10 Horror Movie Sequels That Deserve A Second Chance
1. Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare
By the end of the 1980s, the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise had fully sacrificed scariness for imaginative silliness. That’s why the goofiness of 1991’s Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare fell perfectly in line with where 1989’s A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child left off.
Like 2004’s Seed of Chucky, the movie is frequently reviled for completely undermining its serious (and terrifying) roots with a cartoonish tone that turned its iconic villain into a wisecracking imitation of his formerly frightening self.
Every criticism fans and horror afficionados make against Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare is valid - including its bland finale - yet, there’s more depth beneath the surface that deserves applause. In keeping with the series’ ongoing subtext regarding psychological/emotional harm and parental abandonment, each main character embodies a realistic need to persevere over trauma.
Seriously, look at how Tracy’s transformed by her father’s sexual abuse; how Spencer uses drugs to cope with not measuring up to his father’s lofty standards; or even how Maggie was so scarred by her childhood that she forgot who she was (Freddy’s daughter). Beneath all its slapstick, Freddy’s Dead examines several profound themes.
Oh, and it’s actually quite amusing and creative, too.