It's Just A Dream....a review of A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge

A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge is an odd ball film. Much like our anti-hero Krueger, it’s the bastard son of the entire franchise, quickly dismissed and ignored for everything that is wrong with it (of which, there is a lot). But what about what it gets right?

Let’s get something out of the way right now: yes, there’s an undertone to the film’s story about homosexuality and dealing with one’s inner struggles; the scene of Freddy fully coming out of Jesse’s body being a not too subtle punch right in the nose. At the same time though, Nightmare 2 wants to be just like all the other popular Horror releases at the time and have a higher than normal body count, showing the one true instance of a Nightmare film trying to edge its way into Slasher territory.

Writer David Chaskin openly admits that he intentionally added the gay undertones into the story focusing on new kid young Jesse Walsh and his struggles to fit in at school after having just moved into Springwood’s most famous haunted house. By basically flipping the script and swapping the traditional “final girl” character for a “final boy”, Nightmare 2 challenges its audience on many levels, not willing to just be your average, run of the mill pseudo-Slasher. The fact that the name “Jesse” is sexually ambiguous lends more credence to the notion of swapping sexes of all the main characters. 

Chaskin’s gamble on the story elements of Nightmare 2 and director Jack Sholder’s passé handling of the material may have been intended to do something a little bit different, ultimately the audience didn’t really care. As a result, Nightmare 2 has fallen into the same company of misunderstood sequels like Halloween III, in search of vindication from fans. 

But, what does the film do right that most fans tend to miss? For starters, there’s Robert Englund’s performance as Freddy. As far as I’m concerned, this is the film that shows the true birth of the Freddy we all know and love. Many of the mannerisms that have become associated with the character – the maniacal laugh and the pose immediately come to mind – are evident in this film. It’s worth noting that New Line execs initially started filming without Englund, feeling that any stunt player could portray Krueger and the audience would be none the wiser. This, of course, is the first mistake the film makes, with it being painfully obvious during the shower murder of Coach Schneider, as the stunt man in a Freddy mask hopelessly waddles out from the steam with all the presence of a white piece of paper.

This is the film where Englund completely takes ownership of the character! 

Later on, there’s the pool party scene which has divided Nightmare purists to this day since it breaks all the rules established in the first film. But it’s this scene where Englund really shines for me as he struts around the party after causing havoc and killing a few teens. Sure, this scene is a blatant attempt to add a body count, but I’m willing to forgive it for just how cool Freddy is in it! 

Make-up effects artist Kevin Yagher took over the design of the character this time, infusing a sort of witch-like appearance with a hooked nose and more pronounced chin. This is also the first time that Freddy’s sweater has the stripes down the sleeves and features the frayed wrists, neck and hemline; in short, the look everyone knows! Just look at his first appearance in the film on the bus in Jesse’s nightmare; as he’s slowly stalking back towards the frightened teens, the blades on his glove slicing up the bus seats . . . that’s pure, sadistic evil right there!  

As a kid, I remember not really being too into the fact that Freddy doesn’t even wear his glove for the 2nd half of the movie after emerging from Jesse’s body. Now, as an adult, I can’t really say I’m any less not into it, but I kind of understand it and appreciate it. Having the blades come right out of his fingers kind of a cool look I guess.  

In terms of his character, fans should be more appreciative of Freddy in Nightmare 2 specifically because it’s the last time we really see him before he became the jokester/game show host type in later sequels. He’s still a seriously evil dude and quite scary, but he’s got some solid one-liners as well; some standouts being “You’re all my children now”, “You’ve got the body…I’ve got the brain” and my personal favorite, “Help yourself, fucker!" 

Another interesting statistic that make Nightmare 2 stand out from the rest of the series is that it’s the last film where the kills are (somewhat) grounded in reality in that Freddy’s slicing and dicing and not getting cartoony with his methods of knocking kids off. During that pool party scene alone, there are some seriously vicious glove attacks on some of the kids!  

Plus, since I first discovered Nightmare 2 on VHS, I've got to mention the cool cover art here.  For me, that is the artwork for the film.  In fact, when I first saw the original poster art of Jesse holding Lisa in front of a mirror, with Freddy staring back, it just felt wrong compared to what I'd grown up with.  A few years later, I'd collect a poster for Nightmare 4 that featured the original photo used for this piece (albeit obviously reversed for the VHS cover).  Freddy just looks so cool on this cover and it certainily played a part in wrangling me in as a fan.  Next to the VHS artwork for Dawn of the Dead, I'd say this is a prime example my belief that artwork does matter; if it looks cool, is put together well, and completely catures your attention, then it's certainly a Win in my book!

The bottom line about Nightmare 2, though, for me is that it’s just another stop along the Elm Street series. Whether or not fans dig it is completely subjective. At the worst, it’s not as good as the original film, but at the very least, it’s not as bad or silly as some fans feel the later sequels are. If you’ve been overly dismissive of Nightmare 2 over the years, give it another shot . . . you might just be surprised.

It's Just A Dream . . . A Nightmare On Elm Street retrospective Part 2

Picking up where we last left off, I feel it's only appropriate to cover the next phase of my Freddy Fandom and dive headfirst into some of the crazy stuff that was going on and being marketed to impressionable young minds like mine!  At that particular point in time between 1987-1991 or so, Freddy was pretty much king as far as I was concerned and his popularity world-wide was definitely at its peak.

