The franchise spanning documentary, Never Sleep Again, chronicles the years of the Elm Street series.
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| "Hug it out....beaatch!!!" |
My all-time favorite horror movie franchise is unequivocally
the Nightmare on Elm Street series. I
grew up watching all of the films and they were the catalyst for my love of
scary movies in later years. Freddy Krueger’s sardonic sense of humor and the
imaginative ways he took out his victims set him apart from the other generic
slasher film protagonists of the time. Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy
is a tour-de-force; a four hour long epic journey through the original seven
films, the ill-fated TV series, and the fan-service filled Freddy vs. Jason.
Never Sleep Again brings back many of the film’s original
stars, directors, special effect/make-up artists and producers. It’s also just
as much the story of the rise of New Line Cinema as it is a behind-the-scenes
look at the films themselves. Heather Langenkamp, who played Nancy in several
of the movies, is the narrator for the entire documentary and also gives many
in-depth interviews about her experience working on the sets. Director Wes
Craven discusses his feelings about creating such an iconic series and how it
evolved, for better or worse, without his direct control in the many sequels.
The documentary is well put together and they examine each
film thoroughly; there are loads of never-before-seen clips, storyboards and
pieces of concept artwork on display. Individuals who are interested in how
films are produced and created will be in heaven, as they show the entire
process for each film from start to finish. The directors and actors reflect on
what they enjoyed about each film and what, in hindsight, didn’t necessarily
work out for the best.
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| "This is one strange kind of porno...." |
I enjoyed the segments on all the practical effects they
used the most, and it blew my mind the amount of love and work that went into
the props and make-up. It’s also fun to see how the actors aged since
participating in the movies, especially since it’s been 30 years since the
first film was released. I consider myself a well-versed fan of Nightmare on
Elm Street and there was still TONS of information and trivia that was new to
me. Many questions and speculations fans have had over the years are directly
answered in this film.
While four hours might sound like a long running time for a
documentary, it doesn’t feel that long and there is so much interesting information
that it just flies by. The art design used in the film is outstanding and each
section is segued into the next by cool stop-motion animation. It’s very high
quality and professional looking and keeps the whole film cohesive. I cannot
recommend this film enough to both horror film fans and just film aficionados
in general.
-Michelle Kisner