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A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (2010)Movie Reviews
Horror fantasy about a deceased child killer who visits teenagers in their dreams. Cast:Jackie Earle Haley, Kyle GallnerDirector:Samuel BayerRelease Date:April 30, 2010DVD Release:October 5, 2010From:Warner Bros.Rating:RLength:1 hr. 35 min.
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) played to fair reviews. • Owen Gleiberman wrote in Entertainment Weekly, "...a by-the-numbers bad dream that plays a little too much like a corporately ordered rerun. One, two, Freddy's coming for you. Three, four, we've been there before." • And Colin Covert wrote in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, "...a subpar exercise, hardly the stuff dreams are made of." More Reviews Below...
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) Positive Reviews (39 Reviews, reviews below)
Alynda Wheat, People: MODERATE(cg) "...a humor-free remake that flags until the satisfying final scenes. Haley tries, but his new Freddy is no cut-up as he grimly stalks kids."(See all of Alynda Wheat's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 37 words, 05/06/10
Richard Corliss, Time: GOOD "...a fine copy.... a straight, shiny, honorable remake.... Director Samuel Bayer isn't Orson Welles, exactly, but he has plenty of assurance and the props to back it up."(See all of Richard Corliss's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,234 words, 04/29/10
Christy Lemire, Associated Press: MODERATE(cg) "...the novelty has long since worn off, and cheap, generic scares are all that are left.... there's not much in the way of genuine suspense."(See all of Christy Lemire's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 632 words, 04/29/10
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: GOOD(cg) "...a by-the-numbers bad dream that plays a little too much like a corporately ordered rerun. One, two, Freddy's coming for you. Three, four, we've been there before."(See all of Owen Gleiberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 483 words, 04/30/10
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: WEAK(cg) "Haley, a child actor who launched an Oscar-nominated comeback as a pedophile in 2006's 'Little Children,' rips into the role with relish. It's too bad the script turns him into a deadpan joke machine."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 244 words, 04/30/10
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: POOR(cg) "...consists of a series of teenagers who are introduced, haunted by nightmares and then slashed to death by Freddy. So what? Are we supposed to be scared?"(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 547 words, 04/30/10
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (12 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: MODERATE "...sufficiently effective to keep you awake for the duration of its running time. It is unlikely to trouble your slumber afterward, though."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 660 words, 04/30/10
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: POOR(cg) "...the official press notes describes Freddy Krueger's latest appearance as 'a reinvention of the seminal 1984 horror classic.' In reality, it's more like a bludgeoning."(See all of Elizabeth Weitzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 351 words, 04/30/10
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times: WEAK "Horror movie franchises -- as it's been said about Marines -- don't die, apparently. They just go to hell and regroup.... this 'Nightmare' is mostly stale goods."(See all of Robert Abele's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 402 words, 04/30/10
Kyle Smith, New York Post: POOR(cg) "A girl gets in the bathtub and everyone waits for the finger-knives to appear so they can issue a properly prepared-for shriek. That's pretend scared."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 726 words, 04/30/10
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: MODERATE(cg) "I've seen far worse horror remakes, but let's not grade on too much of a curve: This 'Nightmare' offers dutifully grinding thrills of a routine sort."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 535 words, 04/30/10
Rafer Guzman, New York Newsday: MODERATE(cg) "Haley is admirably intense and jittery, but Krueger still can't be taken seriously - he's no scarier than an Iron Maiden album cover."(See all of Rafer Guzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 308 words, 04/30/10
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: POOR(cg) "...consists of a series of teenagers who are introduced, haunted by nightmares and then slashed to death by Freddy. So what? Are we supposed to be scared?"(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 547 words, 04/30/10
Peter Howell, Toronto Star: WEAK(cg) "The real puzzle about this still-born 'Nightmare' is its relative restraint. The original film, made in the pre-digital age, pushed the envelope of technology and good taste..."(See all of Peter Howell's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 514 words, 04/30/10
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...if you have to remake every horror property from the 1980s - and producer Michael Bay apparently does - then at least the new 'Nightmare' does what it does well."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 211 words, 04/29/10
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: MODERATE(cg) "Jackie Earle Haley, the fans' choice to take on the role of Freddy Krueger in the remake of the 1984 'boogeyman' blockbuster proves stunningly, rousingly... adequate..."(See all of Roger Moore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 586 words, 04/30/10