In the tri-state area of New Jersey/Pennsylvania/New York, we had a chain of department stores called Clover.  Now, I have many, many fond memories of going to several Clover stores as a kid, but none of them were as cool as the one outside of Easton, PA at the Palmer Park Mall.  For me, that store was the first and best one and, whether it was with my parents or, especially, my grandmother, I always seemed to get a cool toy whenever we were there . . . I'll never forget the day we walked into the store and saw this gem . . . 

The perfect Christmas gift for EVERY kid!

Just try and imagine the excitement that poured out of me when I saw this incredible Freddy doll -- that talked!! 

By now, I'm sure you're familiar with the legend of this doll; Matchbox, a toy company known primarily for toy cars that competed with Hot Wheels, for some strange reason decided to do a string of Freddy merchandise.  Naturally, marketing the bastard son of a hundred maniacs to kids (least of all, Freddy was a child murderer!) was bound to raise a few eyebrows and piss off some parents.  So, almost as soon as these dolls hit toy shelves, they were pulled due to mounting pressure from parental groups.  But, I got one . . . actually, I had two!

For whatever reason, the first one I got didn't quite work as it was supposed to.  The doll has the old pull-string mechanism on its back to make it talk and, no doubt due to too many tugs of the string, the mechanism ultimately wore out.  This resulted in a chipmunk-voiced talking Freddy which, given the phases he says, was somewhat hilarious, but ultimately frustrating for a 7yr old!  Being that my Mom is the coolest mom on the planet, she took me to various other Clover department stores in search of a replacement (exchange) and we ended up in one outside of Allentown, PA.  This is the doll I still have to this day!

Although he's got his chimpmunk voice from years of abuse, he's still a badass.

...how I've managed to hold on to this thing for all these years (with his hat!) and not have defaced him or destroyed him in any way aside from my minor dings and scrapes, is beyond me.  In tribute to the Freddy puppet in Nightmare 3, this doll hung on my bunk bed, with this little hollow plastic feet banging along the metal frame.  This doll was, of course, reissued and sold at Spencer's Gifts in 1994; though it was the same style of doll and same plastic molds for the head, hands, and feet, the talking mechanism was replaced with a push-button in his chest.  The paint scheme, sweater pattern, hat, and phrases were done differently as well.  Just found the one I'd had in its original box and gave it to my nieces (who were absolutely thrilled) since we have the original and my wife has one of the reissues.

Cool sidenote on the subject of Matchbox talking dolls...anyone remember the Pee-Wee Herman and Ernest talking dolls?  Both had similar builds to Freddy (ie: hollow plastic heads, hands, feet and they also feature the pull-string mechanism).  Along with the talking Freddy, I also had the Pee-Wee Herman doll; I vividly remember having him wear Freddy's hat and pretending that he was Indiana Jones!

Another cool bit of Matchbox merch that I actually stumbled upon at a flea market is the Maxx FX Freddy action figure.

Brilliant concept and killer box art here!

This first figure was designed to be a pilot for a new line of "dolls" aimed at boys based around movie make-up techniques.  Think of it as MEGO doing a toy based off of the SyFy Channel's Face-Off series!  In fact, the back of the box even advertises the rest of the line including, Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, and even the ALIEN!  Sadly, these were never produced as this Freddy figure fell victim to the same angry parental fury that limited the shelf life of the talking doll.  Hell, I don't even remember seeing this in stores, as the only one I ever saw as a kid was at a flea market, like I said, and the dude wanted $50 for it, which seemed like a ton of change to me back then.  Although he's the greatest dad on the planet to this day, Dad wouldn't get it for me that day, which I'm actually grateful for, because I doubt this would've survived the way the larger doll did.

However, shortly after I first moved to Chicago in 2008, I was checking out the local comic shop which always had a stockpile of great toys and action figures I'd grown up with.  One day, while visiting on my way home from work, I spotted the Maxx FX Freddy figure, mint in the box!  I couldn't believe it and figured it would be commanding the same insane prices I'd seen at Horror conventions over the years . . . no way, it was actually under $10!!  You bet your ass it came home with me that very day!

Just pretend that Robert Englund is actually in the make-up and that his hat actually fits.

The figure itself is more clunky and fragile than it looks.  Since all of the "special effects" have to fit over the 6" doll that comes with it, the pieces are oversized and make Freddy much taller than any similar figures.  In fact, it was actually really difficult to fit his feet into the KISS-like boots!  How little girls manage to put Barbie's feet into all those crazy shoes, I'll never know!  Since he is pretty fragile, these days, he's just been chilling on top of the entertainment unit in the Crypt, surrounded by other action figures. 

Up next in the toy department, enter LJN Toys.  Now, if you grew up in the 80s and early 90s, you may remember LJN for creating some of the worst (best?) and most frustrating Nintendo games for titles like Friday the 13th, Jaws, The Karate Kid, Back to the Future, and of course A Nightmare on Elm Street among many others.  LJN also produced toy lines for Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Gremlins, and their most famous lines Thundercats and WWF Wrestling Superstars (you know you cracked a few of your friends over the head with one of those hard, rubber Hulk Hogans).

