We
all dream and I prefer my dreams "the scarier the better". Killing zombies,
howling at the moon, and battling evil is all in a good night's work for this decaying
mind. These are the sweet images that haunt my dreams and I can honestly say that I have
never been afraid of nightmares and actually prefer them most of the time. I guess
that is why I love horror so much. Real life can be so much more terrifying. There is only
one other kind of dream that puts a smile on my face, but I will keep those thoughts to
myself (I encourage all of my female fans to send pictures).
Dreams have always intrigued me. The
dreamscape serves as a stage where all our biggest joys and fears battle. The netherworld
of our subconscious forms the foundation of who we are. Slowly but surely these thoughts
manifest themselves in our dreams and serve as a guide to our inner being. (Damn, I feel
like Sigmund Freud). It is this that molds our interpretation of right and wrong.
The
dream world is suppose to be the only place where we are
really safe...gods of our own imaginations. Where a little child can defeat his or her
demons. Well, my fine fiendish fans, this couldn't be farther from the truth in
this classic horror flick. In fact, this REM sleep could kill you, so "DON'T FALL ASLEEP"
"A Nightmare on Elm
Street" perfectly illustrated the ultimate manifestation of one's fear. Freddy
Krueger not only haunted your dreams, but also could literally kill you in them. He was
the great puppetmaster in the darkness, who would unmercifully cut the strings of his
victims' lives... damning them forever to his mad world.
Wes Craven
masterfully borne this madman, but it was
Robert Englund who
developed him into the manifestation that still haunts our dreams. Like I said on previous
pages, I really liked the first "Nightmare", but I can do without the rest.
Freddy's one-liners were cool at first, but after a while they could get really annoying
(still enjoyed the entire series, except for 2, reviews to follow) I prefer monsters who
don't speak and wear hockey mask (HA, HA). Freddy is still cool and a definitely an
"icon" in the modern age of horror.
There is a lot of things I liked
about "A Nightmare on Elm Street". One was the dark atmosphere of
this film. The first "Nightmare" firmly established the sub-genre of
"fantasy horror". "Hellraiser" is another
great film that really helped this sub-genre, while making it a main staple of horror
today. Another thing I liked is how Craven took the "slasher" film to a whole
new level with the first "Nightmare". This film definitely plays upon the giallo
theme of Italian cinema and Freddy could easily be the gloved (HA HA) maniac that slashes
through so many Argento films. Finally, this movie was pretty damn gory, but
the gore was placed very effectively. But really, the tension in this film is
sensational and overpowering at times.
This is by far Wes Craven's best
work. I can already hear the complaints, "What about Scream and Scream 2"?
"Scream" although an entertaining thriller/comedy is not horror. I am sure I will get a ton of
e-mail regarding this, but oh well what the
hell. If you want "Scream" or "Scream 2" look elsewhere. They
will never appear in the "House of Horrors".
Again, as always, if you have
anything you can add to help improve this page or if you have any comments, criticisms,
and suggestions, please
e-mail me.
|