"Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master" picks up where the third left off. The three survivors of the previous film: Kristen, Joey, and Kincaid, have been released from Westin Hills and have started a new life. However Kristen starts having bad dreams in a bolier room. Joey and Kincaid dont believe her at first until both are killed by Freddy. Then Kristen realizing she's next pulls her friend Alice into the dream to give Alice her power before Freddy kills her. Now Alice must find a way to stop Freddy from using her to kill her friends.
The three actors returning from Nightmare 3 do a decent job but are however quickly killed off. The new girl Alice is quite likeable and it's kind of neat how she gets part of her friends personality when they die. Of course Robert Englund is perfect as Freddy, a evil bastard that wants to exact his revenge and crack a joke while doing so. The whole Alice's brother knowing Karate is a little to much. Yes I know there are teenagers that do that but it just doesn't really fit in the series. Also at times the teenage chacters can be a little cardboard.
I thought it was neat how Alice used each of her friends particular skills to fight Freddy. Although they didn't really explain (or I just didn't catch it) how the Dream Master rhyme defeats Freddy and releases all his captured souls.
This film continues with the trend of finding creative ways to kill teens in their dreams. The part where Freddy litterally sucks the life out of someone is actually quite disturbing (and is accompanied by the line "Wanna suck face?"). The deaths of Kincaid and Joey are also wonderfully set up, from the junk yard to the naked lady in the water bed. But none of these come close to Debbie's death. Of course the worst thing that can happen while your working out is falling a sleep. However that's noting to having your elbows snap open. Freddy using Debbies fear of bugs, her arms turn into cockroach legs. To her horror she soon realizes that she is in a roach motel with Freddy looking in from the outside. She then accidentally falls down her skin tearing off from the sticky gew revealing a roach underneath. The Freddy says "You can check in but ya can't check out." then he proceds to squish the box making it gush with green gew. Even for people who don't mind bugs this scene is still disturbing and the practical effects the series is famous for makes it all so real.
By the Fourth film Freddy still gives us a good show making us cringe at the things he does. However you can't help but miss Nancy's character depth.
I give "A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master" a B