In 1989, LJN took full advantage of their Freddy license, releasing a Freddy Squishem (similar to a stress reliever), a Freddy Fright Squirter (nothing more than a giant Freddy head that spit water), and a "Monster Squirt" squirt gun shaped like Freddy himself.  Not from LJN, but a yo-yo company called Spectra Star, there was even a Freddy yo-yo, depicting our hero with his glove on his left hand...even as a kid, I was weary of stuff that didn't get it right!  None of those toys sparked my interest though, as I went for their hard rubber statue-like doll . . .

Freddy says "how about that Ghost band, eh?

This guy has been in my collection ever since and sort of stood guard by my VCR and DVD player, hidden away behind a stack of unlabeled VHS tapes on a shelf.  Again, I'm amazed I still have it in the great condition that it's in.  Some years ago, I touched up his glove with some silver paint on his blades and to simulate solder scarring.  Although the pic might say otherwise, his boots are actually black. 

Another cool LJN item that crossed into another Horror franchise was Spitballs.  I remember finding these at a K-Mart when they came out; I instantly had to have both Freddy and Jason, though I'm not sure at this point if I'd been allowed to see any of the Friday the 13th movies.  Each was sold separately on a blister card, packaged with a "victim" spitball.


Jason has seen better days in terms of paint (note the red I added to his axe wound).  I've no idea where their victims went though.

The earliest Freddy-related toy I had is probably a cheap, dime store "stick-up" made by a no-name company in 1988.  I remember Mom buying one for me at a local Mini-Check 5 & 10 store and I was pretty stoked since this was the first official Freddy action figure I had.

Garfield and 'Baby On Board' window clingers be damned!

You can see by the package artwork and motif of the figure that it's based on Nightmare 3, though as a kid, I'd no idea why Freddy was wearing a trench coat on the card art.  My fondest memory of all this merch coming out at this time was the great promo photos on the packaging, all seeming to have come from a photo shoot for Nightmare 3.  Actually, I had at least two of these little Freddy guys . . . I've seen a variation that is barefoot and has a slightly different sweater, but I can't remember if I had that one or not.  Somewhere, I'm sure at least one of them survives in the boxes and storage bins my parents have been awesome enough to hold onto from my old bedroom and our attic when they moved recently!

Another cool piece that my parents saved for me is The Freddy Game, a 3D role-playing board game that I've had since its release in 1988 by Cardinal/Victory Games.  Set in "Freddy's house", in an almost Clue style, players would work their way through a 3D setting (complete with pop-up walls resembling a maze) trying to survive . . . the only catch was that one of the players really was Freddy!  To be honest, I don't think I ever actually played the game; instead, I just played around with the settings of the house, using it like a playset.  Regardless of that, I'm glad to have it in our collection of vintage board games!




In the upper left corner, you can see I tried to sell this at a yard sale for $1.00!

 

Something seems a little off about this guy...

One last piece of merch I'd like to cover is a sticker book that was released by Comic Images in either late 1987 or early 1988.   While I can't find an exact release year, it's definitely before Nightmare 4 in '88 as the book only covers the first three films.  You'd buy the book and then have to buy individual sticker packs that were about the size of trading cards -- though I can't remember if they came with bubble gum or not.  Surprisingly, the sticker book and stickers suddenly started popping up at Hot Topic stores back in 2005/2006 again! 

 

Kinda looks like those airbrushed t-shirts from the Jersey Shore, eh?

The most intriguing thing about this book, for me at least, is the cool, original artwork on the cover.  The book itself loosely covers the first three films in the series through a series of photos; I remember the photos on the spreads of each page being black and white and the stickers were in color.  There may have even been captions either in the boxes where the stickers would be placed or on the wax backers for the stickers. 

 

While I'm tempted to grab one of these books on eBay, I'm almost certain that my original book is still tucked away in a storage bin from my old bedroom.  Although I'm not 100% positive, I think I had most of the stickers in my book, though it was probably nowhere near complete.

 

Of course, this article is in no way near a comprehensive piece on all ANOES merch (I could do an entire blog just focusing on the merchandising angle of the series!).  In time, I might check out some of the more recent items that have come about -- it's worth noting McFarlane Toys' contribution with the original Movie Maniacs line, no? -- but I just wanted to focus solely on the stuff I grew up with.

 

Stay tuned for another edition of It's Just A Dream....

 

It's Just A Dream....a review of A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (1984)

It should go without saying that Wes Craven’s original A Nightmare On Elm Street is a bona-fide classic.  As it turns 30 years old (!) this year, it continues to find an audience with younger generations, while sitting at the apex of a veritable gold mine – that being New Line Cinema, “The House That Freddy Built” and the Nightmare franchise itself – it has also managed to survive the dreaded remake back in 2010.  People love Freddy, it’s as simple as that.

You may have noticed that I’ve posted the original VHS cover art and not the poster artwork here; there’s an obvious reason for that actually.  You see, given my age, I unfortunately didn’t get to experience the Nightmare films in the theater (until Nightmare 5 actually) and only knew them all from their initial VHS releases.  In fact, I actually did a disservice to myself by not seeing them in chronological order at first, as I believe the first one I saw was either Nightmare 3 or Nightmare 4!  This, as you can probably figure, created an interesting perspective on the films and the character.

