Summer of Terror- A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)

      I talked about Platinum Dunes, and their horror remakes a bit last year. With the success of the Texas Chainsaw and Friday the 13th reboot, a reboot of A Nightmare on Elm Street was the logical next step.  Producers Brad Fuller and Michael Bay, as well as director Samuel Bayer (a music video director making his first and last feature film, at least as of this writing), screenwriters Wesley Strick (known for writing the 1991 remake of Cape Fear) and Eric Heisserer (who would write the script to Arrival) followed the approach Platinum Dunes took with Friday the 13th, and simply took the best elements of the series to try to capture its essence, in particular making Freddy a darker character. Notably, Freddy was made a child molester rather than killer, an idea Wes Craven had discarded for the first film, and given a redone design more realistic for a burn victim. However, they also decided to make a straight remake of the first film, unlike the composite Friday the 13th. While Craven himself was upset at not being consulted, Robert Englund was more supportive of the remake, feeling that CGI could better capture the dream sequences. Replacing Englund in the iconic role was Watchmen's Jackie Earle Haley (who had, incidentally, played a child molester in Little Children),who had auditioned for the first film, but was passed over for his friend Johnny Depp. The film was shot in two high schools in Illinois, specifically for their pools. Released on April 30th, 2010, the film would be box office success, but panned by both critics and audiences.

       The film opens with Dean Russell (Kellan Lutz) in some diner, where he falls asleep and encounters a mysterious man. He wakes up when friend Kris Fowler (Katie Cassidy) meets with him. When Kris leaves for a bit, Dean falls asleep, and the man (Freddy Krueger (Jackie Earle Haley)) slashes his throat, in front of Kris and their classmate Nancy Holbrook (Rooney Mara). At his funeral, Kris has her own dream of Freddy, and finds an old photo of her and Dean as pre-schoolers, even though they met in high school. Kris soon encounters Freddy in her dreams, and Freddy quickly murders her while her ex Jesse Braun (Thomas Dekker) watches. Jesse warns Nancy about Kris death, before his arrest, where Freddy kills him as well. Now, Nancy and friend Quentin Smith (Kyle Gallner) must find out their connection to this man they call Freddy and why he's going after them.

      First and foremost, I like Jackie Earle Haley as Freddy. He's definitely not doing an impression of Robert Englund, and tries to make the character his own. Haley's Freddy is more seething and methodical than the more proactive, cackling Freddy Englund did. Not saying it's necessarily better, but it is different, and Haley's presence as an actor really helps sell this performance. The fact that his appearance is more realistic also helps.  As a straight remake, it works, not entirely imitating the 1985 film but still having the basic elements. The practical effects were well-done.

     Instead of the elaborate, dreamlike, well, dream sequences from the franchise's past, we get really dark corridors and a really bad looking version of the boiler room. That also extends to the actual scares, which forgo the terrifying and interesting kills in favor of boring, poorly edited kills. This is really the central problem of the film: it feels less like a Nightmare film, and more like a Saw knock-off. Very little about it stands out amongst other slashers of the 2000's, and it might not have garnered much attention had it not been a remake of one of the most iconic horror films of all times. Out of all the movies, even the bad ones, there were memorable or interesting parts to them. I saw this film only last night, and I'm already beginning to forget large chunks of it. Even though I wrote a whole review on it, I'm going to forget I saw this film or even I do remember, I won't remember what happens in it.
   
     So, this really takes the spot as the worst one, but only because it is so bland and generic. If it were more hilariously or absurdly bad, it would at least be memorable, but unlike those entries, this just feels like a Nightmare film with all the edge, all the intrigue sanded out, replaced with generic Aught's era "scares", and bland Platinum Dunes production design. Definite skip.


     So, that ends Summer of Terror for this year. Overall, yeah, Nightmare on Elm Street definitely had more consistent quality in their films than Friday the 13th. I've liked a majority of the films in the franchise, and they are pretty interesting both as horror and just films in general. Like I said in this review proper, even the bad ones (except this) had moments that were interesting or warranted a second look. I can tell that the people making these had passion for the material, and were willing to make decision to explore the world of this franchise and its characters, even if it didn't always work. Of these, the first one is probably the best, followed by New Nightmare and the 3rd one. So, yeah, I recommend watching some of these, if only for the fantastic segments some of them have. I wish I could say good night or something, but it's the early afternoon when I'm writing this, so.... here's a photo I took of a Freddy sweater signed by Robert Englund at the Museum of Pop Culture in Seattle a few weeks ago:

Masterpiece of Horror Theatre's Summer of Terror- Friday the 13th(2009)

