Wes Craven's New Nightmare Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

Wes Craven's New Nightmare Blu-ray Movie Review

'New Nightmare' is a fitting end to an old reality.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 17, 2013

The A Nightmare on Elm Street series has been, and continues to be, one of the most stable, reliable, noteworthy, and simply entertaining in the history of Horror cinema and arguably even the best and certainly most instantly recognizable Horror franchise of them all. Though with a few down films amongst the first six, the franchise proved a rousing success with fans and, by 1991, had established itself as arguably the premiere series in Horror history. But it was time to let it go...for a while. Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare is a pretty straightforward title; it was to be the final film (as the name suggests), the proverbial nail in the coffin (not that some wood and nails would stop Freddy; he ain't no vampire), the closing of a cinematic chapter, the end of a lucrative 1980s Horror era. But everyone knows that only dwindling box office returns can really kill a Horror icon. Though Freddy's Dead is arguably the worst in the series, it grossed enough to warrant a return of everyone's favorite Horror antihero. The good news is that rather than continue to sink into obscurity at the hands of recycled plots and unoriginal developments, the franchise was returned to the more-than-capable hands of Creator Wes Craven, a man who recognized potential for something different and saw fit to take the series in an entirely new direction in a movie that asks: what happens when a Horror franchise comes to life and what are the effects it has on those real people with a history of playing someone else in a scary movie?

Don't tell mom the babysitter's about to be dead.

Actress Heather Langnekamp (herself), years removed from her appearances in two of the A Nightmare on Elm Street films, finds herself on the set of the next Nightmare movie, uneasy with its blood and guts and desperately attempting to shelter her young son Dylan (Miko Hughes) from the violence. She's also on edge, nervous about a string of fairly powerful earthquakes hitting the Los Angeles area as well as a telephone stalker who won't leave her alone. Dylan seems more and more detached, not himself, frightened by the monsters under the bed, his toy dinosaur all that stands between him and a date with evil. Heather is pitched an idea for a new Nightmare film at New Line Cinema, the handiwork of series creator Wes Craven. When people close to her begin to die, she rallies around longtime colleague Robert Englund (himself) in an effort to figure out just what's happening. She soon comes to learn that an evil force is on the loose and that she may have to slip into character one last time if she is to save herself, her son, and all whom she loves from a terrible demise at the razor-fingered hand from her past.

Brilliant? Maybe. Different? Absolutely. Worthwhile? Unequivocally. Wes Craven's New Nightmare plays with some wonderfully intriguing ideas and builds itself into one of the preeminent cameras-fictionally-turned-around movies out there. It's a film in which real people play fictional representations of themselves dealing with the traumas incurred by their past performances as someone else and facing the reality of make-believe come to life. It sounds complex, and on paper perhaps it is, but Wes Craven makes New Nightmare easy to grasp and a fabulously enthralling character study blended with classic Horror movie stylings. The film completely ditches the standby teenagers-in-peril plot (to which Craven would successfully return a few years later with Scream, and there's a scene in New Nightmare that feels like the catalyst for that film's famous Drew Barrymore sequence) and instead builds its story around a nearly perfect blending of the real and the imagined. Craven juggles the two flawlessly; audiences are never left confused as to who is who, where is where, or what is what inside the movie, even as fiction interacts with fact, as fantasy meshes with reality, as movie magic horror is mated with real terror in the real world. The movie is devilishly fun, emotionally captivating, and psychologically satisfying all. It's not Craven's masterpiece -- it doesn't top the original in terms of impact on the Horror landscape -- but it does inject the most novelty into the series since the first film and it remains perhaps the most fascinating picture in Horror history.

New Nightmare's faux open delivers a wonderfully rich atmosphere that's largely unique to the beginning (and, to an extent, the end) but remains psychologically intense and thoughtful rather than strictly visually so. Character development is rich and satisfying in every regard; the film certainly benefits from the duality of its lead character -- her "real" life intertwining with her screen life -- and the presence of other franchise icons from both sides of the camera in similar positions effectively fill in the film's general structure and emotional base. The cast seems to capture some of the more complex and deeply-rooted emotions with ease -- dealing with an unpredictable fan base, paying the price of fame, facing the manifestations of fictional fear in real life -- perhaps because all, to some degree, have battled them, or are at least understanding of those realities which exist so close to them. That brings a welcome air of authenticity to the project, one it really needed to work; the audience believes from the outset that what they are seeing is real, and as the terror slowly grows into something more and manifests into physical form and beyond harassing phone calls and mental instability, it feels like a natural progression rather than the doings of a detached, unrealistic Horror film. Wes Craven again proves why he's one of the few, true masters of the Horror genre; New Nightmare is a brilliant idea that's well-executed on both sides of the camera, and it's a fitting way to really end the standalone Freddy films (not that anyone would complain if Wes and his razor-fingered nightmare character came back for another go. Or two.).

