Sonoma State Star > Arts & Entertainment
A different kind of nightmare
Published: Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Updated: Wednesday, May 5, 2010 02:05
Clever, suspenseful and powerful. None of these things describe the "Nightmare on Elm Street" reboot film.
Many familiar elements remain such as Freddy Krueger's fedora and hand claw. Yet, there is a casualty in the new film, and that casualty is the reason for this film's existence.
Freddy Krueger, part-time homeless man, full-time non-corporeal terror of the children on Elm Street, haunts a handful of teens. He pushes them, teases them and sometimes tortures the audience with his films. Jackie Earle Haley plays the part of the titular villain. Haley is very good.
As the non-ethereal Krueger, Haley performs with a hint of frailty. He is pitiful, mildly sympathetic until a semi-dramatic plot twist ruptures this image completely. As evil Freddy Krueger bent on dealing terror throughout Elm Street, Haley does the best he can with the dialogue given.
He says all of the lines like he means them, but half way through realizes his lines are just filler. He seems to be wondering why he is talking at all. Why do villains explain any of their actions? It makes the villains seem reasonable and even negotiable. Don't do it.
The filmmakers also decided that Haley's Krueger voice needed a boost in bass. Audience members will clearly know Krueger is in town when the theater's seats start to rumble. Haley's augmented voice is not subtle. It's irritating. His voice is just too loud. If a person dies only to come back as a ghost and for some insane reason possesses a deeper voice, people will start asking questions. People with brains.
The first clue that Freddy Krueger is back isn't the nightmares; it's his ridiculous voice.
The plot differs from the original 1984 film. The setting is different, helping to represent the new state of the world. Audience's will know that this is an entirely new take on the Nightmare series because the male characters of the film wear just as much make up as the female characters. Expect heavy use of both computer imagery and mascara on the male actors.
Why do the male characters of the picture wear mascara? Are they trying to protect themselves from Freddy Krueger or are they dressing up for him? No one knows and I don't care.
Yes, there are parts of "Nightmare on Elm Street" that can be liked. The visual effects are wonderful. Freddy Krueger's face is a mixture of make-up and computer imagery. Filmmakers have gone ahead and made Krueger appear ghastly through the details of visible muscle and tendons. He looks more like a zombie than a demon from hell.
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