A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (Film Review)

1988 New Line Cinema
Directed by: Renny Harlin; Written by: Brian Helgeland and Scott Pierce
Starring: Robert Englund
MPAA Rating: R; Running Time: 93 Minutes
The Nicsperiment Score: 6/10

After the Dream Warriors defeated Freddy in A Nightmare on Elm Street, they thought the nightmare was over. They thought wrong because Freddy is back, claws, hat, striped sweater and all, and he's picking them off one-by-one. Before they're wiped out, some of their dream power is transferred to their friend, Alice. Unfortunately, this now means Freddy is picking off Alice's friends in their dreams, and stealing their souls. However, something strange is happening. As Alice's friends are murdered by Freddy, she's starting to pick up their attributes and abilities. She is starting to become...The Dream Master. But can Alice use her newfound powers to defeat Freddy and free her dead friends' souls before it's too late?
The Nightmare on Elm Street franchise hasn't exactly been great. The first film is a classic up until its very goofy final ten minutes. The second film is just goofy and the third film is entertaining, but little better. However, all those films have a watchable quality, thanks to an iconic villain and perhaps the most fantastic 80s atmosphere of any film series. This fourth entry, The Dream Master, feels like it's not only been created to maximize what works with the series, but to maximize interest in teenagers of the time. This latter sentiment is backed up both by the fact that The Dream Master is the first A Nightmare on Elm Street film to release in the summer, and its massive box office haul. And also that I like it.
Renny Harlin is known as an extreme, in-your-face action director, and bringing a young and fairly inexperienced Renny on to direct this film is a stroke of genius. The Dream Master certainly isn't a great film, but it is very fun. Harlin harnesses all that glorious 80's atmosphere and energy and unleashes it. Working from a script co-written by future Oscar winner, Brian Helgeland, Renny seems to know exactly what he's doing and what franchise he's in. He even goes off-script at times, inserting scenes from his own dreams instead of what's in the script. There's a disgusting dream here where a girl who hates bug slowly gets transformed into a cockroach, then crushed, all with wonderfully gruesome and gooey practical effects and it's awesome. The performances are hit and miss, but generally work even if they're not great. For instance, as Alice, Lisa Wilcox has some truly bizarre and sometimes awful line readings. Sometimes, though, she's good, and she has an iconic and charismatic (and attractive!) 80s look as she becomes confident and more powerful throughout the film. As Alice's brother Dan, Danny Hassel brings an excellent punk rock energy that's entirely unique, like someone came off the set of The Lost Boys to act in a Karate Kid movie. The ending also might not be great (Deus ex mirror?!), but it's even fun in its clumsiness. Dream Master is chock full of fun, memorable sequences, and to reiterate a point I've tried to make here, it feels more 80s than almost anything. If you've only seen the first and want to watch one sequel, this is it.