31 Nights of Halloween

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Yeah, I used the term sequel loosely because of the concept of the movie being that it takes place in a Universe where the rest of the movies are just that....movies. However it focuses on the main actress of the original as Freddy seeps into reality to torment her and her family. Like I said, I consider it to be an ingenious plot.

[Avaitor]

I've still only seen the first Nightmare. I've heard that this and Dream Warriors are the only other ones I should consider watching, so maybe some day I will.

[talonmalon333]

Yeah, I used the term sequel loosely because of the concept of the movie being that it takes place in a Universe where the rest of the movies are just that....movies. However it focuses on the main actress of the original as Freddy seeps into reality to torment her and her family. Like I said, I consider it to be an ingenious plot.

Agreed. From what I've seen, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors is considered to be the best after the original. Assuming I was wrong in my last post and that people just didn't like New Nightmare as much, I feel that'd be a shame because New Nightmare is such a smart film. In my opinion, it's by far the best "sequel". I mean, Dream Warriors was a fun, creative, and overall colorful movie, but I don't think it was particularly a great movie. The dream powers were cool, but not as interesting as when Nancy battled Freddy using her wits in the original film. Plus, in New Nightmare, you get to see Robert Englund be himself, Freddy, and himself playing Freddy.

That being said, if someone were considering checking out the series, I'd recommend the original, 3, and New Nightmare. I think James Rolfe also said something similar to that.

[talonmalon333]

I do have to admit that I always had mixed opinions about them making a franchise out of A Nightmare on Elm Street. First of all, Wes Craven didn't want it to happen. In fact, the ending of the original was originally sequel-proof. Now, it's only... half sequel-proof. I mean yeah, in the last scene, Freddy traps them in the car and attacks Nancy's mother. But on the other hand, they still largely have his death scene. Nancy said it herself, all of his power came from her, and she took back every last ounce of it. To me, that's the ultimate demise of Freddy. I don't see how they could continue from that (even though they did), and none of his deaths in the sequels were as final. So, in my opinion, it just kind of leaves it with a messy ending that's my only major problem with the film. Wes Craven's original ending does still exist though, to a certain extent.

That's my problem with them making a franchise out of it. But on the plus side... if they didn't make any sequels, we never would have gotten 3 or New Nightmare. So, despite my problems, it may be for the best that we got a series out of it.

I've still only seen the first Nightmare. I've heard that this and Dream Warriors are the only other ones I should consider watching, so maybe some day I will.

As you can see from my posts, I agree with that recommendation. Going from 1 to 3 works very well because they are sort of connected to each other. Meanwhile, 2 is very different, doesn't actually effect anything, and isn't mentioned ever mentioned again. 4 through 6 are just pointless.

[Daikun]

When it comes to overmilked horror franchises, A Nightmare on Elm Street holds up a lot better than its contemporaries. Halloween had a couple of okay sequels (although most of them were mediocre) and Friday the 13th is just awful. ANoES actually had some sequels that I wouldn't mind seeing again. Freddy treads the line between hilarious and frightening, and his kills are creative beyond just stab-stab-stab. You can't have a better scene from a horror movie than this.

The only movie in this series that I didn't like was the second one. The rest are a lot of fun.

[talonmalon333]

I didn't like A Nightmare on Elm Street 2, either. But I thought Freddy's Dead was even worse. To be honest, I feel like 1, 3, and New Nightmare really are the only movies I particularly like (admittedly 4 and 5 aren't necessarily bad, though). As for Friday the 13th, I think 1 through 4 are fun slashers, and 6 is a good tongue-in-cheek take on the series. The rest are just bad, though. I'd probably agree on Nightmare being a better franchise.

Halloween probably fell the hardest, though. Like you said, a few of those movies are fine (I'd even say II and III are better than any Nightmare sequel besides Dream Warriors and New Nightmare), but when the series went bad, it really, really went bad. Curse of Michael Myers just broke the series, and then Resurrection broke it again.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

NIGHT 25:



After dominating the superhero genre with his Spider-Man trilogy, Sam Raimi went back to his roots and conjured up this modern-day blend of his trademark horror and comedy. Now, I'll be perfectly honest, I'm more lukewarm in this movie than anything else, granted that I've only seen it once, so far, and haven't had any opportunities to re-watch it, which hopefully I can change, soon. But, as a Sam Raimi film, I find it only fair to compare it to the Evil Dead movies, and IMO, while it's decent on its own, I don't think it's nearly as well put-together as those films, in either horror or comedy.

That said, I did still enjoy it well enough, and compared to most modern horror movies, it comes off as a masterpiece when everything else that had come out around the same time as that movie was utter shit. It's also nice to see that it's a full on horror comedy, since we rarely ever get those, anymore (though I will say that I prefer Zombieland, which I believe came out around the same time). I will say that this film, however, is MUCH better than The Cabin in the Woods. But, you all know how I really feel about that movie.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

No comments? I guess that everyone just agrees with me, then.

[Avaitor]

I dunno, I just haven't had a chance to see it yet.

[talonmalon333]

I haven't been around today, though even if I was, I actually haven't seen this movie.

[Dr. Insomniac]

I saw it at the week it premiered (immediately after watching Up), and it entertained me. Seemed a bit unfocused at to whether it wanted to be a horror movie or a pastiche of horror movies though, like when the Lamia made the medium dance in the air.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

NIGHT 26:



Admittedly I still haven't seen this one. The funny thing is that, back when it was first being advertised, I remembered being pissed off by the trailer claiming that so many classic horror movies were for pussies and that this was the real deal. But that was at a time when I was way too uptight about everything and didn't realize when I wasn't actually made to take something seriously, meaning that it's good that I didn't see the movie back then, because I probably wouldn't have been in the right state of mind to appreciate it. I do feel like it'd be right up my alley if I saw it now, though. And, hey, I loved Guardians of the Galaxy, so if nothing else, I can trust in James Gunn's ability to make movies with legitimately great humor.

[Daikun]

I'm not a fan of James Gunn's work. This is the only film he's done that I actually like.

[Foggle]

Slither is hilarious! It's a really great tribute to old B movies with lots of gore and fun performances. Highly recommended modern schlock horror.

[Avaitor]

I'm not a fan of James Gunn's work. This is the only film he's done that I actually like.

Whoa, you're not a Guardians fan?