Freddy Krueger [THE MANY FACES OF]

A Nightmare On Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge [QUEERS FOR FEARS]

Movie: A Nightmare On Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge Year: 1985 Cast: Mark Patton, Kim Myers and Robert Englund

Plot: Child murderer Freddy Kruger returns and attempts to possess the body of a teenage boy who moves into 1428 Elm Street so that he can exist within the waking world and kill again.

Why So Queer? Never was there a slasher that was so overtly gay without the intention of being gay. The main protagonist Jesse is gayer then the day is long. In this installment Freddy essentially represents Jesse’s repressed gay desire. Jesse inexplicably tracks down his sadistic coach at a leather bar and goes with him to the school gym in the middle of the night. Freddy then takes over and murders the coach. A similar scenario plays out with Jesse’s buddy Grady. And to top it all off Jesse is able to defeat Freddy through his sheer will power and feigned heterosexuality.

The director claims he had no such intention and Mark Patton has said he was coming to terms with being gay during the period in which he starred in the film. In 1985 most people didn’t even know what gay was, so this some how managed to be wildly successful. The franchise spanning documentary Never Sleep Again offers an in length examination of the sheer queerness of the film. It is worth checking out for anyone who is a fan of Freddy, whether he represents the dark secret of a group of parents come back to haunt them or the emotional conflict of getting a boner in gym.