Wes Craven's New Nightmare Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Wes Craven's New Nightmare doesn't fare quite as well as the best Blu-ray releases in the series, but this is nevertheless a rather solid, enjoyable presentation. It shows a little bit of softness and warmth throughout, but details and colors are nevertheless quite strong. The image retains a very light grain structure and yields pleasing cinematic textures. Detail complexity isn't off the charts, but there's a pleasant amount of visible nuance on faces, clothes, and general elements around the screen, whether in the fiery furnace seen at the beginning or within the confines of Heather's home or New Line's offices. Colors, despite that slight push towards warm, enjoy good, pleasing tones and fine balance. Greens seen during a funeral, the glossy brown coffin in the same sequence, the more bland hues in a hospital, or the inviting colors of Heather's house are all handled very well. Flesh tones do show that minor warmth, but black levels are just fine. The image displays very little in the way of banding, and there are no other major instances of other evident problems. Overall, a very good effort from New Line.

Wes Craven's New Nightmare Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

As with the other films in the series, Wes Craven's New Nightmare features an immersive and hard-hitting DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack. This is a big, potent, exciting listen, its many dialogue scenes punctuated by some seriously aggressive bass and surround support. The stage is very wide and fully immersive; from the opening moments on the film set forward, listeners are treated to a captivating sonic experience that hits on all cylinders. Ambient effects are natural and immersive. Heavy bass defines many action scenes and shakes listeners to their very core during earthquakes that offer punishing but balanced and highly satisfying lows. A traffic scene in chapter 24 delivers a full-on surround immersion moment as vehicles whip from one end of the stage to another. Such elements are enjoyed throughout, every time the action spikes above the spoken word. Music delivery is accurate but big and wholly pleasing, delivering excellent spacing and fine clarity. Dialogue is smooth and evenly delivered from the center. This is a fun, well-engineered track from New Line.

Wes Craven's New Nightmare Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Wes Craven's New Nightmare contains a good collection of extras, highlighted by a high quality audio commentary with Wes Craven.

• Audio Commentary: Director Wes Craven delivers a pleasing, well-spoken commentary. He offers a very nice blend of insights, including the picture's story and themes, Freddy's redesign, anecdotes from the shoot, the cast and characters, shooting locales, technical details of the shoot, and plenty more. While the overriding themes of the track are rather standard, Craven injects a flair, authenticity, and passion into the track that makes it stand out above many others. A must-listen.
• Becoming a Filmmaker (SD, 7:53): Wes Craven speaks on his background, career path, and breaking into film.
• An Instant Troupe (SD, 0:51): Craven briefly discusses the first step in Horror filmmaking.
• Two Worlds (SD, 2:04): Wes Craven speaks on the premise for the film and his response to the questions about the Horror movie landscape.
• The Problem with Sequels (SD, 1:35): Wes Craven shares his thoughts on joining this project and the problems with Horror sequels.
• Filmmaker (SD, 4:37): Craven speaks on what it means to him to be a "filmmaker."
• Theatrical Trailer (HD, 2:40).

Wes Craven's New Nightmare Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

New Nightmare proves a much more fitting end to the standalone Nightmare on Elm Street series than the disappointing Freddy's Dead. It seems a no-brainer for Wes Craven to come back and wrap up what he began only ten years later and with five films sandwiched in between. No surprise, he absolutely nails it. New Nightmare is entertaining, it's different, it's a new direction that gives fans what they want even as it incorporates new ideas that stray from the series standards while still maintaining all the important parts that make A Nightmare on Elm Street work so well. After the first and possibly the fourth, this is the series' best and not one to be missed after Nightmare's official/unofficial "end." New Line's Blu-ray release of Wes Craven's New Nightmare delivers solid video and audio. A nice array of extras are included. Highly recommended.