Catch A Flick Spooktacular : A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (2010)

As much as I want to compare this remake to the original I don't want to be "that" guy. This face lift to the classic original modern horror classic is not all that bad. Platinum Dunes last remake effort FRIDAY THE 13TH really missed the mark on what made the original film(s) iconic in the modern horror genre! Most of the Platinum Dunes remakes don't work at all, most of them.

A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET very well may be the best of the remakes. Everything is working here to make a good scary movie. The atmosphere feels like an Elm Street film. The dreams look great and set the mood. The teen characters are halfway decent unlike the kids in the FRIDAY THE 13TH remake who are all bad stereotypes. And the final thing that makes this new Elm Street work is the best thing, Jackie Earl Haley as Freddy! By his second or third scene I wasn't concerned I was convinced!

Where this movie faults is the screenplay and lack of character development. The film does have an interesting story but everything is rushed. It's like the filmmakers and producers decided that Freddy Krueger is so iconic that everyone knows who he is. Yes, everyone meaning real people not characters in your story. These kids suffering from nightmares are too quick to understand and realize just who and what Freddy is! This is a little extreme but it's like these kids know about Freddy from seeing the other movies! Maybe it's not as bad as I'm thinking and I'm just showing my age because I'm sure kid audiences of today(twenty-somethings that think THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK is the most boring one) are fine with that. Heads up, spoiler alert! Now this film really could have been great and be a little different from the rest of the series like a real re-imagining, by making Freddy innocent of his crimes and was getting revenge because he really was not a pedophile. I really thought the story was going in this direction in the end but nope it did not. While I like this remake the powers that be had to ruin the end for me and everyone else by recreating the lame ass ending to the original by killing the mom at the very end. Come on guys! Nancy gave Freddy a pretty glorious death, no need to go screwing that up now!

Despite the negatives just mentioned I really do recommend a watch if your a fan of the series or horror in general. The atmosphere is great for a elm street picture, and the dreams look really cool. I also really liked the whole "micro-nap" addition to the series. Everyone is tired in this film so Freddy can jump out at anytime, it's sort of cool! The scene at the durgstore is my favorite!