Cult Corner: A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge

Welcome to the Cult Corner. I watch a lot of weird movies. And by weird movies, I mean weird movies. I also tend to have a greater appreciation for films that didn't do very well upon their release or that were universally disliked by fans and critics a like. I will cover these films in the Cult Corner articles and explain why they deserve a second look and why I love them so much.

The Cult Corner's first entry is the much panned and controversial sequel A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge has always been the black sheep in the Nightmare on Elm Street series. People have always held a certain amount of hatred and distaste for the film because it takes a very different direction with the series. Gone is the whole premise of Freddy Krueger killing teens in their nightmares. No, this movie has a different story to tell. In this entry, Freddy torments angsty teen Jessie and basically possesses his body, using him to kill people in the real world.

If that wasn't strange enough, this movie is stock full of overall weirdness. I'm talking scenes with killer parakeets that burst into flames, dogs with human faces, and some serious homoerotic undertones.

The biggest thing that people talk about in regards to Freddy's Revenge is the gay undertones that fill the film. The character of Jessie is hinted to be struggling with his sexuality throughout the film, with Freddy Krueger representing his repressed homosexuality. The film has strange sequences like Jessie wondering into a homosexual S&M bar in the middle of the night, his gay gym teacher being stripped naked and having his butt smacked with a towel over and over again in the shower by Freddy before being clawed up, and an interesting scene where Jessie, after a failed make-out session with his girlfriend (which was foiled due to Freddy's intrusion... a.k.a. his homosexual desires kicking in), runs to his buff guy friend Grady's house for comfort and to sleep over. Lastly, Mark Patton, the actor who played Jessie, was gay in real life.

Only recently have people involved in the film come out about the gay undertones of the film. In an interview with Attitude Magazine, Robert Englund (Freddy Krueger) spoke out about the intentions of the film:

The second Nightmare on Elm Street is obviously intended as a bisexual themed film. It was early 80s, pre-AIDS paranoia. Jesse's wrestling with whether to come out or not and his own sexual desires was manifested by Freddy. His friend is the object of his affection. That's all there in that film. We did it subtly but the casting of Mark Patton was intentional too, because Mark was out and had done Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean".

In the recent documentary Never Sleep Again, screenwriter David Chaskin also admitted that the gay undertones were intentional (though the director and producer of the film were unaware of them at the time). I feel like these undertones really make the film more interesting than it already was. They are fun to look for and make the film ultimately deeper and a little more thought provoking (much like the undertones in The Hitcher).

But if you're not into overall weirdness and gay undertones, Freddy Krueger is still here to scare the mess out of you. The Freddy here is much like the one in the first Nightmare film. He's angry, pissed off and kind of terrifying. Sure, he spouts off a few one liners here and there but this is nothing compared to the days when he'd be killing kids via video games. This Freddy is a dark, demon-like creature who wants nothing more to possess Jessie and commit random acts of horrible violence.

A lot of people didn't like bringing Freddy into the real world but I loved it. Where else can you see a scene where Freddy crashes a pool party / kegger? This scene alone was worth the price of the film. Also, the scene where Freddy pops out of Jessie's stomach to slice and dice his potential gay love interest Grady was super tense and had some pretty awesome 80's special effects.

But despite all the film's awesome Freddy-in-the-real-world moments and it's overall strangeness, what really made it work was its overall believable nature. I really cared for Jessie, Lisa and Grady for that matter. Jessie's family felt like a real family and the way they interacted with each other was very natural. Because of this, the threat of Freddy intruding in their real world was a violation and the result was often terrifying. I also really liked the ending of the film where Lisa is forced to confront Freddy / Jessie in the boiler room. The scene was uncomfortable and loved the direction that it took. Ever seen a girl willingly make out with Freddy Kreuger? Well, now you have. It also made me wonder what the film was trying to say about supressed homosexuality. It's almost like Jessie is made to turn from the dark side (a.k.a. embracing his homosexuality) and love Lisa (thus making turning hetero despite your feelings and urges the right thing to do in the film's logic?). It's all interesting and ballsy stuff for a slasher sequel.

All and in all, I really enjoyed this movie. It made me think, cringe and just blew me away with its overall weirdness. If you're into Freddy Krueger and his movies, then this is one that I feel like you have to see to believe. It's odder than any of the other entries in every shape and fashion. It lacks the fun of The Dream Warriors but also isn't as serious as the first entry. It's a dark, little odd ball that's somewhere in the middle.

If you're feeling it, watch the trailer below. And try not to get chills when Freddy proclaims, "You're all my children now!" Fun stuff.