A Nightmare on Elm Street 3 - Full of holes (but fun anyway!)

I watched the Nightmare on Elm Street saga when it first came out. And I loved it. Now, some years later, I can see all the – many – things wrong with it. But I still love it anyway.

It’s fair to say that if you’re into your horror movies then you probably enjoyed the first Nightmare film, about a child-killer who continues his deadly activities by invading the dreams of his young victims. However, most die-hards hated the first sequel (which had no input from the franchise’s mastermind, Wes Craven). So, in Part III, Craven returns to take creative control. And it helps.

We meet the last children from Elm Street, now traumatised and in a mental institution, still being picked off by Freddy Kruger. The title of ‘Part III’ is ‘Dream Warriors.’ This relates to how the kids are banding together to use their ‘dream powers’ to help defeat their nemesis. However, I find that title a little misleading. They aren’t what I’d call ‘warriors!’ They’re a bit useless really. And bland. In fact, the film’s ‘star’ is easily Freddy himself, who steals every scene with his delicious evilness.

You can either pick the film apart for its shortcomings, or just enjoy the imaginative dream scenes where Freddy pops up and ‘offs’ another teen. It’s silly and fun – not scary, but there are a few ‘yucky’ moments (the ‘puppet scene’ still looks pretty grisly to this day!).

8/10 The Force is definitely strong with this one