31 years ago, the sequel to the surprise hit A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) was rushed into theaters to capitalize on that film’s box office success. A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985) made $21 million at the box office, a mere $4 million less than its predecessor, and certainly more than enough to keep the burgeoning franchise going. But alas, for poor Freddy, the wrath for this film over the years has withered its reputation to whispers and snickers, with the occasional outburst of foaming conjecture. I don’t get it. I love Freddy’s Revenge.

So why all the shade? First of all, Freddy’s Revenge has the misfortune of sitting in-between the original classic and a follow-up that most consider the best of the sequels, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. Both of those films have the involvement of the late horror guru Wes Craven; the former as writer and director, the latter as executive producer and co-screenwriter. Horror fans have always been among the most passionate and loyal of any genre; Craven’s return guaranteed that people would feel secure with him helping to guide the vessel he built. They weren’t wrong; Dream Warriors is a terrific Nightmare film, full of imagination, wonder, and terror—Freddy hadn’t quite become the wisecracking horror emcee future installments relied on. And while those still-to-come installments did follow the Craven blueprint (boogeyman kills teenagers in their dreams), they continued to dilute the potent punch with too much humor, eventually leaving us fans with nothing but colored water.

But, right out of the gate, Freddy’s Revenge does a 180—Freddy uses a teenager, Jesse (Mark Patton), whose family has just moved into the Thompson house from the first film, to emerge from his dream state and take on the real world. Okay, this is the number-one issue people have with the movie—it doesn’t follow the mythology! Here’s the thing, though: I saw this when it came out in ’85, and at that point, with only one movie behind it, there wasn’t a mythology yet. As viewers, we just thought this was one more way for Freddy to fuck with the kids; another weapon in his arsenal, and a reason to fear him more—even staying awake couldn’t help you. Critics paid mind to the sea change, though, and discounted it; as a teen, I cared more about the visceral sensations than the context of what made something scary. To an extent, I still do—I think Freddy is a badass whether he’s haunting your dreams or splashing in chlorine. It’s only with the continuation of the series that the dream mythology was solidified, starting with Dream Warriors; Craven placed his green-and-red-striped flag in the dirt and dared anyone to cross the line again.

And none of the filmmakers did, except, you know, when they needed to kill him. That actually started with Dream Warriors; our heroes had to consecrate Freddy’s bones to finish him off; Part 6 (Freddy’s Dead)’s conceit was dragging Freddy into the real world to blow him up real good; and the monster mash-up Freddy vs. Jason had the two fight it out on the banks of Crystal Lake. Maybe Freddy’s Revenge isn’t the only film of the series to desecrate the mythology?

Not surprisingly, the gay “subtext” of David Chaskin’s script has always been the part of Revenge that all horror fans either appreciate, find fascinating, or simply enjoy (branded outsiders are always the most inclusive); it certainly doesn’t distract from Freddy’s mission, and it actually gives the proceedings an extra layer of hipness—besides becoming the newest terror villain, Freddy uses sexuality to forward his mission. If it was released today, it would be called a Ryan Murphy tribute (just without the snark). And listen, I was clueless at the time; all I saw was Freddy terrorizing the latest, hippest kids, with groovy effects (courtesy of Kevin Yagher and others). I mean, everyone found Patton’s bedroom dance dorky, and besides, I was too busy swooning over Kim Myers (aka hot, young Streep) as Patton’s love interest, who seems to fit the stereotypical hero role better than he does. The closer you watch the film, the more it plays like uber-text rather than subtext.

Director Jack Sholder tends to take his lumps for the movie, and that’s pretty unfair—he gets great performances from Myers, Robert Rusler as Patton’s friend, and Patton himself. He really does carry the show as Jesse, and gives it his best James Dean, tongue-in-cheek effort, chewing on so much teen angst you can practically see Pete Townshend windmilling his guitar in the background. Sholder does let a few things get away from him—the exploding parrot is closer to Monty Python, and Clu Gulager (god bless him) looks completely bored and befuddled.

But back in the plus column, Sholder creates a number of memorable set pieces: the after hours gym session, the late-night visit with Rusler, Freddy’s fabulous pool party, not to mention one of the very best dream openings of the entire series. He certainly can’t be blamed for turning Freddy into Henny Youngman; his boogeyman aims to scare, and he does, or at the very least, that’s his goal. Sholder was having his own “middle child” crisis; his previous film, Alone in the Dark, was a humorous, well-received thriller, and post Revenge, he made The Hidden, an alien actioner that tickled critics and crowds alike. Oh well, Jack, two out of three ain’t bad in the public’s eye.

But I’ll gladly be the apologist for these middle kids; let me hop on the bed, throw on my slatted shades, and dance until I pop my cork gun, because Freddy’s Revenge rules, and nobody puts Jesse in a corner.

  • Scott Drebit
    About the Author - Scott Drebit

    Scott Drebit lives and works in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. He is happily married (back off ladies) with 2 grown kids. He has had a life-long, torrid, love affair with Horror films. He grew up watching Horror on VHS, and still tries to rewind his Blu-rays. Some of his favourite horror films include Phantasm, Alien, Burnt Offerings, Phantasm, Zombie, Halloween, and Black Christmas. Oh, and Phantasm.