotic subtext. Which isn't really subtext as you can tell right away just what the film is really trying to say so much so that many others myself included in this review have made jokes about how obvious it is that Jesse and Ron are meant to be a gay couple and it really is something that makes you wonder how audiences members back in the eighties felt when this film was first coming out as while having this kind of stuff in a film is more accepted these days back then it really wasn't and yet the film has a scene with a character in what is obviously meant to be either a gay bar or a BDSM bar with the film then having said character getting whipped by Freddy Krueger the idea of subtext is that it's meant to be subtle and this films subtext is anything but that so much so that star Mar Patton even released a documentary about his experiences with the film being called Scream, Queen! My Nightmare On Elm Street as Patton was himself closeted at the time of the film's production with the film pretty much forcing him to come as gay and yet to be fair to the film it doesn't actually demonize anybody for being either gay or straight which is great as it really shouldn't have done and yet while it didn't pave the way for more gay storied to be told in eighties slasher films due to the fact it did become a cult film which was something that that was no doubt helped by it's homoerotic subtext it made the film fun to watch in a so bad that it's good kind of way with this being the kind of film that pretty much become destined to be a cult film to it's homoerotic subtext.

There are some things that in this film that just don't work like the fact that the film retconns the first film so that now Nancy kept a dairy. Which was something that we never saw her with in the first film but to be fair it is possible that after the events of the first film that she got counselling and her counsellor asked her to write down everything that she went through in a dairy but then in the third film Nancy not only doesn't mention that she sought help for the things that she went through in the first film or that she kept a dairy so it's pretty obvious that this retcon was just done so that the makers of the film could have the character of Nancy Thompson appear in the film without actually having her appearing in the actual film itself with the film even having the Thompson family move house inbetween films and Nancy herself become some sort of town story that the kids would tell each other which makes you wonder why Lisa doesn't know about Nancy as even if she didn't meet her the fact that a bunch of kids got killed would be pretty big news and would become the sort of thing that people around the town would keep on saying even if it's just in passing to one another with this being something that is hinted to have had happened as Ron himself says that Nancy's mom went crazy and put bars all of the houses windows something that he wouldn't have seen as he lives no where near Nancy's house but is something that he would have heard about with it seeming like that the makers of this film wanted to find a reason to have Lisa do all of this research on Freddy and so they made kind of an air head when it comes to what happened in the previous film even tho it makes no sense as it's something that she would have heard about in the town itself.

With the other two things that really don't work in this film being the fact that this film breaks the rules of the franchise on two separate accounts with the first of which being the Freddy can now enter the real world something which he takes great advantage of doing in the films pretty good pool party scene. With the second one being the one that's alot more harder to ignore as when you stop and think about Freddy has no reason to go after Jesse as Jesse's parents weren't involved with the killing and burning of Freddy back when he was alive so Freddy shouldn't be going after Jesse and his family as that then goes against his entire revenge plot if anything going after Ron or Lisa would make more sense as then you could make the argument that there parents where there when Freddy was burnt alive but with Jesse and his family you don't have that as we literally see Jesse unpacking stuff for his room very early on in the film with it even being brought up that Jesse's dad brough the house of someone so its therefor safe to assume that the whole family aren't from Springwood and therefor Jesse's parents had nothing to do with the death of Freddy Krueger with this being something that makes it look like that this films writer David Chaskin never even watched the first film was instead alot more focused on doing his thing in this world instead of carrying on the story that was started in the first film as you very easily could have done all of the things that are done in this film and still have continue the story of the films by having it focus on a different house on Elm Street and that's really it as then the film could still have it's subtext and still follow the rules set fourth by the first film.

Now then this film has / had an exact grand total running time of exactly one hour and twenty five minuets and thirty seven seconds. Which is pretty much the exact grand total running time for all of these early Nightmare films with the film having the right amount of plot there to really cover that amount of running time however tho in saying that this film really doesn't use its running time all that wisely as the film doesn't take the time that it really should have done in developing it's plot as the films plot as strong as it is doesn't really get alot of attention with things like why Freddy needs Jesse specifically and how Freddy can suddenly take over people's bodies and enter the real world being left unexplained when those are things that really should have been explained inorder to make them alot more believable in the film and while yes the entire aspect of how Freddy can invade people's dreams isn't explained either that's part of the fun of the films as we all need to sleep but now we can't do that as that's where Freddy can get us but the whole idea of Freddy being able to takeover someone's body without being explained is something that's a bit to far and needed to be explained with the films characters as none of the films characters get anything in the way of character development which is something that all of the best Nightmare On Elm Street films give alot of there characters and yet the makers of this film don't bother to do when it is something that really would have helped us the audience to form more of a connection with it's characters and decide on if we either love them or hate them but I really will admit that this film really does have some really good pacing to it tho.

