It’s almost October, which means now is the time that all the old horror movies should be popping up on Dish Network. Movies from successful franchises such as Halloween, Friday the 13th, and A Nightmare on Elm Street will all be on display throughout the month. Watch premium channels such as Starz, HBO, Cinemax, and Showtime, plus American Movie Classics and Spike TV for repeated airings of the different horror franchises. This brings me to the subject of horror movie icons from the 80’s and remakes. Both Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees have been given the reboot treatment, with Rob Zombie tackling Myers in TWO movies and Michael Bay’s production company Platinum Dunes rolling out Jason for another foray into the woods. Next up is Freddy Krueger, and Platinum Dunes has once again taken on the task of updating the horror icon.On April 30, 2010, A Nightmare On Elm Street will be released into theaters, 25 years after the original Wes Craven movie debuted. Personally I am not a fan of the original Nightmare films. I think they’re cheesy, poorly acted, plagued with terrible effects, and simply do not hold up today at all. The image of Freddy Krueger terrified me a child, and the thought of a maniac coming after me in my dreams was enough to keep me awake at night. But when it came to seeing the actual movies themselves, I realized they were not really terrifying at all. In fact, most of the sequels are laughably bad (with the exception of New Nightmare, which I’ll admit had a cool concept and is probably the best out of the series.) The franchise can definitely afford a reboot, and Platinum Dunes has developed a reputation for remaking horror classics (they have successfully remade The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Friday the 13th, The Amityville Horror, and The Hitcher.)In this new outing, Freddy Krueger will be played by Jackie Earle Haley, who was outstandingly creepy in one of my favorite movies Little Children. The producers have taken a more realistic approach with the Freddy makeup this time around, and instead of the rubbery mask look they have designed Freddy’s face in a way very similar to an actual burn victim. Considering Freddy is burned alive by the concerned parents of Springwood, the creators want his face to reflect the effects of that. They have also cast a group of realistic teens, as opposed to the Abercrombie models that plague some horror movies today (Friday the 13th was guilty of this but I was able to forgive that because it was still a fun movie.) Katie Cassidy, who has also appeared in two other horror movie remakes (2006’s Black Christmas and When a Stranger Calls), will be playing the role of Kris- a beefed up version of Tina from the original. For those who have seen the original, Tina was Freddy’s first victim and died very early on in the movie. The new script expands on her role and makes her more of a lead character before her demise. Cassidy was a smart casting choice †she is developing a â€Scream Queen†reputation, not to mention she is now starring in the CW’s â€Melrose Place.†The other female lead is Rooney Mara, who plays the character of Nancy. Nancy is the only character whose name is retained from the original, and Mara is an unknown, which is always appreciated and refreshing. The three boy characters of Quentin, Jesse, and Dean in the movie are played by Kyle Gallner, Thomas Dekker, and Kellan Lutz respectively. Gallner has been in several other horror movies as well, in this year’s The Haunting In Connecticut and Jennifer’s Body. Kellan Lutz is still soaring high on the notoriety he’s gained from the Twilight saga, and no doubt his female fans will flock to see him even though they may not be fans of horror movies in general. Dekker is an intense actor and has also carved out a fanbase for himself after starring in two seasons of FOX’s now-cancelled â€The Sarah Connor Chronicles.†These fresh faces should help the movie, and I feel horror movies are always more effective when they are not filled to the brim with overexposed teen idols.The trailer for Nightmare debuted earlier this week, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome. The movie looks like it could be one of Platinum Dunes’ best efforts to date. Hopefully, the movie will live up to this trailer. In my opinion, A Nightmare On Elm Street was in sore need of an update for a new generation, and this may just do the trick. The remake trend will always have its haters, but as with any trends, things circle back around and are constantly being updated for a new audience. Think about all the songs we hear on the radio today. Many of those songs sample tracks from older songs. And Hollywood monsters Frankenstein, Dracula, and The Wolfman have been rehauled time and time again too many times to count.I think in general people are too harshly critical of remakes. Just because someone is introducing a new take on an iconic movie doesn’t in any way take away from the original. These people would rather have a sequel to continue the series instead, failing to recognize that a terrible sequel destroys the mythology of the original, whereas a remake does not. A remake stands alone, and there will always be the original movie retained in DVD form. It’s merely someone else’s take on a classic story, and is there really anything wrong with that?I’ve come to the realization that some people are very resistant to anything new no matter what it may be, and for those people, I have a simple solution - don’t watch it. Though somehow I think they will be the first one standing in line to get their tickets and jumbo popcorn on opening night. By: Frank Bilotta
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