Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy (2010)

Really Surprised!

Great movie! If you want to be entertained and have a few good laughs, see this movie. The music is also very good,

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

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.

To be completely honest, I'm not that big of A Nightmare on Elm Street fan but I heard good things about this documentary so I decided to order it.I watched it all the way through without pausing it or taking any breaks because Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy is a very entertaining documentary.It's edited in a fantastic way, it's got interviews with almost everyone that made the franchise possible and it has great cinematography!! It also has amazing stop motion animation sequences for not only the opening but for separating the segments. I've actually now become a fan of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise after watching this.This documentary will definitely please Elm Street fans everywhere. It's just a fantastic thing to watch.You will not find a more in depth retrospective on the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise then this documentary!! I highly recommend it!!

If you never sleep again, it will only be because you are too busy sifting through all that "Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy" has to offer. This comprehensive 2-disc DVD set serves as a study on the infamous "A Nightmare on Elm Street series" which not only offers a four hour (!) long documentary, but almost as much in special features and extra footage.Produced by the same folks who brought us "Halloween: 25 Years of Terror" and "His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th" and hosted by Nancy Thompson herself, Heather Langenkamp, the main feature covers just about everything you would ever want to know about the original eight-film franchise. Beginning with Wes Craven's original film and wrapping up with the 2003 hit mash-up, "Freddy vs. Jason," the documentary brings back most of the main cast and crew from each film (sans major players such as Patricia Arquette, Laurence Fishburne and Johnny Depp) as they wax nostalgic about all of the fun, thrills, melodrama, successes and failures that "Elm Street" brought each and every one of them. Each film is given ample time and is expanded upon wonderfully, and not only is it a blast to see how some of them have aged, but a lot of new information is brought to the forefront that, even if you've followed the series throughout the decades, will come as news to you. This certainly is no fluff-piece, as everyone is open and honest, and in spite of its length, it never drags or feels dull.Once you've plowed through the main feature, there's still a second disc of special features to swallow, and as before, there is not a moment wasted. The main meat of this disc is a compilation of extended interviews that runs almost as long as the average "Elm Street" flick. If you simply can't get enough after the four hours you've just completed, this piece serves almost as a fitting desert. Other features focus on Freddy phenomena such as the character's transition into comics, the music that was used in the series, locations, props and, of course, the fans. There's also a rather amusing bit with the famed Angry Video Game Nerd where he rips apart the Nintendo game based on the franchise, albeit, in a loving manner. There's so much here that it almost justifies its own release.While the release glosses over the recent remake (save for a few minutes of cut footage), it doesn't spare anything from the Robert Englund golden-era. Those who remember how great this series was in its time will no doubt eat up each and every savory morsel that "Never Sleep Again" has to offer. You're certainly getting the bang for your buck, and even if the studio itself isn't too keen on producing something this informative, it's good to know that independent film-makers with a love for the material are willing to do all the leg-work themselves. Without this DVD, your "Nightmare on Elm Street" collection simply is not complete.