Members of the creative team behind the hit documentary His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th have joined forces once again to bring horror fans the ultimate tribute to yet another landmark slasher series, A Nightmare on Elm Street, writes a press release reported via Dread Central. Read on for full details on this incredible new forthcoming documentary about the real boogeyman entitled Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy!
Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy officially began lensing on August 22, 2009 in and around Los Angeles. Starring and narrated by Heather Langenkamp, star of the 1984 classic A Nightmare on Elm Street and two of its sequels (1986's Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors and 1994's Wes Craven's New Nightmare), this thrilling 90-minute retrospective promises to be the definitive look at the making of the iconic horror series and the enduring legacy of its wise-cracking, razor-gloved villain: the indefatigable "bastard son of a hundred maniacs" known as Freddy Krueger.
For a quarter century, Freddy has slashed his way through the nightmares of two generations of movie-goers in one of the most artful, spectacular and terrifying film franchises in motion picture history. To characterize the Nightmare on Elm Street series as a modern cultural phenomenon would be a gross understatement. To date, the eight (soon to be nine) Elm Street films have scared up well over half a billion dollars in box office receipts in the U.S. alone, launching the careers of such Hollywood luminaries as Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption), Renny Harlin (Die Hard 2), Patricia Arquette ("Medium"), Brian Helgeland (L.A. Confidential) and even Johnny Depp.
Little did Freddy's "father," veteran writer/director Wes Craven, know that his terrifying, child-killing creation would go on to become a cult hero and spawn his very own cottage industry. Today, Freddy is practically a household name, with his burned visage, trademark fedora and red and green sweater appearing on everything from T-shirts to video games to action figures to comic books (Freddy was even the star of his own weekly television series!). It's safe to say that Freddy Krueger may never rest in peace – nor should he, since his fans keep clamoring for more. Even Newsweek called him, “The most popular cinematic maniac since Darth Vader.”
"Freddy is like the 'unholy spirit' in the trinity of modern monsters alongside Jason from Friday the 13th and Michael Myers from Halloween," says co-director and producer Daniel Farrands, who previously helmed the hit documentary His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th and produced the 2009 Deluxe Editions of the Friday the 13th films for Paramount Home Entertainment. A veteran of the horror genre, Farrands most recently served as a producer of the hit supernatural thriller The Haunting in Connecticut, which has grossed nearly $80 million worldwide. "Freddy and the Nightmare films are icons of our generation, and our documentary will revisit the franchise in an exciting new way that will be respectful to the fans and to the films themselves," assures Farrands.
Co-director and editor Andrew Kasch (Thirsty) concurs: "The Nightmare series has long been regarded as the most high-brow and creative of the mega horror franchises, so our goal is to make a film that reflects those qualities. While His Name Was Jason was campy and off-the-wall, this documentary will offer a serious chronological account of the creative process – the hardships and triumphs behind one of Hollywood's most iconic characters. Above all else, this is not a fluff or promotional piece for the upcoming remake but rather will focus on the original series of films that began with Wes Craven's 1984 classic."
"The Nightmare franchise has had such a huge impact on the genre and its fans, and is truly an important piece of horror history,” adds producer/co-writer Thommy Hutson (His Name Was Jason, Prank). "These films proved that horror could be both terrifying and dramatic, thrilling and groundbreaking. And that's why we're so thrilled to bring fans an extensive behind-the-scenes look into Freddy Krueger’s hallucinogenic world like never before. It’s a way of paying tribute to Wes Craven’s original vision which has inspired so many of us … and given us a few really good nightmares, too.”
In addition to the exhaustive feature-length documentary, the two-disc DVD release of Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy will feature over four hours of nightmare-inducing extras, including the original documentary I Am Nancy, written, produced and directed by star Heather Langenkamp which looks back at the last 25 years since her debut as heroine Nancy Thompson and examines the impact of the Elm Street films on young people's lives.
Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy will be released in the Spring of 2010."
Dread Central add, "In addition to the above mentioned talent, Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy will be written by David Rosiak, with Buz “Danger” Wallick serving as director of photography, and Bill Philputt, and yes, me, Steve "Uncle Creepy" Barton co-producing.
Heather Langenkamp has always been my favorite of the Elm Street heroines. Just the fact that she has embraced the role and is willing to do this documentary makes me even more interested in it. I will definetly be picking this one up. And Bonaldi I'm sure its because of the remake. Remember His Name Was Jason came out right around the time the remake hit the theaters. So I'm sure that's why. Notice the timing as well. Spring of 2010, right when the remake will be coming out.
