Editorials
What a Rush! ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street 3’ Turns 30 Today!
Today is a very special day because I turn 28 today! I jest, of course, it’s actually the 30th anniversary of what is arguably the best entry sequel in the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise: A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (seriously though, it is my birthday). Dream Warriors is lauded by fans of the franchise as being one of the very best horror sequels ever made, and rightfully so. Hell, some would argue that it’s one of the very best sequels ever made, horror or otherwise. Let’s celebrate this film together, shall we?
***SPOILERS for a 30-year-old film to follow***
The road to Dream Warriors was a bit of a complicated one. After all, it wouldn’t have been the same were it not for a certain film. 1985 saw the release of the franchise’s most controversial entry, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge. While the film was a box office success (it grossed nearly $30 million on a $3 million budget), critical and audience reception was mixed to say the least. While it was technically a direct continuation of the franchise, it was not exactly the film fans were wanting to see. Not only was Nancy (Heather Langenkamp) MIA, but the tone of the film took a much darker and sinister tone than the original film. Not that Wes Craven’s original wasn’t dark and sinister, but there was just something off-putting about Freddy’s Revenge (it ranks above Freddy’s Dead and Dream Child for me, but it’s still one of my least favorite entries) that didn’t sit well with audiences.
Series creator Wes Craven never wanted his original film to have sequels, because he didn’t think it was capable of spawning a franchise (boy, how wrong was he?), but the commercial success of Freddy’s Revenge convinced him to return to the franchise. Interestingly enough, Wes Craven’s original concept for the third installment of the franchise was to have Freddy Krueger enter the real world and stalk the actors in the franchise. As many of you know, this idea did not come to fruition until 1994, when Craven wrote and directed the seventh installment in the franchise, Wes Craven’s New Nightmare. After his meta idea was rejected, he wrote the first draft of the script for Dream Warriors with Bruce Wagner, which you can read here. Craven was unable to direct the film so New Line Cinema brought in Chuck Russell, who re-wrote the script with his buddy Frank Darabont. Russell would go on to direct the exceptional remake of The Blob whereas Darabont would go on to direct pretty much every great Stephen King adaptation known to man. The final product of Dream Warriors is significantly different than the film Craven envisioned, but that doesn’t make it any less great.
The importance of Dream Warriors to the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise can’t be emphasized enough. This was the film that began featuring a more comedic Freddy Krueger. Whereas the iconic villain had the occasional joke and one-liner in A Nightmare on Elm Street and Freddy’s Revenge, this was the film to really lay the groundwork for the Freddy that many people know and love today. It branded him the bastard son of a hundred maniacs, giving him the backstory that many were craving for (that particular backstory, interestingly enough, was not in Craven’s original script).
Dream Warriors would be nothing if it wasn’t for the cast. While Roger Ebert may have thought that the film never generated any sympathy for its characters, I must respectably disagree. Character development may not have been at the front of the four screenwriters’ minds, but they most definitely (along with the actors) created a wonderful cast of characters that have been ingrained in moviegoers minds for three decades. The return of Heather Langenkamp, who was sorely missed in Freddy’s Revenge, has a lot to do with the success of Dream Warriors. Despite being in just two of the films in the franchise (I’m leaving out New Nightmare since her character isn’t Nancy in that one), Nancy Thompson is the heart and soul of A Nightmare on Elm Street, and bringing her back helps make Dream Warriors have the impact that it does. How Ebert felt nothing when Freddy kills her is something I will never understand.
The supporting cast of teenagers are all equally likable. Though they are all stereotypes, they are probably the most memorable characters out of any of the other characters in the franchise. Only Bradley Gregg’s Phillip gets the short end of the stick, as he dies before any truly distinguishing characteristics can be established (all we know about him is that he likes puppets and he sleepwalks). But from Jennifer Rubin’s badass Taryn to Rodney Eastman’s demure Joey, the characters all make lasting impressions and each get their moment to shine (I always had a soft spot for Penelope Sudrow’s Jennifer…..she just wanted to be on TV!). This makes it all the more upsetting when (SPOILER ALERT) the survivors all get unceremoniously killed off in the first half of The Dream Master, but c’est la vie.