So now then as this is a slasher that really does mean that I have to actually talk about the actual kills that are actually featured / presented to us in this very film well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt tat the actual kills that are actually featured / presented to us in this very film was in all honesty really good. With the films kills really being the best aspect of the film as while there not there franchises best kills as the next film has that honor there are however still some very creative kills as we do get to see Freddy kill people in some really creative ways and while there really isn't alot of gore in his film at least when compared to the first film the films kills are still really fun to watch with the films best kill being the death of Ron as even the kill itself is pretty basic as it's just Freddy stabbing him with his glove and that's really it what really sells it and makes it all the more creepy and terrifying is the build up to the kill as we get to see Jesse slowly and painfully get attacked by Freddy as Freddy forces himself out of Jesse all the while Ron is frantically banging on his door begging his mom and dad to come and help and while they do arrive they can't get in as the door is locked something which Ron himself doesn't know about and it's only then that Freddy stabs him and pins the blame on Jesse as he's the only other person in the room with that kill being so creative and while it only becomes creepy once you take the entire build up to the kill into account it's only once you take in all of that scene into account that we end up with a scene with a really cool kill and while the pool party massacre could have been the films best kill as it's Freddy slaughtering a bunch of teens it's the fact that it's Freddy in the real world that does take you out of that kill and stops it from being as good as it really should have been in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.

Overall it's not that hard to see why this film became the cult favorite that it became as this was film that really destined to be more of cult favorite then what the previous film but at the same time tho you can see the huge decline in quality from the first film as well as it's clear as day that the makers of this film weren't fans of and had never seen the first film before agreeing to make this film in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. Now then i've talked about all of the good and as well as all of the bad things that are in this very film in this very review ad as such that really does mean that this very film really does earn itself a grand old score of exactly a 6.5 out of 10 from me.

Now then as for where I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review well then noys and girls and as well as ladies and gentlemen I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review from Tenor , IMP Awards . Com and Google Images. With my personally preferred website to use to get images from this film being Google Images simply because Google Images actually has images from this film really are up and on Google Images and plus pretty much much all of the images that I personally found on Google Images were all really very fairly high quality and as well as being as really very fairly high definition as well and so then horror fans we end this review as we always do with really our one and true goddess Elvira wishing us all some really very unpleasant dreams.

A Nightmare On Elm Street 1984 Film Review

This is a very special day indeed as the film that i'm going to be talking to you all about today is now officially forty years old. As this film was first released all the way back in 1984 and unlike Warner Bros who really decided to start releasing there fortieth anniversary Blu-Ray of the film in around August to September I decided to hold of reviewing the film really until the exact day that it turned forty with this film review really being written on the exact day that this film was first released all the way back in 1984 and so then join me as I review the film that really basically shows us a more demented version of Kevin McCallister with the film in question being called simply just "A Nightmare On Elm Street" enjoy.

The plot of this film is when she and her friends start having nightmares about the same man it's up to Nancy to find a way to stop these deadly nightmares before it's far to late. Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt that the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film was n all honesty really good as the plot of this film is one of this films highlights as it's just so fresh and different and heck nothing after this film has even dared to us the same plot which does make it stand out quite a bit and while yes the plot of this film really could have done with being fleshed out alot more then what it was given that this film had for what was at the time a really small production budget it's a wonder that the films plot turned out as good as it was and was as focused as it was as it would gave been very easy for the plot of this film to have been lost in the shuffle and become more of an afterthought but because of the fact that this film was a passion project for writer and director Wes Craven the films plot really does take centre stage and as a result of that is the fact that we end up with a film where it's plot is just so good from beginning to end with the plot of this film also being really rather entertaining and as well as being really rather engaging as well in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.

