Child’s Play – Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers

A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 3: Dream Warriors, 1987

Welcome back to another edition of Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers! This week Dion Baia and J. Blake are dipping into a horror classic, one of the most iconic and famous characters within the genre and what better place to start than right in the middle of the series… that’s right, the boys are talking Freddy Krueger and specifically the 30th anniversary of A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 3: Dream Warriors, from 1987.

A Nightmare on Elm St Part 3: Dream Warriors

That’s right, Blake and Dion start smack in the middle of the franchise, and after touching on the mysterious world that exists for children inside department store circular-coat racks, they jump right into the Elm Street lore; utilizing a largely forgotten Tobe Hooper directed episode of the 1988 series Freddy’s Nightmares, A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Series which delves deep into Freddy’s backstory, something that was still really unexplored up until that time. They jump into Dream Warriors, discussing the Wes Craven‘s involvement and the original script he submitted, then deemed too dark and subsequently changed due to the subject matter. Dion and Blake get into the controversial topics that are presented in the film, which were still very taboo to cover in the 1980s, topics like depression, self-harm and teen suicide. So, how was this installment as a sequel; did it accomplish what it needed and set out to do? As an effects-heavy film, how do these practical FX hold up nowadays? How does this stack up in relation to the other A Nightmare on Elm Street movies? And what’s Dion‘s funny story about meeting actor Robert Englund back in 2009 and the autograph he asked for? Well all these intriguing and mind-blowing questions get answered, so grab some coffee or a Red Bull, because whatever you do, you don’t want to fall asleep during this week’s all new episode of Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers!

Extras!

As discussed in the podcast, check out this rare episode of Freddy’s Nightmares, A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Series, that explores the child murder Freddy Krueger’s nefarious history in coming the demonic villain we know him as today.

Here are both the original Wes Craven script deemed too dark by the studio, and the one that was ultimately filmed.

Check the Dokken music video for their song Dream Warriors, for the 3rd Elm Street film.

Have a look at the original trailer for A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 3: Dream Warriors.

Take a look HERE and HERE at the photos of the unused SFXs of Freddy’s head on the nurse’s body.

As discussed in the podcast, check out J. Blake‘s appearance on the WrongReel Podcast, talking about the great Buster Keaton.

Here is the photo of Dion meeting Robert Englund in 2009.

Also brought up in the cast, here is the fascinating book The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, by Malcolm Gladwell.

Lastly, also talked about, check out the amazing PBS American Experience documentary entitled The Lobotomist, about neurologist Walter J. Freeman and his once exulted way of dealing with our mentally ill in this country, by way of transorbital lobotomies.

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Category: Classic, Fantasy, Horror, Slasher Film, Thriller | 6 Comments

November 25

Fright Night, 1985 – SNMS Presents: Saturday Night Movie Guestovers

Welcome to a new SNMS feature that we are affectionately referring to as Saturday Night Movie Guestovers, where an esteemed guest comes over and joins in on the movie sleepover fun!

Suffering from Halloween horror withdraw, this week J. Blake invites a good friend of the SNMS podcast, writer/podcaster/musician extraordinaire Mike Vanderbilt (@MikeVanderbilt), to discuss a mid-1980s horror film that Mike, in particular, holds near and dear to his heart, 1985’s Fright Night—written & directed by the great Tom Holland and starring the late Roddy McDowall.

After a brief introduction of Mike to the SNMS listeners and a discussion about writer/director Tom Holland’s career before Fright Night (as well as a bit of swapping stories about their own personal interactions with the horror movie living legend), the boys make their way through the beloved vampire classic, discussing the strength of its cast of actors and what they brought to the plot and their characters during the film’s extended rehearsal period. The guys also revel in the film’s numerous practical special effects, examine the state of horror and classic movie monsters at the time of Fright Night’s release, discuss the film’s original intended ending, its sequel as well as its remake, its fan-favorite soundtrack, the tie-in comic book series and much much more! Is this film actually the start of both the 1980s vampire boom and the “meta” horror film? Were all 80s teenage boys’ bedrooms exactly the same? Do vampires really eat apples? Are the film’s vampiric villain and his loyal manservant the “Odd Couple” of the 80s? Do they have thin crust pizza in Chicago? Was Marvel’s casting of Tom Holland as the new Spider-Man a bold choice? These are just some of the important questions J. Blake and special guest Mike Vanderbilt try to answer in this giant-sized premiere of Saturday Night Movie Guestovers!

As always the podcast is also available on iTunes, Stitcher and most other podcast apps and sites.

Follow Dion Baia on Twitter: @DionBaia

Follow J. Blake’s book on Twitter: @ScoredtoDeath

For all things Mike Vanderbilt, follow him on Twitter: @MikeVanderbilt

EXTRAS:

Check out Icons of Fright’s pirate commentaries, featuring cast & crew, for Fright Night and other films by CLICKING HERE!

As mentioned in this episode, you can read Mike Vanderbilt’s interview with Fright Night writer/director Tom Holland by CLICKING HERE!

Also, you can read Mike Vanderbilt’s interview with Fright Night music supervisor David Chackler by CLICKING HERE!

CLICK HERE to see the trailer for the documentary that the guys mention in this episode, You’re So Cool, Brewster! The Story of Fright Night.

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Category: Classic, Fantasy, Film, Horror, Saturday Night Movie Sleepovers Exclusive, Side Cast | 2 Comments