It Happens When You Dream!
And it’s happening AGAIN!
Filming of the remake of Wes Craven’s “Nightmare On Elm Street” wrapped on July 10, 2009 and the new Nightmare is set to premier in theaters on April 16, 2010.
One, Two…Freddy’s Coming For You….
The original Nightmare On Elm Street, written and directed by Wes Craven and produced by New Line Cinema, was released in 1984 and featured a group of high school kids being terrorized in their dreams by the ghost of child murderer, Freddy Krueger.
Wes Craven’s production of Nightmare On Elm Street grossed over $25 million at U.S. box offices and has become one of the most popular horror movies of all time, with it’s villian, Freddy Krueger, becoming one of the most well recognized movie villains of cinematic history.
The premise of the film is the question of distinction between dreams and reality. Is never sleeping again the only way to end the terror?
Three, Four…Better Lock Your Door…
The origin of Nightmare On Elm Street lies in several experiences from Wes Craven’s childhood.
His inspiration for the basis of the film lies in several articles printed by the LA Times on a group of Cambodian refugees and their children, who were were suffering horrific nightmares, after which they refused to sleep. Acting on medical advice, their parents encouraged them to do so. However, each of the children died in their sleep soon after, following the second dream.
The name for serial child murderer, Freddy Krueger, was taken from a bully that Craven went to school with, Fred Krueger. Craven also used this name for the villain, “Krug” in his rendition of “Last House On The Left”.
Freddy’s appearance also goes back to a scary childhood encounter Craven had with a homeless man with a very distinctive red-and-green sweater; the same colored sweater he chose for his villain. Craven also had read that those were the two hardest colours to visually process together, which is another reason as to why he chose the respective colored sweater.
And, initially, Fred Krueger was intended to be a child molester but the character was changed to a child murderer due to some highly publicized child molestation cases that were going on in California at the time of production.
Five, Six…Grab Your Crucifix…
Just who, exactly, IS Freddy Krueger? And why is he terrorizing our children?!
IMDb has this to say about dear Freddy:
Frederick Charles Krueger is the product of the violent rape of the nun Amanda Krueger by one hundred maniacs. Called Freddy, he was constantly ridiculed for his infamous and brutal conception.
It was then he started murdering small animals, and as he grew into adulthood, he turned his masochistic behavior on himself. After suffering abuse from his stepfather for many years, he brutally murdered him with a razor.
It was after child services took his daughter away that Krueger became a child killer earning the name “The Springwood Slasher”.
After he was captured for his string of grizzly murders, he was unexpectedly freed on a technicality. The enraged parents of Springwood, OH then took the law into their own hands. They followed Krueger to a building where he took his victims and ignited it with gasoline into a raging inferno. However, no one expected the end result of this act.
Freddy’s soul was so corrupt that it was decided he could be of use to dream demons imprisoned in hell. When he was promised eternal life in the world of dreams, Freddy could hardly refuse.
Ever since that night, Krueger has taken his revenge on the parents of Springwood by stalking their children through their dreams. Each time he is able to twist what would seem to be a normal dream into his own brutal imagination’s delight of terror. Some children have escaped thinking they have defeated him, only to have him rise again sometime later.
There is only one documented case of Krueger meeting his match. While in hell, he was able to awaken Jason Voorhees, of Camp Crystal Lake infamy. Freddy was then able to use Jason to strike fear into the kids of Elm Street. This plan backfired when the masked killer could not be shut down. This led to a big confrontation both in the dream and real world.
Freddy still lingers in the pits of hell with no indication if or when he will return.
Krueger appears as a disfigured dream stalker who uses a glove armed with razors to kill children and teenagers in their dreams, which ultimately results in their death in the real world. However, whenever he is dragged into the real world, he has normal human strength and vulnerability.
Robert Englund was already a veteran actor, having appeared in the mini series V and V: The Final Battle, before he received the script for Nightmare On Elm Street. Little did he know that he was soon to become the most infamous horror villain in history. After his huge success in A Nightmare on Elm Street, Englund became the first new horror movie star since Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing in the 1960s.
Seven, Eight…Gonna Stay Up Late…
This new incarnation of Nightmare On Elm Street is being produced by Platinum Dunes and will keep the original high school setting. This version will give us more information on Freddy’s background and the psychology behind his murderous nature.
The reboot, directed by Samuel Bayer and written by Wesley Strick, (”Arachniphobia” , “Cape Fear”) based on Wes Craven’s own adaptation, portrays Freddy as a child molester, the way Craven originally intended.
The original Nightmare On Elm Street is a classic horror flick, starring Robert Englund in the role of Freddy Krueger and it’s difficult to imagine anyone taking Englund’s place as the dream demon.
Fans of the franchise who doubted the remake’s success with anyone other than Englund in the starring role are applauding the casting of Jackie Earl Haley as the new Freddy Krueger. Oscar nominee Haley earlier this yeared rocked in his roll of Rorschach in Watchmen, quashing all doubts about this new Elm Street’s success.
Coincidentally, Haley auditioned for a role in the original Nightmare On Elm Street but was beat out by his friend, Johnny Depp, who just went along for the company!
Nightmare becomes Depp’s first motion picture credit and Depp becomes a victim of Krueger in one of the most memorable scenes from the movie:
Nine, Ten….Never Sleep Again!
So mark your calendars, folks! April 16, 2010 is the date…can you stay awake that long?
Freddy’s betting you can’t!
So far, stills and footage from the film haven’t seemed to make their way online. Rest assured, when they do, we’ll get all the scoop, right here!
. You may never sleep again!
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