Perhaps foolishly – again, I was pretty young at the time, probably 6 or 7yrs old – my initial impression of A Nightmare on Elm Street was that it was “wrong” or simply not like what I’d already known about the world of Elm Street.   The first and most obvious thing is Freddy’s sweater . . . it always stood out to me that there were no stripes on the sleeves of the sweater in the first film and, honestly, it looked a little too neat, as it was missing the frayed ends on the wrists, neck and waist.  Character-wise, Freddy always seemed a little clunkier and a bit more raw and unpolished in that first film . . . looking at it today, I can understand that the character hadn’t quite been perfected yet by Robert Englund.  Some of his trademark mannerisms are still there, though they hadn’t yet been perfected. 

If you’re reading this blog, chances are that you already know the story of the film, so I won’t bore you with a synopsis, though it’s always worth noting the genuinely terrifying nature of the cusp of the film’s story . . . if you’re killed in your dreams, you’re dead for real.   Wes Craven’s original idea stemmed from newspaper articles detailing the sleep-related deaths of Laotian refugees in 1981.  Now, I don’t know about you, but that’s pretty heavy . . . sleep is supposed to be a peaceful experience, where your guard is completely down.

Story-wise, Craven’s script is damn near perfect, setting up all the rules of the Nightmare world and expertly bending the audience’s expectations of what is a dream and what isn’t a dream.  Of course, the series continued to play with concept to varying degrees of success, often having the audience just as surprised as the character(s) stuck in a never-ending dream.  In this first cast of Elm Street kids, Craven presents a few stereotypical cases:  the brainy “good” girl heroine, her jock boyfriend, the slightly “loser” best friend and her delinquent boyfriend.   Growing up, I knew and was friends with all of these types of kids!

At the center of the story, of course, is Fred Krueger and his murderous exploits.  There’s some great potential for a backstory which the series mined in later sequels with varying degrees of success; ultimately, it still feels real and undiluted by the pop culture phenomenon the character would become very shortly.  When Nancy’s mom finally reveals the truth about Krueger, the details leave prickly goosebumps on the viewer due to their grisly nature.

The cast is pretty spot-on, too, with Heather Langenkamp holding her own as Freddy’s first (and most fan favorite?) opponent, Nancy Thompson.   Langenkamp conveys the perfect “girl next door” charm that the character needs and is instantly identifiable and relatable.  In his first major role, Johnny Depp plays Nancy’s jock boyfriend, Glenn.  Now, one thing that sort of bugs me about Johnny Depp these days is how all the kids only want to check out Nightmare because it’s Johnny Depp’s first role . . . nobody cared about him then, but now that he’s Tonto, Willy Wonka, and Jack Sparrow, everyone loves the guy.  Whatever….I had a good time not telling my nieces Glenn’s fate while they oohed and ahhed over Depp when I showed them the film for the first time this past weekend.  Haha.

One major thing that I don’t think ever really registered with me as a kid about these films was the exact ages of the characters.   Amanda Wyss plays the film’s first victim, Tina, and shortly after her death, details of the investigation are heard on a radio in Nancy’s kitchen.  Right there, Tina’s age is confirmed to be 15yrs old!  Watching these films as a kid, the characters always seemed so much older than I was (for obvious reasons), so when I revisited the series sometime in my twenties and finally realized Tina’s age, I was blown away.  Some of the things that happen revolving around Tina in the wake of her death are made even creepier when I’m able to place myself in that age-range and look back on my own high school years and friendships from back then.

Now, obviously the film isn’t just about the teens who are haunted by Freddy, as the centerpiece of the story is squarely on the sins of their parents and their ideas of vigilante justice.  John Saxon and Ronee Blakley are great as Nancy’s parents, divorced and each having their own notions of what’s happening to their daughter and her friends.  Saxon is perfect as a no nonsense police lieutenant trying to solve a murder, all the while ignoring the skeletons in his closet about Krueger.  Blakley has her moments – most of which are hilarious, though I’m sure unintentional; still when she fills Nancy in who Krueger was and what happened to him, you can understand why she was nominated for an Oscar for Nashville.

How can there be talk about A Nightmare on Elm Street without discussing the special effects?  First and foremost, I have to give credit where it’s due to Lou Carlucci for designing and building the original glove seen in this film and most of Nightmare 2.  That thing is a true work of genius and, whether or not it was intended to become what we all know and love today, the seeds were most definitely there for something truly original!  Seriously, how many other low-budget independent horror films can you name that had a weapon that’s become as iconic as Freddy’s glove?  Of course, the glove itself was refined over the course of the sequels – which I’ll eventually get to discussing – but this one being the original, I’ll always have a certain fondness for it. 

As for Freddy himself, the credit with designing his make-up goes to David Miller.  Crude in comparison to the look in the sequels, Miller’s original Freddy make-up still holds up, though it’s probably my least favorite look-wise.   To me, it appears kind of just put together, whereas the later make-ups look cohesive as if they’re one giant piece.  Miller would return again in Nightmare 5, Freddy’s Dead and once again for New Nightmare, where he refined his original creation a bit . . . though that particular design still looks a little too rubbery to me.

