In A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge, five years have passed since the events of A Nightmare on Elm Street. Within this time, the Thompsons have moved away from the eponymous street and the Walsh family have taken over Nancy’s old house, with teenager Jesse Walsh moving into Nancy’s former bedroom.
But it’s not just the bedroom which links Jesse to Nancy, so do Jesse’s nightmares. Since moving into the house, Jesse has suffered with terrible dreams involving a mysterious disfigured man with knives on his fingers.
This man is Freddy Krueger – the same nightmarish figure who terrorised Nancy. But unlike Nancy’s encounter with Krueger, with Freddy inhabiting her dreams, this time around Krueger is attempting to influence Jesse’s behaviour and take over his body.
Directed by Jack Sholder, A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge stars Robert Englund, Mark Patton, and Kim Myers. The movie is a loose sequel to 1984’s A Nightmare on Elm Street and is the second entry in the Elm Street series.
A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge is also the one entry in the series which has benefited from the passage of time. Originally when this film debuted in 1985 it received mixed reviews, but in subsequent years the movie has grown in popularity having undertaken a considerable reappraisal.
Why the reappraisal? Because the reasons for the film’s supposed failure the first time around are not so much of an issue these days.
The reason Freddy’s Revenge was mostly met with criticism in ‘85 was because this sequel felt fairly disconnected to the original film. This was then made worse when the third film came along – A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors – which acted as a true sequel to the original and became much more of a tie-in.
However, despite what was said back then, Freddy’s Revenge is now praised for being different. The film may not be to everyone’s taste, but it briefly takes the horror series in a slightly different direction with an entry that tweaks the mythology and boasts a very different lead in Jesse.
Unlike all of the other entries in the series, Freddy’s Revenge features a male protagonist – something fairly unusual in the horror genre. This subverts the usual stereotypes in slasher pictures, adds a new dynamic to the story, and makes for a refreshing change.
Freddy’s Revenge is also filled with homoerotic subtext. The story about Freddy attempting to take over the body of a teenage boy is just one of many elements in the movie which places it under the category of queer cinema and this is further enhanced by lead actor, Mark Patton being homosexual.
These days Patton is known for being the first ‘scream king’ – the male alternative of the traditional scream queen. However, I’d argue in terms of queer cinema (and certainly to me) he’s a scream queen as well as a scream king, and a great lead for this film.
Either way, once again this is all refreshing stuff and not what you might expect from an Elm Street movie. As such, like it or not, Freddy’s Revenge offers up a different flavour to all the other entries and this is something I’m a big fan of.
Does it work as well as its predecessor? No, it’s fair to say this film lacks the ingenuity of the former’s nightmarish set pieces and it’s not particularly scary.
Freddy’s Revenge is gruesome, it is grotesque, and it is grubby, but it isn’t a frightening film. It lacks the sinister bite of the original, plus it makes a very infamous mistake when it brings Freddy out of the shadows to attend a pool party.
However, despite a few missteps Freddy’s Revenge does have some great sequences. The film is also filled with delicious black humour, and Jesse’s metamorphosis into Freddy is at times pretty cool.
Freddy’s Revenge also benefits from another solid turn from Robert Englund as Krueger – arguably his last proper serious take on the character before things begin to lighten up from Part 3 onward. As with the previous movie, Englund only appears in a limited capacity, but he’s superb in every scene.
While Freddy’s Revenge may not tickle everyone’s pickle, it sure works for me. I see this entry as a welcome detour from all of the other movies in the series and I’m a big fan of having a male lead as the protagonist.
It isn’t as strong as what came before it, nor as strong as what follows, but it is a decent horror regardless. Freddy’s Revenge has cult favourite written all over it and so long as you approach it knowing it is a little different, you shouldn’t be too disappointed.
Should you wish to watch A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Dead the film is available on digital download. The movie is also available on DVD and Blu-ray as part of the Elm Street movie collection.
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