I just rewatched the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise on my old double feature DVDs (the only way to watch lol) and I have come to my conclusion on the worst and best movies in the Nightmare series. WARNING! This will be heavily biased by my opinions and nostalgia. But I do think my rankings aren’t too bad, so If you want to debate in the comments, feel free lol. I will also be ranking from worst to best, meaning the worst will be at the top and the best will be at the bottom. I see people doing it the other way, but I like this a bit better :) enjoy!

A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child

I FUCKING HATED THIS MOVIE!!! The idea of Freddy going into the dreams of a fetus is actually pretty fucking cool, but its execution was so poor that I cringed so hard while rewatching it. The kid is so annoying and for some reason, Lisa Wilcox was boring and sloppy in this movie. It’s probably because she read the script and was so tired of the bullshit that she couldn’t hide it during filming. The worst part about this movie is that they did the exact same thing Dream Master did, but worse. They replaced all the characters we loved with ones that we barely know, so it’s hard to care when they die. There was only one kill that I enjoyed in this movie and it was being fed to death. That’s literally the only thing I liked about this movie.

Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare

This movie fucking sucked, but it’s significantly better than Dream Child, so that’s a plus. Freddy doesn’t seem like Freddy anymore, which sucks because he’s one of my favorite horror movie villains. The acting is by far the worst and the whole dream demon thing is incredibly laughable. But if you go into it thinking it’s a parody, so bad it’s good, kind of movie, it’s not too bad. I really enjoyed most of the jokes and it was pretty funny all the way through. But the bad writing, bad acting, and terrible cartoonish Freddy keep this from being any higher on my list :(

A Nightmare on Elm Street ‘10

This movie had great cinematography, decent performances, and interesting additions (micro naps and Freddy’s illegal activities), but it didn’t add enough new things to make it new. I just don’t understand why it exists, you know? There isn’t much for me to say about it really. For a slasher, it’s not bad. But for a Nightmare movie, it doesn’t live up to my standards. But it’s better than Dream Child (everything is lol) and Freddy’s dead.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master

This movie isn’t as good as people say it is. It is by far the best-looking film in this series, and its cinematography is something I wish all of the movies had. Most shots are amazing and add a lot to the feeling of the movie, without being too inconspicuous. The kills are also the best in this movie, based solely on Joey’s waterbed death and Debbie’s bug transformation. But that can’t make up for the weird plot and killing off the best characters in the series. I love Lisa Wilcox, but the remaining Dream Warriors were great and it was really upsetting to see them go so soon. The plot is inconsistent, the characters are brand new, and the key to defeating Freddy is barely mentioned, let alone explained enough to keep anyone interested.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors

I don’t even really know what to say, except this is just a great movie. It’s great all around. Amazing performances, interesting plot, and. The only reason this movie is as high as it is is that Heather Langenkamp steals the spotlight (once again) and gives another outstanding performance, and the kills are great. The puppet kill is one of the best in the series and “Welcome to prime time, bitch” will always be iconic. I know that everyone loves this movie and considers it to be better than the original, but my top 4 are there for a reason. THEY ARE ALL NEW! I think acting, directing, plot, and the kills are important in deciding whether a movie is good or not. But when looking at a series, the ones that stick out to you are the ones that try something new. Freddy vs Jason is the first true collaboration of two horror icons. It was done really well and even now, isn’t something you see often. Freddy’s Revenge is by far the most unique in the series, with our protagonist becoming Freddy and having to balance his life and something taking over him. The original was very new for its time and after 30 years, it is still original. We got to see a kick-ass final girl (something we didn’t see too often at the time) and an innovative killer. New Nightmare brings an iconic series into the real world and is the most meta thing I have ever seen! Dream Warriors is incredible, but it is too similar to 4, 5, and 6. The only thing that sets it apart is the setting, which only does so much.

Freddy vs Jason

I just want to start out by saying that this is my favorite movie in the franchise. It’s the one I come back to the most and I don’t think that will change. The fighting between Freddy and Jason is great and the gore is top-notch. I didn’t think there would be a plausible reason Freddy and Jason would be together, but it actually makes sense and the plot is very interesting. The performances are not half bad and the kills are pretty innovative. I love Laurie as a final girl and her personal motives against Freddy. There are a handful of beautifully executed scenes that make me come back to watch again, including the psych ward scene and the party. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t the best movie out there. But for bringing two horror icons together, this movie does a pretty damn good job. The only reason it’s not higher is that the other movies are gold.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge

It took me 5 years to watch this movie. My mom told me it was a piece of shit, so instead of watching it, I just decided it was trash and told people it was my least favorite. I felt so bad after a while, though, because I would skip it in my rewatches. So I watched it and immediately fell in love with it. It’s been one of my favorites for a few years now and I still can’t imagine why in the world my mother would hate it. The acting is the second-best in the franchise and the characters aren’t bad at all. I love Jesse and the layers to his character. The relationships are great and their impact on the plot is executed very well. Freddy is a lot less comedic as he will grow to be in the next few movies, which I wasn’t a big fan of, but the pros outweigh it.

A Nightmare on Elm Street ‘89

It was really hard to put this one in the number 2 spot, but it had to be done. This is the first horror movie I ever watched and I loved it so fucking much. My mom used to tell me stories about how scared she was seeing it and it made me want to watch it more. I’m glad I did because this movie is packed with nostalgia for me. It’s kinda slow when you rewatch it, which is why I tend to skip it when rewatching, but it is the perfect slasher to me. The plot is innovative and Nancy is the best final girl in my book. The kills are great and the acting, albeit a bit dated, is in my top 3 for the series. This is one of the best movies I have ever seen and it will always be a 10 in my heart :)

Wes Craven’s New Nightmare

It was hard to decide whether this should be in number 1 or 2, but after careful consideration, I can put this one on top. This essentially takes everything the original did and heightened it. We have Robert Englund as a darker scarier Freddy, Heather Langenkamp as a more matured Nancy, callbacks to the original with cameos and quotes, and higher stakes. The best way to describe how this movie takes the cake is the death scene of Julie (the babysitter). It is essentially Tina’s death from the original, but with clips of Freddy dragging her up the walls intertwined, making the original kill seem weak. The acting is also in my top 3 for the series, which is mostly due to Heather, considering some of the other performances fall short. Most of the kills are strong, even when they lack creativity, and the overall style really ties every performance together. This is by far the best movie in the series and it is one that I will never forget.