NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET Review

I am not of the generation that grew up watching the originals these recent horror films produced by Michael Bay have been revamping. I have of course seen them in all their campy glory, but would hope these new revisions would be what I would do with the material had I the opportunity to remake it. I think that has been the key downfall with most of these remakes, they haven't lived up to what I always wanted the older ones to be. After last years horrible 'Friday the 13th' update I expected the worst from this film. It is without debate that Freddy Krueger is the most iconic of these movie villains. When it was announced that Jackie Earle Haley would be playing Freddy I was pleased with the choice. Most say his portrayal of Mr. Krueger can never compare to Mr. Englunds, but with a very Rorschach-like voice and overall sense of sick bestowed upon him, this Freddy Krueger is no joke. This is a much more serious film than the original that spawned it. If this wasn't a re-make I would be thoroughly impressed and probably call it one of the better scary movies I've seen in years. The story has elements of the original but has been updated significantly. And most of the time, for the better. This script offers more of a back story and reason as to why it is this specific group of teens having these dreams. It paints a horrifying picture of how Freddy became the nightmare stalker and a complex dilemma in the children that are trying to get rid of him. There are of course a few campy lines, especially as the film gets closer to its climax, but for the first hour or so this is a nicely paced, if not sometimes cliched horror flick. It offers a few jumps, but is never really scary, which I guess is the main detraction from this piece. I have no idea how scary the original was when it first came out, but this one is more good cinematography and surprisingly good acting with less of the things that make you jump in your seat. Still, it isn't as bad as everyone might tell you it is, in fact it is much better. Although I did go in with low expectations and so this may be a little bias in that it exceeded those low expectations to the fullest it could. It doesn't ruin the original but it doesn't set a new standard. The ending is ridiculous and I'm actually not sure if we can expect a sequel. All that needed to be said was said, but I'm sure if this makes enough money we will see Krueger back again.