Wes Craven's New Nightmare (1994)

Directed by

Wes Craven

Genre

horror film

Country

United States

Runtime

1h 52m

Rated

R

Rating

6.5 of 10 from 1,613 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

Freddy Krueger breaks out of movie reality and starts haunting the actual cast and crew making a new Nightmare on Elm Street film. Actress Heather Langenkamp must confront the monster as herself, not as her character Nancy Thompson.

metafictionalunsettlingtensemenacingself-referentialdarkcreepyatmospheric

What happens

Wes Craven's New Nightmare (also known simply as New Nightmare) is a 1994 American meta supernatural horror film written and directed by Wes Craven, creator of 1984's A Nightmare on Elm Street. Although this film is the seventh installment in the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, it is not part of the same continuity as previous films, instead portraying Freddy Krueger as a fictional movie villain who invades the real world and haunts the cast and crew involved in the making of the films about him. In the film, Freddy is depicted as closer to what Craven originally intended, being much more menacing and much less comical, with an updated attire and appearance. The film stars Robert Englund, Heather Langenkamp, Miko Hughes, and John Saxon. The film features various people involved in the motion picture industry portraying themselves, including Langenkamp, who is compelled by events in the narrative to reprise her role as Nancy Thompson. Wes Craven's New Nightmare features several homages to the original film such as quotes and recreations of the most famous scenes. The film won an International Fantasy Film Award from Fantasporto for Best Screenplay by Craven. Wes Craven's New Nightmare was released on October 14, 1994, grossing $19.8 million at the box office on a budget of $8 million, making it the lowest-grossing film in the A Nightmare on Elm Street series. However, it received positive reviews from critics, and is considered by many as one of the best Nightmare movies and one of Wes Craven's most enduring films. It was followed by 2003's Freddy vs. Jason, a crossover with the Friday the 13th franchise set in the same continuity as the other A Nightmare on Elm Street films. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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