    In 2003, the same year Freddy vs. Jason came out, the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre was released. The original 1974 feature, along with that year's Black Christmas  had typified and started the slasher craze of the 70's and 80's. So, it is fairly appropriate that it would start off its own chain of remakes (including Rob Zombie two Halloween remakes, and  a 2007 remake of Black Christmas). The Chainsaw remake was the first film produced by Platinum Dunes, the production company belonging to director Michael Bay and producers Andrew Form and Brad Fuller. The Chainsaw connection goes deeper, as New Line, inspired by the success of that film, approach Platinum Dunes with the idea of reinvigorating the Friday the 13th franchise the way they did for the Chainsaw franchise. After the director for that film's prequel, Jonathan Liebsman (later known for those forgettable Ninja Turtle reboots) was considered, Chainsaw director Marcus Nispel was chosen to direct. Instead of creating another sequel, they decided to reboot the franchise, using elements from the first four films, . Freddy vs. Jason writers  Damian Shannon and Mark Swift were brought in because of their adept knowledge of the franchise and its history. They tried to avoid being another sequel or origin story, but still pay homage to the series.  Since Platinum had to work with all the rights holders for each part of the franchise, this would be the first time Paramount was involved in a Friday the 13th since the failure of Jason Takes Manhattan in 1989, as international distributor (New Line would continue as US distributor). In the long tradition of stuntmen playing the man behind the mask, Derek Mears was cast as Jason, reinterpreted more as a territorial killer than a methodical revenge seeking one. Released on the February Friday the 13th of 2009 (which is one day before Valentine's day, incidentally) it would be the second highest grossing film of the franchise, with mixed reception. In the past 9 years, a 13th film has been planned, but is currently stalled due to an ongoing legal battle between Victor Miller (the screenwriter of the original), and current rights holder Crystal Lake Entertainment (headed by Sean Cunningham).

      Beginning in June 13th, 1980, in a remake of the climax of the original, a camp counselor (Stephanie Rhodes) at Camp Crystal Lake beheads Pamela Voorhees (Nana Visitor) after the latter went on a rampage through the camp. Her son Jason (Caleb Guss) watches on. 30 years later, a group of teens, including Whitney (Amanda Righetti), Wade (Jonathan Sadowski), Richie (Ben Feldman), Mike (Nick Mennell), and Amanda (America Olivo) head to the area to set up camp and find some marijuana growing in the bushes. There, Wade tells the story of Jason Voorhees, which the other initially dismiss. However, as Whitney and Mike explore an old abandoned house (with a familiar shrine), Jason subsequently kills them off one by one, until only Whitney remains. Two months later, another group of teens, now Trent (Travis Van Winkle, apparently playing the same character he did in Transformers. Jason vs Transformers....),  Jenna (Danielle Panabaker), Chelsea (Willa Ford), Bree (Julianna Guill), Chewie (Aaron Yoo), Nolan (Ryan Hansen) and Lawrence (Arlen Escarpeta) are heading to Trent's summer house for vacation. They have a brief run in with Clay (Jared Padalecki. I kind of wish there was a Dean joke I could make, because it's rare that I can make an appropriate Gilmore Girls reference), who is looking of his sister Whitney. While Trent has an aggressive encounter, when he comes back around the cabin, Jenna is willing to help him look. Jason begins his own attack, and we learn Whitney is still alive, trapped because she resembles a younger version of Pamela.

        It's clear that the screenwriters had taken the best parts of the first four films and condensed them. We see Pamela's death, the shrine that Jason keeps to her, Clay looking for his sister (a reference to the Hitchhiker in the Fourth one, with elements of Tommy Jarvis), Jason getting the hockey mask, and various teens coming camping. It works, and helps get to the meat of the entire film without any tedium or distractions. I was worried when the film seemed shadowy and unwatchable, but you can see everything fine. It has the signature series excellence in effects and gore, with some creative ways of showing the various character. I was a little apprehensive of Jason being more of an aggressive killer, but it works, though I will say it feels more like Leatherface than Jason. Most importantly, despite the more modern setting, and updates, it feels like a Friday the 13th film, with all the tropes and elements that make a good entry in the series work. It was also nice to hear the old theme for the series.

       It's established that, even when Michael Bay isn't directing, his fingerprints are all over anything he's involved with (I can't imagine what that documentary about elephant poaching he's involved with will be like). This is not an exception, with his various minor annoyances all over . It's especially worse that a lot of these characters are the slasher film teens, so their unlikeability increases with Bay's tendency towards distateful characters. There's characters to root for, but you kind of just wait for those you don't like to be offed. Honestly, while the "back-to-basics" part is not bad, I think it could've benefited from the supernatural twist that later films gave Jason. This would make more distinct from Leatherface. I also feel it might've worked with more fan service.

       I enjoyed this, despite my own trepidations going in. It feels like a Friday the 13th film, in a good way. It has what makes the series work, and knows how to use it to great effect. If you're a fan of the series, or just want a good horror film for this Friday the 13th, this is a good option, and a good film for those unfamiliar with the series.

     Well, that's it. 12 films in 12 days. I wasn't terribly into the first one, but as I've gone through each of these entries, I see what made this series such a classic. It might get formulaic, but some were able to take that formula, and bring it in interesting directions, or even just make it entertaining without really becoming too repetitive.  Regardless of who's playing him, Jason, despite his lack of emotions, is a dynamic, interesting presence, and whether he is haunting Crystal Lake, roaming the streets of New York, or is in Space, he is always the best part of any of these films. I've only disliked two of these (the two New Line Cinema ones), and even those still had some elements that made them enjoyable. Of these, I'd say the second and sixth ones are my favorite, because they were able to use the formula to its maximum potential, and I've had a good time watching most of these. I'd end with a glib reference to the series (i.e. So, next time you plan a visit to Crystal Lake), but frankly, I'm glad I'm done, because I did have to watch a film a night, and a review the very next day. At least, nothing major happened that disrupted this general schedule. Anyway, thank you all for reading all of these and joining in my journey through this series, and next week, I am doing The Equilizer 2, so hopefully you join me for that.