A New Nightmare on Elm Street
Nightmare on Elm Street is a classic, it has everything that you could want in a horror movie, and it delivered it, in my own opinion in a great package. The first three movies were all good, but after that the series lost it, and in a descent into a more comedic horror realm, I actually think it needed this reboot to bring back a little bit of the fear factor to Freddy.
Freddy isn’t funny! We should all fear Freddy.
The movie opens with a bang, a great introduction and opening death scene. Well played and I enjoyed it that… well, I won’t spoil it for you…. Ok, this death scene I will. It was nice that the kid cut his own throat.
The great thing about Elm Street, is that it had a strong storyline from the beginning. It has a good, solid plot, a great back story for Krueger, and a typical small town, where you are born your grow, you live, and you die. Everybody knows everybody, all lives are interlinked in some way. It lends itself so well to the story.
I honestly believe, if anything, they made the story even stronger in this remake. The link between the families and the children was perfect, and certainly strengthened their bonds.
The other thing I really enjoyed about the New Nightmare, is that they really played on the sleep deprivation. The actors looked tired, you felt tired watching it, and not in a bad way. Katie Cassidy looked great, with the bags under her eyes and the shadows on her face. It was a really good effort not only by the make-up artists, but by the actors. You felt them slowing down as the movie progresses, you wanted to shout out, to get them to wake up.
Then we come to Freddy. I think that Robert Englund played a great Freddy, he was cold, he was cruel and he was scary. He was back in the eighties, and if watched today, still is. Yet, Jackie Earl Harvey took it to a whole new level on this one. His Freddy, especially the way he interacts with Nancy is just disturbing and so well played that he deserves a great many plaudits. I don’t care how good of an actor you are, there are some characters, some scenes and lines of dialogue that are hard to play, that must make you feel dirty, yet he pulls it off in splendid fashion.
The remake is a very strong movie, and can easily be held in just as lofty a position as the original. The story was fantastic, for the main parts adhered to, yet altered in many ways, some subtle and some more obvious, that made it that much harsher, and pushed the boundaries just a little further.
We all remember the end of the first nightmare, and yet again the remake does not disappoint. A great ending scene to end a very impressive attempt at recapturing what was once horror magic.
Of course, it does not beat the original, simply because the original did it first. It may sound petty, but the original pushed its own boundaries in its day, and introduced us to the horror icon we all know and love.
The hallway of blood was a great scene, and while not the most pivotal, certainly one that will stand out in many memories once the movie ends.
While the movie isn’t likely to inspire any nightmares, there are a few nice scenes and for a first time director to tackle a project like this is, in my book, an impressive achievement.
Rating:
One, Two, Freddy’s coming for you,
Three, Four, Yes that’s your score.
Official Site of Alex Laybourne - Author 
Oh my… I probably should avoid posting my utter contempt for this dire film… Freddy was a child slasher. There was never, ever, any suggestion that he was anything else, so to add this to his character, was unnecessary. Then there’s Freddy. If your going to pick an actor, a good actor at that, then have him do a cheesy imitation of Robert Englund’s portrayal, then just use Robert Englund!!
No one can play Freddy but Robert Englund, number 1.
I’m all for remakes, but this film was awful, in plot, story, and direction.
I give it 2 out of 10, only beacuse of the teen actors!
Maybe it is the dark side of me, but I liked the way they took Freddy to a twisted new level. I agree, that maybe they did, upon reflection, try to copy the mannerisms of Robert Englund a little too closely, but I actually thought it gave the character of Freddy an interesting twist. I would rather see that than a word for word remake. That being said, Robert Englund always has been and always will be, Freddy. As long as they leave the remake to this one, changing the legend enough for this movie, I will like it. If they decide to make another, then they will be going too far.