‘Wes Kraven’s New Nightmare’ Is the Only Freddy Krueger Movie Roger Ebert Liked

by

As a film enthusiast who has spent countless hours immersed in the dark and thrilling world of horror movies, I find myself deeply captivated by the intricate web that Wes Craven weaved with his masterpieces, “New Nightmare” and “Scream”. These films, in my humble opinion, are not just horror movies; they are profound explorations into the power of cinema and its impact on our collective consciousness.

Most film critics, including the renowned Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times – often considered the preeminent movie critic in history – generally weren’t big fans of horror films. Whether it was on their TV show, Siskel & Ebert, with Gene Siskel, or through print reviews, Ebert tended to be critical of most horror movies. Few scary films made it onto his Great Movies list (just 16, according to his website), and four-star ratings were scarce. However, this doesn’t mean he never found them impressive; for instance, Wes Craven’s New Nightmare was one such example that left an impression on him.

1994 saw the release of “New Nightmare,” a unique take on horror movies, as it was first conceived by director Wes Craven in 1987. It stands apart from other terrifying films in the cosmos of fear-inducing cinema, earning it the label of “a horror film within a horror film” by some critics. However, it’s unlikely that this innovation would have swayed the opinion of the critic who deemed “Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter” as “an immoral and reprehensible piece of trash.

Ebert, in his assessment, awarded only one and a half stars to “Dream Warriors,” a standout film within the series, indicating that he never showed much interest in the characters portrayed. Interestingly, his criticism was somewhat harsher for the 2010 remake of the original, reducing its score to a single star. Despite this stern critique, Ebert’s review serves as an excellent introduction to what we are discussing today. Following Ebert’s sentiment: “The Nightmare franchise was pioneered by Wes Craven, the horror equivalent of Ray Kroc, who created the outstanding ‘Wes Craven’s New Nightmare,’ a film that depicted Freddy Krueger tormenting the creators of the Nightmare films in their dreams.

Wow, that’s impressive!” Now, let’s journey back to the year 1994, and imagine what might have been running through Roger’s mind as he contemplated Craven’s unique perspective when it came to crafting a NOES film.

What Is ‘Wes Craven’s New Nightmare’ About?

In the actual world, “Wes Craven’s New Nightmare” unfolds with Freddy Krueger being a well-known horror figure in pop culture. Heather Langenkamp, an actress residing in California, keeps her young son, Dylan, away from her horror films due to their frightening nature. However, Heather becomes increasingly troubled when she starts getting eerie phone calls quoting lines from the “Nightmare on Elm Street” series, and Dylan shows signs of sleepwalking. Matters escalate ominously when her husband, a visual effects artist, meets an untimely end under suspicious circumstances: he falls asleep at the wheel, only to be attacked by Freddy Krueger.

After experiencing the sorrow of losing her husband, Heather reaches out to her colleagues from the Nightmare on Elm Street series, including Robert Englund, John Saxon, Bob Shaye, and Wes Craven himself. They extend an offer for her to play Nancy once more. However, she voices her reservations, as Dylan exhibits peculiar behaviors reminiscent of Freddy Krueger. The director shares his theory with Nancy: To prevent the true Freddy from entering our world, she must confront him. The films had kept him imprisoned in the dream realm, but now that production has ended, he’s finding ways to return, and Dylan may be the ideal conduit for this return.

As Dylan gets hospitalized, Heather finds herself drifting away from the real world, often lost in daydreams, haunted by nightmares, and having a persistent sense that Freddy is drawing nearer. Remarkably, Robert Englund, who portrays Freddy in the film series, starts experiencing similar dreams about an even more malevolent iteration of the man with the glove. His artwork suggests that this “son of a hundred maniacs” has somehow infiltrated our world, and Heather may be the only one capable of preventing further carnage if she takes on Nancy’s role once more and confronts the serial killer again.

What Did Roger Ebert Say About ‘New Nightmare’?