One cannot mention Dream Warriors without discussing its magnificent special effects. This is the film that put the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise on the map when it came to special effects (though The Dream Master may take the cake when it comes to that subject). The Freddy Snake, the Freddy TV, Taryn’s gaping track marks and Phillips veiny marionette strings are all examples of the creativity that was employed to make the film. Special makeup effects sequences director Greg Cannom was at the top of his game with Dream Warriors, and his work is easily a series highlight. Contrary to what Ebert thought though, the characters made the film, not the special effects (though they played a huge part in its success).
You also have the theme song, which was written and performed by heavy metal band Dokken. Released on February 10, 1987, “Dream Warriors” was a huge hit for the band, but they decided to take six months off before unleashing the album “Back for the Attack”, which became their most successful album (it reached number 13 on the charts). Is it possible that the success of “Dream Warriors” have an impact on the success of “Back for the Attack”? Maybe (probably).
Dream Warriors didn’t actually face that much controversy like the Friday the 13th films did at the time. Since it wasn’t as graphic as many of the Friday the 13th entries and many of the deaths were fantastical, the film was under less scrutiny. That being said, the Australian state of Queensland did ban the film because of Taryn’s death scene. There was a more conservative idea about drug use in that state, hence the ban, but it was abolished just three years later.
A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors opened in the number one spot with $8.8 million the weekend of February 27-March 1, 1987. It was kicked out of that spot the following weekend by Lethal Weapon, but still managed to gross gross $44.7 million on a $4.5 million production budget during its entire theatrical run. That made it the highest grossing film in the franchise at the time and the 24th highest grossing film of 1987 (The highest grossing film? Three Men and a Baby with $167.7 million). Those stellar box office returns put a sequel immediately into production, despite the fact that Dream Warriors was intended to be the final film in the franchise. That sequel, A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master would surpass Dream Warriors‘ box office gross and earn $49.3 million, making it the highest grossing film in the franchise until Freddy Vs. Jason came out in 2003. That film grossed $82.6 million, becoming the highest grossing film in both the A Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th franchises.
We should all be grateful that Dream Warriors was made. Were it not for the success of that film, we probably wouldn’t have had any other A Nightmare on Elm Street films. Sure, none of the sequels we did get ever matched the quality of Dream Warriors or the first installment, but they all have their merits (except Freddy’s Dead…just don’t tell John Squires I said that). Movies like Dream Warriors are why I love the horror genre. It’s just that special. Where does Dream Warriors fall in your ranking of the A Nightmare on Elm Street films? Do you love it? Or do you think it’s overrated? Let us know in the comments below!
In this day and age, the word “troll” is often used to describe various online nuisances. Yet as abundant and irksome as the modern troll can be, they aren’t usually as fearsome as their mythological counterparts. I’m not talking about the small and gentler versions that have become more common to see in media. No, there are much bigger and scarier trolls out there—and André Øvredal’s movie Troll Hunter is one of the best places to find them.
It doesn’t take long for Troll Hunter (or Trolljegeren) to dump the Blair Witch Project-esque setup and aim for something a lot fresher. The trajectory of the story is augmented by Otto Jespersen’s character Hans, the titular Troll Hunter. The second he comes barreling out of the deep, dark woods and shouts “troll” at the camera, this movie takes a turn into what feels like uncharted territory. Not only subject-wise, but also conceptually.
For fantastical and made-up subject matter in cinema, found footage is a fast way to add a guise of believability. After all, what we accept to be the most crucial aspect of documentaries—the truth—rubs off on pseudo-documentaries, despite our understanding of the pretense involved. That is what Øvredal delivered with Troll Hunter: a movie so convincing that some viewers wondered if trolls really do exist. So, had this been straightforwardly made, it likely wouldn’t have been as effective. Conventional narratives would be more inclined to treat something like trolls as flat out unreal, and never try to convince the audience to think otherwise.
Hans petrifies the three-headed Tusseladd troll.
