One, two, Freddy's coming for you... That lullaby is, of course, the stuff that nightmares are made of. We still don't sleep right whenever we hear it, which is a lot recently, with Freddy Krueger getting a new A Nightmare on Elm Street Blu-ray collection released wide this past week (it was previously a Best Buy exclusive last fall).
A Nightmare on Elm Street Blu-Ray Collection Review
In honor of Freddy's new HD presentation, we celebrate Freddy and the burned killer's many, many looks.
From his first and arguably best attempt at racking up quite the body count, to his more bloody adventures in the land of varied-quality sequels, Freddy's visage has evolved to suit whatever poor bastard's nightmare he invades - not to mention the evolving whims of the people creating his films.
So take a look with us at The Many Looks of Freddy Krueger...
First Appearance: A Nightmare on Elm Street
Freddy's basic look was established from the get go in Wes Craven's classic A Nightmare on Elm Street - the red and green striped sweater, the brown hat and that amazingly designed four bladed right glove were all there from the start. Why Christmas colors? Who knows, but it works .
Designed by David Miller, Freddy's original makeup is notably a bit more realistic than what would follow, establishing the character as the bald, burnt guy we all know and love, but not quite looking the way most of us imagine him these days. And for those who take note of such things (like, say, us), Freddy's sweater lacked the green stripes on the sleeve that would become custom in every appearance afterwards.
First Appearance: A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge
Freddy's Revenge might be one of the lesser sequels, but when it came to Freddy's appearance, it's the movie that is responsible for defining what the character would really look like in the long run. Makeup FX artist Kevin Yagher (who went on to also design The Crypt Keeper and Chucky, among other accomplishments) did a pretty drastic makeover for Freddy, and in the process, created the iconic Krueger look. Yagher's tweaks include a hooked, witch-style nose and a far more detailed burnt face that, while perhaps not realistic, visually popped and -- as Freddy came out of the shadows with increasing frequency -- struck a chord with the fanbase.
Other changes of note in the second film include the addition of the aforementioned stripes on the sweater, plus burnt makeup also being included on Freddy's ungloved left hand - more firmly showing him as someone whose body completely burned up, unlike the original film, where it seemed only his face was scarred.
Yagher would work on the second through fourth film, and it is his design that is most often used in conjunction with the character for marketing, merchandise and promotion. And clearly the look given to the character in Freddy vs. Jason was based on this version.
One small variation on the Freddy's Revenge look exists in the final portion of the film, when Freddy comes into the real world. In this sequence, instead of wearing a glove, he actually has claws growing out of his hand, for the only time in the series.
First Appearance: A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child
David Miller returned to the franchise for The Dream Child, and in the process gave Freddy another makeover. Miller's second crack at the character definitely seemed to stress the dirty old man aspect of Freddy, making him look more aged, with sagging skin around the neck. Miller also brought back the larger burns he'd used in the first film.
While it somewhat fit the storyline of the film, which saw Freddy weaker in the wake of losing the souls he'd collected at the end of The Dream Master, the look Freddy sported in this movie just didn't fit with what the public knew Freddy as by now. Pointedly, while Miller did the makeup for the next movie, Freddy's Dead, it more closely resembled Yagher's look than the one here.
First Appearance: Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare
Freddy's Dead finally showed Freddy before he died, when he was just the average, mild mannered serial killer down the street. We got a glimpse of him as a young boy, and then as a teenager, along with his adult incarnation. It wasn't exactly a shocker, but lo and behold, the unburned, adult Freddy looked like Robert Englund, who played Freddy in all eight of his film appearances, until the remake of the original.
We also got a look at his requisite secret serial killer room in his Elm Street home, and it was revealed that while the iconic glove might have been Freddy's favorite killing weapon, it wasn't the only one he made.
The human Freddy would later be seen briefly in Freddy Vs. Jason, where the day he was actually burned to death was given a grimmer and more appropriate tone than the goofy Dream Demons moment in Freddy's Dead.
First Appearance: Wes Craven's New Nightmare
David Miller got one more crack at a dramatic redesign for Freddy with Wes Craven's trippy and intriguingly post-modern pseudo-sequel, which found those who worked on the Nightmare on Elm Street films, including Craven himself, haunted by a real life version of Freddy, who we learn is a more ancient demonic evil who has latched onto Freddy Krueger, the fictional movie villain, as his current form of choice.
The Freddy in this film was meant to look bigger, darker and stronger than the "fake" movie Freddy. While Robert Englund still played the character, he definitely looked bulked up (we suspect thanks to some padding underneath the trench coat this Freddy usually wore) and more physically imposing.
The glove was also completely redesigned into something much more techno-organic, seemingly fusing bone and steel together. There was also a fifth blade, on the thumb, for the first and only time. The entire look of the glove in this movie seems inspired by the version seen on the theatrical posters for the first, second and third film.
First Appearance: A Nightmare on Elm Street
It's very difficult to truly hurt Freddy in his dream realm, and he loves to prove that to his intended victims either allowing himself to be harmed or just harming himself in a show of how ineffectual physical attacks usually are on him.
Some highlights include the time his face was pulled off, revealing his skull below (Nightmare 1); cutting off his own fingers (Nightmare 1 / Freddy's Dead); cutting his own stomach open (Nightmare 1); pulling his skull cap off, revealing a pulsating brain below (Freddy's Revenge); and ripping his arm off (The Dream Child).
Freddy's also shown the ability to alter and grow portions of his body (now, now... no jokes!). The first time he did this was in the original film, extending his arms across an alleyway; something repeated in New Nightmare. He'd later show a great love of making his tongue longer (Freddy's Revenge, Dream Warriors, New Nightmare), which... OK... kind of begs for jokes.
First Appearance: A Nightmare on Elm Street
It's his dream world, and Freddy can look however he'd like in it... which makes it notable that he apparently chooses to look all burnt up most of the time, but whatever works for the guy. However, on many occasions Freddy has transformed into other people in order to mess with his intended prey.
The first time he did this was as the memorable hall monitor in the first film. Since then, Freddy's also looked like two different nurses - one who was off the charts hot (Dream Warriors); one a bit less lovely, since it was Robert Englund in drag (The Dream Master).
He's also managed to lure and manipulate people by looking like their loved ones, including his enemy Nancy's father, Don (Dream Warriors), and even Jason Voorhees' beloved mother, Pamela (Freddy Vs. Jason).
Freddy gets dressed up, turns into a puppet and welcomes us to prime time on Page 2...
Source : ign[dot]com
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