Product: New Nightmare [VHS] (1994)
Rating: 4.0
Craven reflects on the myth he created
Freddy Krueger is more than just a horror film villain; in `A Nightmare on Elm Street', Wes Craven had reconfigured age-old themes (good versus evil, natural versus supernatural, etc.) with such force that he had created a sort of modern myth which was more about these universal themes than about conventional `story elements'. Most of the sequels ignored this mythic quality until Craven himself went back to the series and again brought it to the fore. Although there are some allusions to the first five sequels and their consequences on the general perception of Freddy, this film is primarily a companion piece to the original movie -- those who have seen the first `Nightmare' will recognize many elements from that film, including the more simple and `primal' behavior of Freddy. Over the years, many viewers have identified themselves with him - thus, sometimes unknowingly, with all the evil that he stands for - and this is one of this film's most important themes; when Craven reintroduces the `classic Freddy' during a talk-show scene, the character is predictably portrayed as the talkative and admired figure he had become (Englund is seen signing autographs in the following sequence). This watered-down Freddy only partially interests Craven; he's more interested in the character's essence, which is darker and more evil, hence the `re-invention' of Freddy during the movie's last half - it is less about Freddy as a character than about all he represents. Subtlety isn't this film's strongest point, but 'Wes Craven's New Nightmare' still is a thoughtful meditation on the Freddy-as-myth theme and there's an intelligent vision that runs through it all.