Product: New Nightmare [VHS] (1994)
Rating: 5.0
A perfect ending to the long running series
Wes Craven created one of the horror genre's most recognizeable and unforgettable characters when he wrote and directed the original Nightmare on Elm Street, and after 5 following films (all of which were rather dull except for the third film), Craven returned to the director's chair to finish what he started ten years before. The story is this: Heather Langenkamp (star of the original film and Part 3) plays herself in the real world. She is an actress whose young son begins uttering Freddy-esque threats as the city is rocked by earthquakes. Soon we learn from Craven (playing himself, look for New Line CEO Robert Shaye as himself as well) that Freddy is manifesting himself into our reality. While this does sound a bit questionable on paper, the idea is executed almost flawlessly, and Freddy is no longer the wise cracking one liner spewing freak we all came to know and love; he is much, much more demonic and menacing, and he looks great. New Nightmare is the scariest film since the original (and maybe the scariest of the series) and thanks to Craven we get one of the most entertaining horror films of the 90's. Robert Englund and John Saxon star as themselves and they're movie counterparts, and all together New Nightmare is the most intelligent film of the series, and is an essential film to horror fans, whether they like the series or not.