A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors-1987

Director Chuck Russell

Starring Patricia Arquette, Robert Englund

Scott’s Review #1,028

Reviewed May 29, 2020

Grade: B+

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987) is a credible effort to take the at-this-point tired slasher genre in a new direction, using style and special effects to its advantage.

The film is not a work of art and does not stray far enough from the norm to risk losing its target audience, but the experiment works, giving the film a fresh feel.

Thankfully, Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund) is in tow, providing wit, humor, and a rich character history rarely seen in horror.

One year following the events of the previous chapter, Kristen Parker (Patricia Arquette) awakens following a nightmare of being chased by Freddy Krueger, to find him in her bathroom, where she is attacked again.

Her mother believes that she is suicidal and sends her to Westin Hills Psychiatric Hospital, where Kristen is placed under the care of Dr. Neil Gordon (Craig Wasson).

The rest of the film’s events mainly take place in this setting.

A new intern therapist, Nancy, (Heather Langenkamp) takes an interest in Kristen’s case.

In two clever plot twists, one a bit too coincidental, Nancy reveals to the remaining patients that they are the “last of the Elm Street kids”, the surviving children of the people who banded together and burned Krueger to death many years ago.

The second is more intriguing, as a nun named Sister Mary Helena (Nan Martin) provides the history of Freddy’s mother, Amanda Krueger, who turns out to be the same person.

This humanizes Freddy a bit and provides layers to his story rather than just another “slice ’em and dice ’em” horror film.

The film has a way of gathering curiosity and delivering the goods with dreams, hypnosis, and mental synapses, as the kids realize they have dream powers that culminate in a group adventure.

Perfect for the mental hospital setting.

The junkyard sequence that provides the climax with so much muscle is splendid, adding creative, colorful bits of junk and littering the entire set with rusty tin trinkets and other nooks and crannies to marvel at.

A feast for the eyes and a perfect backdrop for evil and killings. The set design works tremendously well in this film.

The familiar character Nancy, played once again by Langenkamp (the main girl from the first Nightmare), is a nice touch that will please fans immensely. A returning favorite in a horror franchise is always a smart move.

The casting of esteemed character actress Nan Martin, who can frighten the pants off anyone if given a good part, is a divine decision.

The actress even resembles legendary actress Betsy Palmer (familiar to Friday the 13th fans as the dreadful Mrs. Voorhees).

The creepy mommy theme so often works well in horror films, and this inclusion is no exception.

The theme song to A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors is a pop-metal treat written and performed by the heavy metal band Dokken.

This inclusion assuredly brought the teenage girls and the mullet crowd alike to movie theaters across America. The song is catchy and can easily be head-banged as the end credits roll across the screen.

Even more impressive is that the lyrics make sense from a story perspective since dreams are a huge part of the franchise and this specific installment.

Nearly rivaling the original A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) in originality and plot, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987) does a fantastic job of bringing energy to a fading genre, one that would not be rejuvenated for another 9 years when Scream (1996) debuted.

Engaging, brightly lit razzle-dazzle visual sets within dreams are pulse-racing and creative, while a mother’s story breathes fresh air.

This film is the sequel to a series of duds that will soon follow.