For me, though, the most telling thing about the original Nightmare film is that it created a brand new movie monster in the form of Freddy Krueger.  Original, scary, yet likable audiences around the world dug him!  The character himself, in the few short years of the original series' lifespan, managed to get ingrained into popular culture and truly rub shoulders with the likes of Lugosi's Dracula and Karloff's Frankenstein's Monster.  Freddy was truly a product of the 80's and would soon transform and identify with the Heavy Metal/Punk scene to become, quite honestly, the definition of a rock star to Horror fans.

 

It's Just A Dream . . . A Nightmare On Elm Street retrospective Part 1

Recently, it was announced that Robert Englund, Freddy Krueger himself, would be appearing for a one-time only event where he'll be donning his famous character make-up one final time.  At Flashback Weekend, this August 8th-10th in Rosemont, IL Englund will be doing photo-ops while wearing Freddy Krueger make-up designed and applied by Robert Kurtzman!  This, of course, is a for a great cause as well:  all proceeds will go towards the Midway Drive-in and will help them hopefully finally secure a digital projector!

It should go without saying just how cool this will be . . . it's not just a pic with Robert Englund . . . or a pic with a dude dressed up as Freddy . . . it's FREDDY!!!  When I met Robert back in 2002 at a Fangoria's Weekend of Horrors, I almost lost my mind while he was on stage and did the "Welcome to prime-time, bitch!" line followed by that classic, unmistakable laugh!  

Of course, this announcement comes near the 30th anniversary of the original A Nightmare On Elm Street film and, well, it all got me feeling rather nostalgic.  You see, as a kid, my childhood heroes were (in this order):  Indiana Jones, Mr. T. and Rocky Balboa.  Then, not too long after, Freddy Krueger came along and pretty much made me who I am today.  So, I was reading about Englund's plan, knowing that I'll get to have a photo WITH Freddy (not just Robert Englund or a dude dressed up as Freddy....but FREDDY HIMSELF), I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to revisit the whole Nightmare phenomenon from my perspective....

 Let's start back at the beginning, shall we?

My very first encounter with Freddy Krueger probably stems from a nightmare I had . . . while the details are a bit hazy, I do remember my dad being in the dream and laughing about the way Freddy looked, calling him appropriately, "Pizza Face".  Now, this must have been after seeing Dokken's video for "Dream Warriors" which, of course, was featured as the main theme to A Nightmare On Elm Street 3:  Dream Warriors.  Speaking of that video, I remember seeing the tail-end of it where Freddy jumps up from his own nightmare (who wouldn't have a nightmare about Dokken circa 1987??) . . . I was intrigued and a little frightened, the same way a spook house at a carnival might creep someone out.  

Probably around the same time, give or take, I remember taking a trip down to New Hope, PA with my parents probably in late 1987 or early 1988.  This very well may have been the first time I'd been down there for all I know . . . but, for those of you who are unfamiliar with New Hope, it's a cute little river town along the Delaware River, stocked with all manner of neat stores and boutiques.  I'd say New Hope was "vintage" before there was "vintage" if that makes any sense.  We were in one store that had tons of amazing posters for sale; the name of it escapes me, but I'm almost certain it's no longer there unfortunately.  For whatever reason, I was drawn to only one poster in particular . . . 

 
I had to have it.

. . . and, so, on my bedroom wall it went.  It stayed there for many years, eventually joined by promo posters for Part 2 and Part 4, as well as Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Batman, and Rambo III.  Unfortunately, none of those posters are in my collection any more (more on this particular one a little later). 
  With that poster, the seeds were almost fully planted for Freddy to become one of my new heroes.  Enter Fangoria magazine . . . 

One weekend on a mall trip to Norristown, PA I happened to found myself in a Walden Books and was immediately drawn to a magazine featuring Freddy on the cover...

This magazine was essentially The Holy Bible to the budding Horror fan I was becoming!

To say that this magazine -- and specifically the cover itself -- changed me is complete understatement.  I scanned through this mag front to back, soaking in all of the grizzly imagery and reading what little I could at the time.  It seemed like I brought this mag everywhere with me; I even got in trouble with my babysitter for scaring her young son and giving him nightmares!  Of course, my original magazine long got destroyed over time, so I had to re-buy it again a few years back and I still flip through it every once in a while!

By this point, Freddy had officially become one of my new heroes!  I can only imagine what my teachers were thinking when they saw me draw stuff like this in Kindergarten . . . 

This was done in Kindergarten and, honestly, I'm amazed that it has survived all these years!

Or when I painted a huge mural (not much different than the pic above) on one of the store front windows in town for our annual Halloween decorations.  

Speaking of Halloween, I'll never forget the day my mom picked me up from my babysitter's and surprised me with my very first Freddy costume . . . it was the Don Post mask and styrofoam hat combo.  not sure if the mask still exists in the boxes and bins that used to make up my old bedroom, but I'd love to find that mask again.  And, of course, any Freddy Halloween costume wouldn't be complete with out a glove . . . 

To this day, I am not sure why the glove looks camouflage as I've never been able to find any other pics of it except for the one I still have to this day.   I clearly remember it having a pic of Freddy from Nightmare 3 on the package similar to the ones you see around, only with a brown glove.  I actually always preferred the look of this one to the others that I've seen over the years as cheap Halloween costumes; there's something cool about the aged paint apps on it and the implied viscera the black and red paint on the glove itself.  Anyway, I'm amazed that this thing has survived 25yrs in my collection and never broke, got lost, or got destroyed! 

