For as much as 'A nightmare on Elm Street' represents a classic horror franchise, like most franchises there came a point there it began to produce diminishing returns. Before it reached that point, however, the series was marked by one especial peculiarity. The second film, 1985's 'Freddy's revenge,' is pretty much right on par with its predecessor in terms of effects, vibes, and everything else including overall quality and entertainment value. It also broke with the tried and true formula that had been developed for horror cinema over time, upended certain norms, and was decidedly dubious insofar as it represented for star Mark Patton a nadir that rather forced him out of the industry. To simply watch there is never any questioning the bare-faced queer subtext that David Chaskin wrote into the picture, no matter how much he denied it over time; to read about the production, and reactions to it, it's readily evident how harmful it was for Patton, both personally and professionally. There is so much to dissect and discuss surrounding the movie that it's difficult to even organize one's thoughts about it. Enter filmmakers Roman Chimienti and Tyler Jensen, with 2019 documentary 'Scream, queen! My nightmare on Elm Street.' The do endeavored mightily to give consideration and treatment to all the minutiae one could possibly draw into the cultural moment of 'A nightmare on Elm Street 2,' and to their great credit, I think they handily succeeded, because this is fantastic.
One may reasonably say that this flick tries to weave together too many ideas, and in the process becomes a little scattered and unfocused. I think that's fair, though the truth is that it is all much more complex than just being a matter of what Chaskin wrote and how it impacted Patton, then and after. The very least that can be said, though, is that Chimienti and Jensen very shrewdly keep their feature grounded by centering Patton first and foremost: his childhood, his career, his life in subsequent years, his reemergence in media and at conventions in the past several years. With that core, 'Scream' becomes fascinating, heartbreaking, and heartwarming in turn while also speaking to a wide array of topics and questions: the development of the home video market, the explosion of horror cinema in the early 80s, and how these notions led to the desirability of horror roles for actors while having impact on broader society; the multiple ways in which 'Freddy's revenge' toys with expectations and norms of gender and sexuality; homophobia (and transphobia, and serophobia) in culture, society, and politics, above all as expressed in film, contrasted with past and present acceptance of the LGBTQ community; the hate lobbed upon the sequel in some corners, often paired with homophobic remarks, contrasted with how it would come to be championed by the queer community; the concurrent emergence of the AIDS crisis, and how it impacted Patton's life and the film industry; and much more. Despite covering so much ground, the picture remains cohesive in being about Patton first and foremost, with his biggest claim to fame just a small step behind, and the result is terrific.
Given the topics covered here it goes without saying that there are times when the proceedings are flush with ugly, bigoted language and imagery. This comes with the territory of confronting the dark side of our culture, however, which Patton himself touches upon in these one hundred minutes. Through it all the filmmakers illustrate an impressive breadth and depth of knowledge and research to make this as comprehensive as it is, and the sheer amount of archive material and clips, interviews, and footage they put together is substantial. Chimienti and Jensen are to be congratulated for managing to assemble 'My nightmare on Elm Street' into a form as cogent and compelling as it is - and it's very gratifying, furthermore, to see even within the length that the experience of participating here, and what he was able to do as part of it, was meaningful and constructive for Patton. It's so deeply unfortunate that his life trended the way it did, as the flick itself elucidates, yet it's very apparent that the man has made peace with it all, cementing that the documentary is an earnest portrait of an unsung icon rather than the seedy slice of exploitation that it might have become. When all is said and done this is very much worth watching entirely on its own merits, and it's so well done and interesting that it earns a firm blanket recommendation. It doesn't matter if one is or is not specifically a fan of or keen on 'A nightmare on Elm Street,' horror, documentaries, Patton, or the LGBTQ community: there is true, lasting value here that extends beyond any singular notion. It may not be an absolute must-see, but if you do have the opportunity to watch, then I'm pleased to suggest 'Scream, queen!' to one and all.
One may reasonably say that this flick tries to weave together too many ideas, and in the process becomes a little scattered and unfocused. I think that's fair, though the truth is that it is all much more complex than just being a matter of what Chaskin wrote and how it impacted Patton, then and after. The very least that can be said, though, is that Chimienti and Jensen very shrewdly keep their feature grounded by centering Patton first and foremost: his childhood, his career, his life in subsequent years, his reemergence in media and at conventions in the past several years. With that core, 'Scream' becomes fascinating, heartbreaking, and heartwarming in turn while also speaking to a wide array of topics and questions: the development of the home video market, the explosion of horror cinema in the early 80s, and how these notions led to the desirability of horror roles for actors while having impact on broader society; the multiple ways in which 'Freddy's revenge' toys with expectations and norms of gender and sexuality; homophobia (and transphobia, and serophobia) in culture, society, and politics, above all as expressed in film, contrasted with past and present acceptance of the LGBTQ community; the hate lobbed upon the sequel in some corners, often paired with homophobic remarks, contrasted with how it would come to be championed by the queer community; the concurrent emergence of the AIDS crisis, and how it impacted Patton's life and the film industry; and much more. Despite covering so much ground, the picture remains cohesive in being about Patton first and foremost, with his biggest claim to fame just a small step behind, and the result is terrific.
Given the topics covered here it goes without saying that there are times when the proceedings are flush with ugly, bigoted language and imagery. This comes with the territory of confronting the dark side of our culture, however, which Patton himself touches upon in these one hundred minutes. Through it all the filmmakers illustrate an impressive breadth and depth of knowledge and research to make this as comprehensive as it is, and the sheer amount of archive material and clips, interviews, and footage they put together is substantial. Chimienti and Jensen are to be congratulated for managing to assemble 'My nightmare on Elm Street' into a form as cogent and compelling as it is - and it's very gratifying, furthermore, to see even within the length that the experience of participating here, and what he was able to do as part of it, was meaningful and constructive for Patton. It's so deeply unfortunate that his life trended the way it did, as the flick itself elucidates, yet it's very apparent that the man has made peace with it all, cementing that the documentary is an earnest portrait of an unsung icon rather than the seedy slice of exploitation that it might have become. When all is said and done this is very much worth watching entirely on its own merits, and it's so well done and interesting that it earns a firm blanket recommendation. It doesn't matter if one is or is not specifically a fan of or keen on 'A nightmare on Elm Street,' horror, documentaries, Patton, or the LGBTQ community: there is true, lasting value here that extends beyond any singular notion. It may not be an absolute must-see, but if you do have the opportunity to watch, then I'm pleased to suggest 'Scream, queen!' to one and all.