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Bookmark this pageA Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)
Director: Samuel Bayer
Movie review
From Time Out London
In Wes Craven’s 1984 original, Nancy warned her boyfriend Glen, a young Johnny Depp: ‘Whatever happens, don’t fall asleep.’ Heed this warning if you see this tedious ‘reimagining’ of Craven’s seminal slasher movie, because you’ll be struggling to stay awake. Inheriting Freddy Krueger’s iconic fedora and striped sweater from Robert Englund, former child star Jackie Earle Haley makes what he can of a hand-me-down role, slicing his way into the dreams of suburban teenagers. That said, Haley’s CGI-enhanced make-up makes more of an impression than his weak presence, ‘scary’ voice or lame one-liners.After their friend is killed by an invisible attacker, emo girl Nancy (Rooney Mara) and misfit Quentin (Kyle Gallner) are convinced that her death is connected to a nightmare they’ve all been having and a dark Freddy Krueger-related secret their parents have kept from them – a secret the kids have all, in a convenient act of collective amnesia, repressed since nursery school. Now Freddy is back, invading their dreams and threatening to kill them in their sleep.
The makers clearly couldn’t decide between a prequel or remake, so they and first-time director Samuel Bayer have jammed both together. Heather Langenkamp’s wimpy portrayal of Nancy was the original’s weak point, and here Mara’s Nancy slips between the somnambulant and the catatonic. This is the worst yet from Michael Bay’s horror production company Platinum Dunes, which also brought you rubbish re-makes of ‘Halloween’ and ‘Friday the 13th’.
Author: Nigel Floyd
Time Out London Issue 2072: 13-19 May, 2010
User reviews of this film
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- Mollly said...
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Posted on May 29 2010 12:03
DAMN! Mann This Fillm IS oneeee of Theeee Kinndddd
After I Watchheeed it i couldn't sleep as i was at my aunties house and she lives next door to a GRAVE YARD D:
Wannna watchh it agaiin Dooeeeeeeeee
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- yo yoooo said...
- Posted on May 27 2010 14:05 WAS BALLSSSS, wouldnt go to see this film
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- Thomas Noctor said...
- Posted on May 26 2010 02:45 I was expecting a disaster when I went to see this, I was around for the 80's ones and to tell you the truth they were a little camp. This on the other hand is raw, gorey and jumpy! This outdoes the Original 5 to 1
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- red said...
- Posted on May 25 2010 11:56 I didn't find Heather's portrayal wimpy at all. If anything, she was a scrappy, resourceful survivor. But then again, different views! I found this film enjoyable enough, with some pleasing dark twists and startling moments, but apart from the rare minute, this was really nothing special. Harley was great as the lead, as he had depth and warped kind of pathos, and the supporting cast weren't all that bad. But it really fell flat at the end, and despite the odd refresher every now and then, it was pretty generic. I loved the backstory though, but I'm afraid it was the quirky, surreal, grimy original all the way for me, and the gleeful, snarling Robert Englund is just irreplacable.
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- Cat Valentino said...
- Posted on May 23 2010 18:39 This films Ok if U like a bore "/ It dont even look like Freddie, the face is more funny that scary, VERY predictable, I REALLY wish Id of gone to watch somethin worth watchin.. How this can be called a 'Horror' is jus beyond me.. Id rate 2 out of 10 (an thats bein nice) "/
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- Stephen said...
- Posted on May 22 2010 00:49 am sorry am i missing something? is there another version of this movie that i dont know about? this movies was horrible. i wanted to punch myself in the face just so i could feel alive. know wonder mainstream horror hasnt a clue with wobbos like you giving 4 out of 5 stars! theres only one star the brown star this movie came from. next!
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- Thomas Noctor said...
- Posted on May 16 2010 01:26 After reading reviews about this I was not looking forward to seeing it so I went expecting a turkey! I was amazed as this was a fantastic remake and out does the original 5 ti 1 at least! I was around in the 80s and enjoyed the 1st one. Fans of the original will love this, new teeney boppers won't! What did the Time Out reviewer expect? The male lead is a great actor a younger Jaucin Phoneix (spelling may be wrong), and has been in a few good movies, Nancy is well played too and I'm glad they went into Freddy's past too! The old ones were camp this is raw, excellent!
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- geri payne said...
- Posted on May 14 2010 11:12 i loved this film it was fantastic
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- cathy said...
- Posted on May 14 2010 11:10 fantastic film i loved it the only bad thing was freddys make ut goodp it wasn
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- ril7773 said...
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Posted on May 13 2010 19:49
This fils is not AS bad a many people here have made it out to be. Yes, the scares are predictable at points and the acting can be described as 'tree like' at best, but all in all there is enough here to keep you entertained
enough for an hour or so. This is an inferior film to the original and some scenes etc have been modified for better or for worse, but if you have seen the original a million times (and many people have) then the last thing you want to see is an exact remake of the original. There are a few good scares and a scattering of twists etc to keep you going..
A decent watch - not awesome - what is these days though? - Report as inappropriate
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- Georgina said...
- Posted on May 12 2010 23:16 I was really looking forward to seeing this film but now i dont know if i even wanna see it!!!
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- Bethany said...
- Posted on May 12 2010 22:00 Honestly i think your all dramatic, i really enjoyed the film, yes it was predictable near to the end but, im gladly seeing it again tomorrow!
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- Dan Riordan said...
- Posted on May 12 2010 17:42 this film has been getting slamed , freddy looks fairly stupid which I can't really understand cause the original freddy looks terrifying , you'd think they could have made him look scarrier . There are a few good pop up bits at the start that will give you a cheap scare but as the film goes on they become more and more predictable . I didn't think the story adaption was as bad as everyone is making out but it is by no means as chilling as the original. Overall the film is watchable but very forgetable
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- jax said...
- Posted on May 12 2010 16:31 was planning to go this evening....with all the bad reviews< dont no weather to ! ....... will comment if i do.
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- scrumpyjoe said...
- Posted on May 11 2010 18:59 err, 2 star film, compared to 84's 5 stars
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Cast & crew
Director: Samuel Bayer
Cast: Jackie Earle Haley, Katie Cassidy, Kyle Gallner, Rooney Mara full cast
Genre(s): Horror
Rated: 18
Duration: 95 mins
UK Release: May 7 2010
US Release: Apr 30 2010
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