One final thing that solidified the myth of Freddy for me was the video for "Are You Ready For Freddy?" by the Fat Boys.   Has it aged well?  Probably not.  Is it still damn fun?  Absolutely!   I can still put the song on (either the soundtrack version or the extended version that showed up on the Fat Boys record, Coming Back Hard Again) and rap every word!

Stay tuned for more of my thoughts on the whole Nightmare phenomenon!

The Conjuring (2013)

Take a deep breath of fresh air.  Go ahead.  I'll wait.

Got it?  

Good.

That's the best way to sum up James Wan's The Conjuring.   It's truly a breath of fresh air in the Horror genre; original, well-made, well-acted, well-written and, most of all, scary!

Based on the files of ghost-hunting couple Ed and Lorraine Warren, The Conjuring tells the story of a family who moves into a deal of a house out in the Rhode Island countryside.  For Carolyn and Roger Perron (and their five daughters) things are quickly turned upside down as strange happenings begin in their new home.

Before they know it, the Perron family calls Ed and Lorraine Warren for help in determining just what the hell is going on in their home and why it's happening.

Playing out more like Poltergeist than Friday the 13th, the strengths of The Conjuring lay more in what isn't shown than what actually is.  Remember those days kids?  Surely anyone who's into Horror films can relate to being terrified that someone or something was in their closet, under their bed, or waiting in the shadows.  The screenplay by Chad and Carey Hayes really sticks to the point of the story and only brings in some minor subplots, though overall, it's really a fat-free Horror story at its heart.  

I recently read that James Wan studied various 1970s films to model the way he had this film shot; it shows.  Set in 1971, when the actual case occurred, it's nice to see a period Horror film taken seriously and not just an uber fan director trying to emulate the style of "a Horror movie from the 70s".  Everything about this film feels authentic and that was truly something that I appreciated and helped make the world within the film that much more real and believable.  

As Ed and Lorraine Warren, Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga embody two characters who really can be (hopefully) the next great Horror franchise characters . . . more on that later.  Both actors bring their A-games and, although the story is about the Perron family, their performances really pull viewer interest towards the Warrens.  Lili Taylor and Ron Livingston are also in fine form as Carolyn and Roger (the girls who play their daughters are all exceptional as well); in fact, I was truly impressed with everything that all of the major players allow themselves to go through in this film!  

Keeping in mind that this film is based on factual accounts and that Ed and Lorraine Warren are very real paranormal investigators, there's a sense of realism found here that you don't really see in too many Horror films.  Sure, it's so easy to slap "Based on a true story..." onto a film and watch the money roll in, but . . . well, do the research yourself on this case after you see the film and come to your own conclusion.  In fact, while browsing around, I found a photo gallery of Lorraine in the Warrens' basement occult museum; in the photo was a particular item featured in The Conjuring and seeing the real thing definitely sent a shiver over me. 

The moment the lights went up in the theater, I immediately had to Google the Warrens as their name and story seemed very familiar to me . . . I almost knew I'd seen something with them before.  Sure enough, they both appeared in the Fangoria documentary series Scream Greats Vol II:  Satanism and Witchcraft, with their interview footage and testimonials butting heads with a bargain basement practicing Satanist!  Again, this realization just made this movie that much more real for me.

Speaking of that occult museum . . . having investigated over 10,000 paranormal cases since starting their career in 1952 (Ed unfortunately passed away in 2006, but Lorraine still investigates on her own), the Warrens have amassed quite a collection of artifacts and trinkets which were central to each and every investigation.  In the film, it plays almost like the antique shop in Friday the 13th:  The Series and one immediately wonders how much of it is made up . . . oh, I assure you, it's very real though!  Basically, as it's portrayed in the film, it's a virtual endless fountain of macguffins for continuing the continuing adventures of Ed and Lorraine very much in the vein of Kolchak:  The Night Stalker!  After seeing this film and looking up a little history on the Warrens, it's apparent that their four other most famous investigations would make incredible movies . . . in fact, the door is left wide open for a sequel focusing on what is perhaps their most famous case! 

By the end of the film, audiences will have seen everything went in expecting without the usual stereotypical bullshit found in most mainstream Horror films released during the summer months (ie:  no ridiculous CGI final showdown that has viewers distracted by how fake everything looks).  If you're a serious Horror fan, please do yourself a favor and go see this film now . . . it's already on track to be a hit, but please support it for the fact that it's an original, R-rated serious Horror film.

See it!

Dawn of the Dead: The Monroeville Project

Think of a place that truly means something to you....does that place hold some sort of special memory?  A memory that is instantly brought back the moment you step foot in that place? 

Now think of your all time favorite movie....have you ever wondered what it would be like to step into that movie?  For most of us, our favorite movies were probably filmed on massive soundstages.  As much as some of us wish we could walk into the Death Star hangar or train for "the big fight" in Mighty Mick's Gym, those classic locations were merely sets which have now likely been dismantled and destroyed unfortunately.

For as long as I can remember, there's been one place that combines both of the things I asked you to really think about. 