The viewers, like the characters trailing Hans, are quickly thrown into the deeper end of that extraordinary story. They have to process all this new information while staying on the go. So, although there is no significant amount of meandering, narratively or physically, there is still a good amount of atmosphere, not to mention tension building. It’s never anything frightful, but then again, Troll Hunter isn’t your standard offering of horror; it’s more on the low end of the dark fantasy spectrum. We aren’t ever spirited away to a faraway world—we stay in rather familiar surroundings, as well as dip into those less so. The outcome is a movie where you’re constantly more in awe than in terror.
As fantasy fiction might do, Troll Hunter prefers not to deal with incredulity. There is no time to waste on doubt, as interviewer Thomas (Glenn Erland Tosterud), soundperson Johanna (Johanna Mørck), and cameraman Kalle (Tomas Alf Larsen) all follow Hans around, recording whatever this character is willing to reveal about his bizarre job. Of course, the Troll Hunter himself is not an open book; in that respect, the diegetic documentary fails to fully capture and unpack the more interesting of its two subjects. Yes, all those giant, monstrous trolls are indeed incredible, but understandably, your mind wanders to their pursuer. What kind of person signs up for this gig and then chooses to stick with it for so long?
Reviews have called out Troll Hunter for its lack of character development. In regard to Thomas and his fellow documentarians, that criticism is valid, but bear in mind, they aren’t the focus of the story, either. Meanwhile, Hans is a well-crafted character. At least better than first realized. Before he was introduced, Hans had already grown tired of the troll grind. Fed up with that low compensation for his services, resentful of the bureaucracy, and wanting to expose his employer on a large scale, Hans’ discontent is glaring.
Then there are those finer details about the Troll Hunter, such as that indifference to both the natural splendor of his everyday surroundings and the affections of an obviously smitten colleague, that also suggest some level of despondency. So it is fair to say this movie doesn’t feature any sizable growth for its characters; however, the namesake isn’t underwritten. No doubt, putting a real-life character like Otto Jespersen in that role is partly why Hans is so fascinating—maybe even relatable.
Otto Jespersen as Hans the Troll Hunter.
There is always a small risk whenever using the term “mockumentary” to describe a found-footage movie, as the word could imply humor where there is none. In the case of Troll Hunter, the term’s usage is appropriate. Some folks have claimed the English-dubbed version has the more comedic tone, however, the Norwegian cut isn’t exactly humorless. Apart from the trolls’ absurd appearances, this is a movie where the characters nearly choke on the monsters’ farts, and Christians are like walking targets. Hans’ complete apathy towards everything is another cause of laughter. Overall, the comedy is intentionally dry and inconsistent. Unfunny, though? Absolutely not.
In a movie where endemic creatures are maltreated, as well as disavowed from living freely and peacefully, it’s hard not to notice the ecological message buried beneath the story. In addition to that is the unmistakable political satire. There is this whole business about intrusive and unsightly power lines—like trolls, they’re big blemishes on the land—that leads to what is perhaps the movie’s funniest moment. The scene in question is that one where certain electric lines, the ones secretly being used to keep the trolls at bay, go in a loop and don’t actually send power to any residents. Yet the monitors of said lines don’t find this at all weird. So it stands to reason that Øvredal was having a go at those who accept the government’s doings without question.
Looking past the fact that trolls aren’t actually real, this movie is an enlightening source of information. And not just for international audiences; Norwegians, too, get schooled about their homeland’s own mythology. It’s also evident from everything on screen that Øvredal and his crew were enthusiastic about the topic. The creature designs are the most indicative of that zeal; those imaginative yet myth-accurate manifestations are equally amusing and grotesque. One second you’re laughing at their phallic noses, the next you’re white-knuckling during a hairy sequence. Most surprisingly is how well the trolls’ visual effects hold up after fifteen years. It’s not all spotless, but on the whole, they remain impressive.
Vouching for a mockumentary about trolls isn’t easy, but those who do come around and give it a shot will more than likely be grateful for the recommendation. For Troll Hunter is a real find in that vast and varied genre we call “found footage“.
A bridge troll reaches up for food and finds Hans decked out in armor.
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