In the Nightmare series, “New Nightmare” ranks second highest on Rotten Tomatoes for acclaim. Yet, it had the smallest earnings at the box office. Some people attribute this to “Pulp Fiction,” which also premiered that day and drew most of the audience’s attention. Nevertheless, with a 77% score in the Tomatometer, it’s clear that critics didn’t despise it, including Roger Ebert who gave his positive review as follows:

“Wes Craven’s New Nightmare” skillfully straddles the boundary between illusion and actuality. It’s a chilling horror film that poses an intriguing query: ‘Aren’t you, the viewers, ever contemplating the impact your films might have on those who are watching?’

In certain scenes, Craven, a learned man with a beard who used to teach humanities, effectively discusses this topic with Langenkamp and others. He acknowledges that it was a mistake to have slain Freddy because Freddy wasn’t just a fictional character portrayed by the amiable Robert Englund, but also an embodiment of ancient demonic powers, provoked by his demise, which have since resurfaced.

Craven’s screenplay explores the possibilities of this situation in a way that loops back on itself, as New Line’s [Robert] Shaye and other professionals play themselves. The answer obviously is to make another movie in order to exorcise the evil for once and all, but meanwhile there are psychiatrists, talk show hosts and others to consider, and questions that stray close to the creepy (‘Would you trust Robert Englund alone with little Dylan?’).

I must admit that I haven’t particularly enjoyed the “Nightmare” series, but this film, with its thought-provoking exploration of how horror impacts its creators, has an unexpectedly captivating quality.

The Meta Storytelling Experiment That Led to ‘Scream’

Ebert goes on to say, “The director, appearing as himself in the film, notes at one point, ‘The only solution to stop Freddy is to produce another movie.’ However, it seemed that this was the very predicament – the Nightmare films had unleashed a malevolent force which, upon Freddy’s death, became free to torment the dreams of those involved in creating the movies.

Could a film, character, or series become so captivating that it seems to leap off the screen and impact everyone who’s connected with it in some tangible way? Wes Craven aimed to create a movie about the potency of his invention – a villain endowed with enough autonomy to mimic real life. In New Nightmare, an exhausted Heather is told she’s a guardian, the sole one who defeated Freddy. However, it wasn’t Heather. It was Nancy Thompson. The query arises: couldn’t Wes simply cease writing the script? Wouldn’t abstaining from validating Freddy’s existence have prevented the being from attempting to break through?

Wes doesn’t always respond to questions, but he wasn’t particularly fond of information overloads unless it came during his conversation with Heather in his office in “New Nightmare”, where things got quite deep. However, what stands out is that while “New Nightmare” was a successful and well-received experiment, it marked the beginning of something much larger and influential; if the “Nightmare on Elm Street” series laid the groundwork for New Line Cinema, often referred to as Freddy’s house, then “New Nightmare” served as the blueprint for one of the most significant horror franchises of the 1990s, “Scream”.

As a passionate film enthusiast, I’d say “Wes Craven’s Scream stands out as the epitome of a metafilm. The director masterfully blurred the boundary between reality and on-screen action. It’s about two ruthless characters who find solace in horror flicks, using them to fuel their murderous spree. Scream showcases an unparalleled blend of terror and humor that remains fresh even today, as the Scream franchise continues to explore the realms of meta-horror.

Could it be that the movie “Scream” wouldn’t have been made if “Wes Craven’s New Nightmare” hadn’t been released prior? This question might find an answer in what Roger Ebert, who highly regarded both films, wrote about “Scream”: “Perhaps the sequel was inspired by or built upon the foundation laid by its predecessor.

In the movie Scream, the characters are well-versed in horror cinema. Given their extensive viewing, they understand the usual tactics in these films, allowing them to make informed decisions about what to avoid.

In simpler terms, “New Nightmare” explores how real-world events are influenced by the character Krueger, while “Scream” examines the overall impact of horror movies on pop culture. Both films maintain an intelligent and genuine quality, yet they carry a self-referential and humorous tone. Although their legacies may not be equal initially, with time, “New Nightmare” might gain recognition as a groundbreaking take on metaphorical horror, serving as a stepping stone for Wes Craven to bring his distinctive horror style into mainstream success. This is because horror, as a medium, has the power to surpass the confines of the screen and influence reality.

Read More

2024-12-02 02:32