The movie is, of course, Dawn of the Dead and the place is The Monroeville Mall where, in the Fall of 1977, four survivors of a national crisis sought refuge from hordes of the living dead.

Above:  January 1978...Below:  April 2013

As early as my second or third time seeing Dawn of the Dead, I clearly remember fantasizing about going to the mall.  Growing up in New Jersey, I've seen my share of shopping malls, many of which were probably built around the same time as the Monroeville Mall as some of them even featured similar decor and structures.  For those of you back home, the Whitehall Mall outside of Allentown, PA had some very similar features near its entrances....until it was pretty much demolished and got a massive facelift, as so many of these classic malls have fallen victim to....yes, even the Monroeville Mall.

Living a brisk walk away from Pennsylvania for most of my life, making a trip to Monroeville, PA seemed like a no brainer!  Unfortunately, that never materialized, as family vacations and roadtrips never quite veered far enough west along I-80.

Last year, for my 30th birthday, I knew I had to do something special to commemorate the event.  The idea of road-tripping it back to New Jersey to see my family and friends came up and...of course, Monroeville happens to be on the way!

After doing some solid research on-line for addresses of not just the Monroeville Mall, but other locations from Dawn of the Dead, as well as The Crazies, and Night of the Living Dead, my wife Sandee and I were all set to go.  In fact, to say we were excited is way too much of an understatement.

Though, before we really get along on our journey, Dear Reader, I've gotta introduce some sort of antagonist, don't I?  Every good story has a great antagonist, right??  Well, while doing my research on various George Romero-themed websites and message boards, I came across a post from someone who had recently visited the mall....this person claimed that the JC Penney's store, which had been the main location for a lot of the action in Dawn of the Dead, was ultimately closing and being demolished to make way for a movie theater!

What now?!?!  That can't be!!  They can't really destroy a place of horror movie history and, ironically, turn it into a movie theater....could they?  With that question hanging over our heads, we set off for Monroeville, PA.....

Our first location appears to be pretty far from the mall itself, but is actually a lot closer than you'd think!  Early in the film, the four friends need to find helicopter fuel and come across a large posse of local hunters and National Guardsmen out "hunting" the living dead.

Just try and look at this pic and NOT start humming "Cause I'm A Man" as it plays in the film!

 Most of the "redneck" scenes were filmed at a nearby golf course which is actually right up to the left in the location photo.   You can also see that the house, road, and general area remain untouched aside from 35+ years of tree growth.

This area is actually a bit of a treasure trove of Dawn and Romero-related locations....just down the road from the Redneck House is the Monroeville Airport (Harold W. Brown Memorial Field)....

I guess they truly DID hit the pumps and they took off....with the pumps!

It was pretty surreal when we first arrived at the airport, parking right across from the helicopter landing pad!  At first, you turn down a gravel road which is marked by warning signs of trespassing and threats of being protected under Homeland Security(!) until...BOOM...you're there!

And, exactly as the location is laid out in the film, right across from the landing pad is the field house....

Beware of bald, redneck zombies and crazy kiddie zombies when entering this building!

Unfortunately, both times we visited the airport, no one was around for us to ask if we could get a peek inside.  For those who maybe aren't Dawn fans, a lot of action was filmed in the field house and all over the airfield itself.

Remember what I said about this area being a treasure trove of locations?  Well, just over the trees behind the field house is a small residential neighborhood...containing none other than the house from the wrap-around story in Creepshow!

If Tom Atkins actually lived here, I'd be tempted to be an ass just to have him come out and yell at me!

As our heroes in the film eventually do, I think it's time we headed to the mall . . . shall we?

Here we see the original JC Penney's location, one of the first and longest-standing residents of the mall.

 The first location at the mall that is shown in the movie is, of course, the JC Penney's store as our heroes fly over the barren parking lot.  It's funny that I didn't actually realize the first location shown in the film is, in fact, Penney's . . . though, once I first stepped foot onto the property or inside the mall itself, I felt as though I'd been there a million times before!

"They're in Flyboy.  They opened the loading docks!  With those bay doors open, there's gonna be a thousand zombies in here."

The entrance we chose to enter the mall first was, of course, the loading docks.  This is where a good majority of some of the more important action takes place.  This is, of course, the second entrance that Peter and Roger block with the trucks and, ultimately, where Roger gets bitten.  It's also the entrance that the raiders later use to get into the mall with their bikes.

The photo above of the zombies, of course, is what a lot of us first saw from the old VHS tape!

The area seen above is so cool; as soon as you see the stone wall -- which is seen so much during the raider invasion as well as most noticeably as the back cover photo of the film's original VHS release -- it's instantly recognizable!  The first time we were there, there was actually a large tree planted in the open area off to the bench's right side (you can see it in the nighttime shot above).  When we came back in November, though, the tree was gone, making the area more resemble its 1978 version!

Once inside the loading dock doors, the mall really hasn't changed all that much . . . 

One of the interesting things that I noticed while first seeing the mall in person versus seeing it a million times in the movie is that it seems so much smaller in reality.  So many areas seen in the film always felt like they were shot in some other remote area, yet a majority of them were shot in a lot of the same areas.

From this entrance, there's a long hallway, leading to the main part of the mall.  This hallway was used for a variety of set pieces throughout the film; it's most commonly seen as Peter sets his sights on the Tommy Gun Raider as the bikers retreat.