So let's think about this, this comes out in the spring of 2010 and the new movie comes out in the spring of 2010. I believe I will be checking this out long before I watch that stupid remake with a fake Freddy, Jackie Earle Haley, replacing the real Freddy Krueger, Robert Englund.
We all know this is coming out bc of the reboot BUT I am still very eager to see this! Plus Heather Langenkamp is one of the best horror heroins to ever grace the screen! So I can't wait to see her again and talk about it.
Still don't get the hate on the reboot. How many reboots of Dracula were there? Robert Englund himself has given JEH his blessing and his support in this role as he HIMSELF has said he is too old to play the role. If you don't like it don't go see it, period
I hope Wes Craven sticks it to them and stays away from this. Platinum Douche should be ashamed of themselves over the way they've treated Wes. Still, I have to say that Jackie Earl Haley will probably be the only good thing about the upcoming remake.
Fwanger, the Dracula reboots are a bad example because the initial version of Dracula started out as a book, hence any remake was MORE of an new adaptation than a remake itself. Adaptations only work cross medium("book to movie", "movie to play", "play to movie", or the more recent "video game to movie"). Not to mention most adaptations of Dracula were handled really good(er, not Dracula 2000 or Dracula 3000, which are prime reasons why current vision of horror isn't right for remakes). But with the majority of remakes out there being really bad, I'm inclined(as well as others, not doubt) to believe that the NOES remake will blend in with all the other mediocre current wave or remakes. Jackie Earle Haley's performance WOULD likely be good, but wouldn't be able to save the movie. I mean, Sean Bean was awesome in The Hitcher remake, but that entire movie was shit on a stick. His serious approach on Ryder just couldn't save the flick. It's like one good man trying keep a car from rolling off a cliff, pushing on the front hood as hard as he can, yet at the rear bumper, you have 200 others who are pushing it off the cliff. That one guy, no matter how good he is, is just not going to save the car.
Well to me its a movie being judged before its trailer is even being released. Let's wait to pass judgement until we actually SEE something we can judge on. Of course its not going to be on the same plateu as the first one. The first one was one of the greatest horror movies of all time. But this whole thing is off topic anyway. This debate has been done to death on the Platinum Dunes blog. I've said my piece there and here. Like I said, if you think its going to be so terrible, don't go see it. As an avid fan of the series from when the first movie came out, I'm excited and I'm going to go see it. If it sucks it sucks. But I'll wait to pass my judgement until I actually see the movie.
I agree with I AM THE EGG MAN, Wes was treated rather unfairly, and I find Platinum Dunes to be a company of blood thirsty vampires who suck the life out of classic franchises, and horror icons because they know that making a film simply with the "Elm Street" brand on it will turn a hefty profit. They don't make good movies because A.) They have no passion for what they do, nor a love for the source material from which their films are derived, and B.) They don't have to make a good film. When you put out a film with the name "Friday the 13th", or "Elm Street" slapped on it, you are guaranteed to have a bunch of people flock to the theatres as soon as the film opens. B
Sorry, my computer skrewed up. As I was about to say, by the time people see the film and have the chance to let anyone know how bad it was, Fuller and co. will have already earned back their production costs, and made a good chunk of pocket change while they're at it. Their films don't even need to do that well in their second week because they were made on a low budget, and the opening weekend revenue will be enough to keep the studio happy. And they know it. It's called a formula, and Platinum Dunes never deviate from it. So will Jackie Earl Hayley make an excellent Freddy ? I suspect so, but will his performance be enough to single handedly save this film should Fuller and Bay pump out another pre-packaged abomination ? Hardly. Being an "Elm Street" fan, I really would like to believe Platinum Dunes will do the franchise justice, but deep down, I know they will not. I know Craven is keeping quiet about this film right now, but I really wish he would just come out and denounce this film that is sure to be a perverted, and depraved version of one of his greatest accomplishments. I know he never will because it's not his way to use his influence to ruin another film, but I wish someone with a high, and respected status in the horror industry would speak up. I guess I just feel helpless while we all stand by, and let these hacks leave a stain on a big part of Craven's legacy. Is nothing sacred anymore ?
White Shadow, like its been pointed out before. The original will still be there. The original will still be one of the greatest horror movies of all time. With time, this remake will just be considered a sequel. Did Dream Child ruin the original Nightmare on Elm Street? Did Freddy's Dead? No, the movie is still around even after those crappy sequels were made. Whatever respect or money Craven has garnered for the original film will still be his long after this movie is done and off to DVD.
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