Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy (2010)

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

This is a thorough documentary giving you pretty much everything you'd ever want to know about the Nightmare on Elm Street-series. Well, the original ones that is, not the remake. If you are a fan of the movies, (if you are not, why are you reading this, and why are you not a fan? Are those movies not good enough for you? Is Freddy Krueger not cool enough? Not scary enough? Get outta here!!) Where was I, yeah, if you are a fan of the movies, this is like a dream come through!It takes every one of the movies, one by one, and has about a Freddillion interviews with cast, crew, critics, fans, the works. I was really entertained. My only complaint, well, what kept it from being perfect, is that it could have been a little more consistent from movie to movie, we don't get equal amounts of info from every movie. Man, that really sounds like a douche-baggy complaint. Sorry documentary-maker. It does not mean that it is not great, because it really is. Very entertaining. Good job!

I'm not one to spend a lot of time on special features unless I REALLY love the movie. I do love a great documentary though and I was immediately intrigued when I saw this. Years ago when I first began to become an enormous full on movie junkie, I fell in love with horror. That started with a complete fascination and adoration for the entire Nightmare On Elm Street series. I realized even more-so while watching this incredible documentary series how much I love this series. This is an epic sized documentary spending a half hour(ish) to 40 minutes on each entry in the iconic Nightmare On Elm Street series. We are re-introduced to the actors who played their respective roles as they talk about what they remember, what they went through, and what the role and series meant to them. Of course, Johnny Depp is not one of them who is there to talk about it sadly. We get interviews with creator and legend Wes Craven and producer and New Line founder Bob Shaye through much of the documentaries. It is just a fascinating look back at how this series started from nothing to become the iconic, unstoppable horror franchise it is now.Despite having only starred in three films out of the series, it is safe to say that Heather Langenkamp is considered an iconic scream queen and Freddy's first and most formidable opponent (despite being nearly campy in her performance.) It was a wise move to have her narrate the entire documentary and feature her in interviews as well. The makers of this film do it in an absolutely brilliant way breaking down each film and laying them out in similar fashion and talking about finance, creative process, special effects, cast...there is very little stones unturned. No more time is spent with Wes Craven or Langenkamp or Robert Englund than some of the lesser known characters giving everyone a fair chance to talk about the movies. The documentary is an enormous four hour undertaking that I watched in segments over the course of a week and loved every minute of it!! Perhaps the one thing I was disappointed with is that they didn't continue and discuss the remake because I'm sure that coming about that concept didn't come easy.They couldn't have asked for a better director than Daniel Farrands. He is obviously an enormous horror fan and while he did pen one of the worst Halloween movies...I'll forgive him for that...he has worked on a number of horror film documentaries and he's got this down to a science. This is made for all the fans. Its simple and straight forward and is not complex or too technical...it just covers the basics and gives you enough information to be truly pleased with it. It never feels stale, even with its enormous run-time because each film is so different and you actually will find yourself looking forward to them talking about a certain instalment. I was really excited to hear about Wes Craven's New Nightmare and Freddy VS Jason and how they came about. The film also touches on the deplorable Freddy's Nightmares TV series. This is a documentary that every horror fan must watch and own. This is absolutely epic and like having all the special features right at your finger tips. Even if you're not a huge documentary fan I think you'll find this fascinating and if you wanted to you could jump ahead to your personal favourite but do yourself a favour and watch the whole thing!! 9/10

Wow!! This is an incredible documentary. I'm not the biggest fan of the series, but I enjoyed a few of the films. And this 4 hours is chock full of great interviews with the cast, directors, writers, special effects guys, and producers/financiers. This film chronologically runs the viewer through the challenges, philosophy, social and political messages, successes, and failures of the franchise. It gave me a new respect for this film series that has been a cultural phenomenon my whole life. This movie was obviously a labor of love for all involved, and their passion shows in the finished result. I would say, whether you are a die-hard fan, casual viewer, or just want to watch a historical piece about an iconic horror anthology, watch this movie.This movie should be the benchmark by which all other documentaries are measured. I'd love to find something like this about the Halloween series, Evil Dead series. Hell, I'd love something like this about Star Wars, Godfather, anything. It's just that great.

I am a big fan of F13, and when "His Name Was Jason" came out, I was all over it. It was great to get a true insider's scoop from the series' collaborators. It did not disappoint. When I heard "Never Sleep Again" was coming out, I was intrigued ( although I was never a HUGE fan of the Elm Street series)... but I knew the same team was behind it that produced HNWJ, so I picked it up. Dare I say that I enjoyed this one MORE? I viewed the piece in such a way, that I would watch a segment or two, then turn it off, so I had more to enjoy the following night. Even though it plays out longer than 3 hours, it is not long at ALL! I wanted another 5 hours! I cannot wait to see what these guys do next. They have a great cutting style, where the interviewees finish each other's sentences, and they're able to segue from one subject to the next seamlessly. I know, particularly with a documentary, you are inundated with hours of footage, and are forced to choose from a multitude of directions/styles/tones. These guys were able to find the jewel in the mountain and create another special product. Can't wait for the next one guys!