Starring in this film is Heather Langenkamp as Nancy Thompson and Robert Englund as Fred "Freddy" Krueger. Also starring in this film is Ronee Blakley as Marge Thompson , John Saxon as Lt. Donald "Don" Thompson , Amanda Wyss as Christina "Tina" Gray , Nick Corri as Rod Lane , Leslie Hoffman as The Hall Guard , Joseph Whipp as Sgt. Parker , Charles Fleischer as Dr. King , Lin Shaye as The Teacher , Ed Call as Mr. Lantz , Sandy Lipton as Mrs. Lantz , Donna Woodrum as Mrs. Gray and Johnny Depp as Glen Lantz.

Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film well then in all honesty I in all honesty / personally thought / felt that the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film was in all honesty really good. With all of this films actors turning in some really good performances which given who is starring in this film both is and isn't a surprise it's surprise in the case that none of this films actors were known actors back then and alot of them still aren't known all that well now and as such it would have been foolish to expect a good performance from these actors but at the same time it's also not all that surprising that this films acting is just so good as some of this films actors are now known names in Hollywood be it for there acting or there effects work in other movies and TV shows with those actors turning in some truly wonderful performances in this film and proving that even in horror films you can still find good acting as all you'd need is a good script , a good director and good actors ad that's really it and that's what this film has in spades with the the acting that's in this very film also being helped by the fact that this films script is just so good that all this films actors have to do is just say the lines as they are written and a a good performance will come out of them naturally which is something that really help to raise the overall quality of the acting that's in this very film.

One of this things that this film rather rightfully gets alot of praise it's use of practical effects and it's easy to understand why. With all of this films practical effects not only looking really good but also being the very definition of the word iconic as that's exactly what they are and heck so many of this films effects scenes are so iconic that when it came to redoing them in the 2010 remake alot of them were also done practically with the only one being done in CGI being the scene where Freddy tries to come through the wall with this films version of that scene being the better one because of the fact that it was done for real and it looks super creepy because of that fact and it's the exact same thing for all of this films practical effects as they were all done practically and they all look good because of that fact with practical effects always looking so much better then CGI effects with this film even doing effects that make you question how they were done with the best example of that being the deaths of both Tina and Glenn as with Tina's she is dragged up her mothers bedroom wall and onto the ceiling and in the case of Glenn we hos blood shooting up from out of his bed and landing on his ceiling all which make you wonder how they did those scenes something that would have been obvious if the film was made today but back when this film was being made you had to find a way to make those effects and they found a great way by having a rotating set and looking the camera down and both scenes look really good.

To be frank Nancy is a great final girl because of the fact that not only does the character have tons of personality but she's also a really likable character as well. With the character being very proactive in defeating Freddy as she straight up turn her house into a one giant Home Alone style trap as the second she finds out that she can bring things out of her dreams she starts making plans to defeat Freddy in the real world with the only thing that lets her down is the fact that her mother doesn't believe and actively trys to stop her from defeating Freddy but yet she shows her smarts by finding ways around her mother which she does end up doing and because of that she's able to rig up the house with several trap to aid her in defeating Freddy but at the same time tho the character can be seen as being annoying as she does spend the vast amount of this films running time just shouting for her mother and that's really it which is understandable given the situation that she's in but at the same time it makes her come across as being a slightly annoying character however she gets the golden treatment when it comes to the vast majority of her friends as all of them about from Glenn don't have much in the way of personality with Rod being the stereotypical jock type of character with him getting some character development but not much and sadly due to the fact that she's not in the film all that long Tina doesn't really get the time to display any kind of personality trait.

While Nancy's and her friends don't have much in the way of personalities they are better written then alot of other horror friend groups out there. As they do help to advance the overall plot of the film as it's there deaths that helps to spread a degree of panic across the town of Springwood as well as starting to get Nancy to wonder if she's actually crazy or not but at the same time tho her friends are mostly likeable characters with the same thing even being true for Rod who despite being a fairly unlikable character for alot of the films running time does also have his fare share of moments that make him a more likable like the fact that when Freddy is trying to kill off Tina in the bedroom he does at least make an effort to get him off of her which granted doesn't exactly end well for either of them but it's the fact that he at least the very least made the effort to try and save the life of his girlfriend that makes him a more likable character and while Glenn does come across as being the stereotypical "normal" teenager he does show all throughout the film that he's willing to help his girlfriend Nancy out even tho there's a chance that she could be crazy with Tina being a kind person who is willing to anything for anybody and it's these things that make her friends stand out from all of the horror friendship groups as alot of them just come across as being very one dimensional characters that are only here just because of the fact that the makers of the film want a high body count and that's really it.