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: WEAK(cg) "...looks good recycling 'greatest hits' moments but fails to capture the excitement of the original.... a subpar exercise, hardly the stuff dreams are made of."(See all of Colin Covert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 582 words, 04/30/10
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: WEAK(cg) "It's not terrible. It's just... superfluous.... the idea that someone's cool screenplay got passed over so that this franchise could wheeze back to life is disappointing."(See all of Bill Goodykoontz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 601 words, 04/30/10
Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "The dream sequences aren't particularly special, though they're usually good and bloody. The surprise factor is almost nil..."(See all of Chris Vognar's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 434 words, 04/30/10
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: POOR(cg) "There are no characters, per se, just mascara-ed lead-singer-like boys and model-generic girls dying in scoop-neck tops and skinny jeans."(See all of Wesley Morris's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 408 words, 04/30/10
Stephen Whitty, Cleveland Plain-Dealer: MODERATE(cg) "You need empathetic heroes, a strong situation, and a carefully built mood. And as far as those go, this 'Elm Street' is a dead end."(See all of Stephen Whitty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 477 words, 04/30/10
Jeff Shannon, Seattle Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a well-made but completely unnecessary remake. Calling it a 'reinvention' of the Freddy franchise is too generous..."(See all of Jeff Shannon's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 481 words, 04/30/10
Steve Persall, St. Petersburg Times: FAIR(cg) "What's really missing from the remake is the key theme of 1980s slasher flicks, that sexual activity leads to slaughter.... Nobody comes close to getting lucky..."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 438 words, 04/30/10
Tom Long, Detroit News: MODERATE(cg) "Bayer has delivered a perfectly serviceable, if somewhat more serious and less campy, remake of the slasher classic. But let's get real here."(See all of Tom Long's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 494 words, 04/30/10
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...if you have to remake every horror property from the 1980s - and producer Michael Bay apparently does - then at least the new 'Nightmare' does what it does well."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 211 words, 04/29/10
A.O. Scott, New York Times: MODERATE "...sufficiently effective to keep you awake for the duration of its running time. It is unlikely to trouble your slumber afterward, though."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 660 words, 04/30/10
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times: WEAK "Horror movie franchises -- as it's been said about Marines -- don't die, apparently. They just go to hell and regroup.... this 'Nightmare' is mostly stale goods."(See all of Robert Abele's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 402 words, 04/30/10
MOVIE INDUSTRY (5 Reviews)
Dennis Harvey, Daily Variety: WEAK "Samuel Bayer's feature debut does nothing glaringly wrong, but there's not much that's inventively right, either.... it has no distinctive style and scant imagination..."(See all of Dennis Harvey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 764 words, 04/29/10
Michael Rechtshaffen, Hollywood Reporter: POOR "...unimaginatively goes through the motions, offering scant justification for its boring existence, at least from an artistic point of view... Good luck staying awake."(See all of Michael Rechtshaffen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 417 words, 04/29/10
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times: WEAK "Horror movie franchises -- as it's been said about Marines -- don't die, apparently. They just go to hell and regroup.... this 'Nightmare' is mostly stale goods."(See all of Robert Abele's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 402 words, 04/30/10
Emanuel Levy, Cinema 24/7: FAIR(cg) "I could never imagine that I would recommend viewers to see the 1984 picture, but compared with Bayer's, Craven's film is intelligent, restrained, and far more frightening."(See all of Emanuel Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 820 words, 04/29/10
A.O. Scott, New York Times: MODERATE "...sufficiently effective to keep you awake for the duration of its running time. It is unlikely to trouble your slumber afterward, though."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 660 words, 04/30/10
16.1 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)'s reviews are separated by an average 16.1 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) (39 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)'s reviews cover 73.9% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 20,570 words involume (average is 20,172 words). Length:The film's reviews average 527 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) Coverage, Volume & Length (39 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 21.7 Hours After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)'s reviews on average broke 21.7 hours after opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) (39 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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