A Nightmare On Elm Street: 9 Unpopular Opinions About The Movies, According To Reddit

Considering the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise has had nine installments, it’s not surprising to learn that there are some unpopular opinions out there about the series. The remake, the sequels, Freddy’s clash with Jason, and even the original movie, each generate opinions that are all over the map.

However, there are several installments of the franchise that generate more controversial opinions more than others. Thanks to Reddit, these opinions are readily available in bulk. From distaste for beloved classics to love for reviled remakes, there are plenty of opinions about Elm Street that go against the grain.

9 The Original Movie Is Awful

One Reddit poster, Shpannit, writes that the original Freddy film is “terrible.” The Redditor apparently found very little in the film to like. According to them, “It’s not scary, the acting is terrible, the plot is so-so and could’ve been executed far better than that. The ending was awful.” They then state they liked the third act but would call it a comedy more than horror. Most unpopular, in particular: “I was in tears with laughter at some parts. I mean, when Tina is flying around the room like the exorcist?! Come on!”

But as far as most fans are concerned, Tina’s gravity-defying death in the original A Nightmare on Elm Street is as startling and effective now as it ever was. The same goes for Elm Street‘s underrated theme song.

8 Dream Warriors Is Overrated & Boring

Reddit user jdpm1991 made several unpopular points about A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. They start by commenting on the film’s status: “A lot say this is the best sequel of the series but IMO, I find it boring, drags on way too long, not half as fun as Dream Master or the first film.”

Then, they give praise to one performance while bashing another. “Plus Patricia Arquette sucks as a final girl and a(n) actress. The only saving grace was Heather returning as Nancy.” Few would disagree with the latter, but the former is a disagreeable opinion, to say the least, and Patricia Arquette’s performance as Kristen Parker is just one of many factors that place ANOES 3 among the best horror sequels.

7 A Nightmare On Elm Street 3 Is The Best

On the same thread, bintasaurus threw a high honor on the second sequel, saying, “It’s the best Nightmare on Elm Street.” But for most fans and critics, Wes Craven’s original movie is the pick for the best Nightmare on Elm Street movie.

That said, tere are many reasons to defend the Redditor’s choice. Dream Warriors has a great cast with well-written characters. It’s also creatively shot with the series’ best balance of comedy and horror. But in terms of being Freddy’s most effective film, the original is still seen as the one to beat.

6 The Dream Master Is Boring

Redditor Schlock_Supreme does back up their viewpoint, but they begin by saying, “This is the first entry in the franchise that I find completely BORING.” A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The comment moves on to praise Lisa Wilcox’s lead performance but noted that they found it inferior to Patricia Arquette’s in the previous installment. Some of the dream sequences are also praised, but with the note that they’re “scattered through a really pedestrian script that never really goes anywhere exciting.”

But most fans would agree that The Dream Master feels more like a summer blockbuster than the rest of the franchise, and few would call it “boring.” And the script not going anywhere exciting is also debatable. The movie’s story may have gone some places that didn’t quite work, but the movie is nothing if not inventive and exciting. Moments like Freddy with the soul pizza are small examples of how it’s one of the franchise’s stronger scripts.

5 Dream Child Was Better Off Without Freddy

Die-hard Freddy Krueger fans would disagree with verucavoorhees’s take on A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child. In their words, “Dream Child is great when Freddy isn’t in it. His terrible one-liners kill all of the suspense, but the gothic horror approach with Westin Hills is pretty cool.”

Only one person agreed with him, but their point was equally solid. MatsThyWit wrote, “I wish someone could … edit that film to make Freddy genuinely threatening.” It’s clear that these two fans think Dream Child is where Freddy went from scary figure to amateur comedian, but most fans like Freddy no matter his form, making this opinion not very common.

4 Freddy’s Dead Is Near The Top

One Redditor, Someguy2930, created a tiered list that ranks the movies of the franchise. Split into five categories, Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare found itself in the second spot. But many comments indicate that others would put it in at least fifth. Either way, it has many Freddy Krueger one-liners that have aged poorly.

The Redditor gives first place to the original movie and Dream Warriors. The second contains Freddy vs. Jason and Freddy’s Dead, the third, Dream Master and Freddy’s Revenge and fourth place goes to Wes Craven’s New Nightmare, which some comments indicate should be higher. The final tier contains two poorly-received entries, The Dream Child and the remake. While everyone has their own personal favorites, not many would agree with this ranking, overall.

3 Points On New Nightmare

In a thread about Wes Craven’s New Nightmare, several users had positive things to say about how the film was constructed. Freddy regaining his scariness was cited as the strength of the movie’s themes. But most of all, there was praise for how Craven carried it all out. Redditor BobRushy agreed, but with a caveat. He said, “It is all those things and a dull film at the same time, with Englund’s least interesting Freddy portrayal, the irritating kid, and the lame ending.”

It’s true that Miko Hughes is more beloved for his role in Pet Sematary than New Nightmare, and the ending isn’t the best part of the film. However, it’s far from being Robert Englund’s least interesting performance as Freddy Krueger, so this opinion is pretty contentious.

2 The Remake Is The Only Good Movie

One Redditor dropped a bomb in defense of A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010). Apparently, this is Jak-nife ‘s favorite Nightmare on Elm Street movie. They said, “This is the only Nightmare movie I actually like.”

It’s unknown how many of the other installments the Redditor has seen. Even still, most would put the remake towards the bottom of the list, regardless of how many they’ve seen, and many feel it’s just a soulless rehash of the original with the poor visuals.

1 The Remake Receives Too Much Flack

Redditor RyuugaHideki had quite a few things to say about 2010’s mostly-dismissed Freddy Krueger remake. On the negative side, the original poster acknowledges that it tries too hard to copy Wes Craven’s classic original movie.

They explain their thoughts on the film: “Some of the updated fan-service-y dialogue, I think, was pretty well written. That variation on the ‘This … is God’ line in the scene of Jesse’s death was pretty awesome and well-delivered.” They then explain how they liked the deaths in the movie, which many fans found to be far too full of CGI.