While this film does have it's fair share of really creepy and scary moment in it the film does also have its fair share of really goofy moments in it as well. Like the fact that when Freddy runs he has some really long arms for no reason whatever which is meant to be scary as it's the main villain chasing down somebody but at the same time tho it just comes as being really goofy as all you can see is somebody with some really long arms trying and failing to catch someone and the fact that the we see Freddy grow his arms again for no reason does look good but at the same time it also comes across as being a really goofy looking scene as it's something that's never brought up every again but while the film does gave some really goofy moments in it there done in a way that makes it clear that the makers of this film are fully aware of the fact that it's a goofy looking scene and because of that it comes off a being a really fun and cheesy scene as well however given that this film is the first film in the franchise the film should have included scenes with Freddy just being scary and not really making that many dark jokes which in this film do work as they do feel in his character to do that and they do come across as him playing with his food and aren't as cheesy and as campy as they would later become in the later films as at the very least in this film they are still some creepy jokes that add to the overall tension of the scene and don't really take anything away from the scene in question which is something that they very easily could have done.

Now then this film has / had an exact grand total running tome of exactly one hour and thirty one minuets and fourteen seconds. Which is pretty much the exact grand total running tin e that you'd expect a film like this one to have as slasher films don't really have that long of a running time with this film also having the right of plot there to really cover that amount of running tome but at the same time this film really would have been helped if it was a little bit longer as it allow for the plot of to be a bit more fully developed then what it already was and while we do get some hints of Freddy's backstory due to this films incredibly short running time his backstory can't be elaborated on which could be something that could be fixed in the film did have a slightly longer running time but at the same time tho Freddy's backstory might be more scarier because of the fact that we the audience don;t get to find out al that much about him but with the extra running time it would allow for characters like Rod and Tina to get across more of that it is that there respective characters are even meant to be as given the fact that they are killed off pretty quickly in the film they don't really get much of a chance to actually shine in this film and thus can come across as being really forgettable characters when there characters that should be more memorable characters but at the sae time tho alot of the extra scenes could be seen as being filler scenes as there's no way that the added scenes in this film would be able to add anything to the actual plot of this film and would come across as being really unneeded in the grand scheme of things but I really will admit that this film really foes have sone really good pacing to it tho.

So ow then as this is a slasher that really does mean that I have to actually talk about the actual kills that are actually featured / presented to us in this very film well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual kills that are actually featured / presented to us in this very film was in all honesty really good. With pretty much all of this films being memorable for one reason or another be it because of the fact that there were really cool as in the case of Glenn or really stupid and down right laughable as in the case of Marge Thompson's death where it's obvious that the actress was swapped out for a dummy with the best kill in the whole movie being a tie between Tina and Glenn as both of there death scenes are not only really memorable but they both also play apart in the character journeys of both Rod and Nancy as well as we get to see briefly how Rod is effected by the death and the fact that he really is innocent something which he begs Nancy to prove and we see Nancy become more determined to defeat Freddy the second that she finds out that the last of friendship group is dead and while yes it does help that both of there deaths are some really cool looking deaths that's not the whole reason as to why they were best kills in the movie because as was just mentioned they do play a role in both of the characters journeys for both Rod and Nancy something that no other kill in a slasher film has dared to do both this film and after this film which is something that really makes there kills in this film really stand out as well in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.

Overall this film is still just so good even forty years as it's a fail that really has aged badly at all as all of things that worked in this film when it was first released all of those years ago still work in this film now even all of those years later as that's just how good and just how impactful that this film really is in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. Now then i've talked about all of the good and as well as all of the bad things thar are in this very film in this very review and as such that really does mean that this very film really does earn itself a grand old score of exactly an 8 out of 10 from me.

Now then as for where I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review well then boys and girls and as well as ladies and gentlemen I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review from the official, A Nightmare On Elm Street fandom wiki page , Tenor , IMP Awards . Com and Google Images. With my personally preferred website to use to get images from this film being Google Images really simply because Google Images actually really has images from this film really are up and on Google Images and really plus pretty much all of the images that I personally found on Google Images really were all really very fairly high quality and as well as being as really very fairly high definition as well and so then horror fans we really do end this review as we really always do with really our one and really true goddess Elvira wishing us all some really very unpleasant dreams.