Stationed at one end of the mall, this entrance leads to the area known as Fountain Square where the fountain originally was located.  This is on the Macy's side of the mall which, at the time of filming, was home to Hornes department store.

As you can see, today, it's a virtual petri dish of germs as the fountain has been replaced with a Mister Rogers' Neighborhood-themed childrens' play area.  Also, unfortunately, the cool stairwells stationed in each of the anchoring ends of the mall, which the zombies so prominently climbed, have been replaced with escalators. 

Directly above this area, as well as at the other end of the mall where the Clock Tower once stood, are those funky skylights which are famously seen at the start of the film's end credits.  The first time I looked up and saw them, I knew I was HERE . . . a great feeling!

Keeping with the film, we had to enter the JC Penney's store from the upper level, so let's make our way up there, shall we?

Up on the second floor and on the way to Penney's is, of course, one of the most instantly recognizable spots from the film:  the hallway that leads to the apartment hideout of our heroes!

Any fan knows that, just to the left side of the DVD screencap above, there's a fake wall that was put into place to mask the seemingly never-ending hallway (which actually leads out to the parking lot!).

It's worth noting that the change in the color scheme makes the hallway just a little more inviting and friendly.  Every time we've been to the mall, there is always a family or two with small kiddos in a hurry to get to the rest rooms located at this end!  You can also see a difference in the height of the hallway . . . it looks like, over time, there were some changes to the structure of it.

Now hit the department store!  Go!

This shot is such a classic!  The location photo we got was actually by accident, but it's still a great shot, don't you think so?

When there's no more room in HELL, the dead will walk the Earth.

Unfortunately, this was one (of two) of the only times I was able to visit the Penney's store; you see, the rumors were indeed true:  this location was closing to make way for a movie theater.

Seeing Penney's in her state of disrepair -- fixtures removed, CLOSEOUT sale signs, and general emptiness was bittersweet.  It was absolutely a bummer to see the store closing, knowing that Horror fans would forever be losing a piece of film history.  With that being said, it was also a treat to see the store almost completely empty!  In fact, for my next visit to the mall in November of 2012, it had been closed and was in the process of being completely gutted . . .

To most visitors of the Monroeville Mall, the JC Penney's store may have just been a tired, old department store well beyond its expiration date . . . but to Horror fans around the world, it held a special place in our collective heart.  

The main areas of interest in Penney’s were, of course, the escalator which Roger famously slides down the middle of, and the elevator where Flyboy meets his fate.

Heeeeeey Peter!

At the time we were there, the escalator was also in a state of disrepair.  Over the years, its wide open view point from the 2nd floor down to the ground floor had been replaced with a walled-in mirror look commonly found at most department stores.  Of course, the escalator itself still remained and, from what I could tell, most of the surrounding departments remained in the same area – with the Home Entertainment area being off to the right on the ground floor.

The first day we were there, I was nervous about sliding down the escalator – hey, I had to do it, if not for being a fan of the film and dreaming about it for so long, at least to get to do it before the store closed!  After much urging from my better half, I took a slide and recorded it . . .

Good times!  

When we returned the next day, the escalator was actually not working at all and was roped off for “maintenance” . . . something tells me they were trying to deter anyone else from taking one last slide though!

Booooooooooooooooooo!

The elevator had seen some changes over the years; most notably with its interior, which had been modernized.  Though, once the store was closed and demolition had begun, I was delighted to see several fans with access to the store and her parts posting photos of the original wood paneling inside the elevator, which had been hidden by the added modernizations!  Very cool!

Get me a screwdriver and something to stand on for down there....

On the ground floor, the area around the elevator saw many changes; in the film Flyboy runs past what looks like a small office or service desk.   Ultimately, the hallway leading down to the elevator had solid walls, a small doorway leading to several offices and a drinking fountain.

The second day we were there, more of those "Elevator" letters were missing....

The 2nd floor of the elevator, where Flyboy eerily returns as a zombie, looked pretty much the same as it did in the film!  It’s worth noting that, in the film, I had no idea that the exterior entrance of the mall was literally just out of sight in the right hand portion of the screen!

This is actually one of the shots that, for me, has always stood out from this film and genuinely creeped me out!

You can see that the area remained the same, aside from some modern flooring, a change of carpet, and the overhead lighting panels removed.   In fact, the door just to the left of the elevator appeared to even have the exact same sign “Associates Only”!

During that November visit, while the interior mall entrances were closed, the exterior doors to the gutted Penney’s were indeed wide open as demolition crew cleared out the location.   I was able to quietly step inside and see Penney’s in her naked state; the entrance I went in was right by Flyboy’s elevator, which was closed off unfortunately.  The little bit of Indiana Jones in me wanted to remove the elevator button for my collection, but alas, it had already been dismantled and what was once used in the film to reveal the Flyboy zombie was now just an errant wire sticking out of the panel.

These photos were taken in November 2012 as Penneys was being prepped for demolition.

Sadly, there was nothing I could really grab as a souvenir.

The Lower Level entrance to Penney's.

The LL entrance again.  This is also where Fran encounters the Nun Zombie.

Perhaps the most famous JC Penney store . . . ever?

Goodbye JC Penneys.

Moving along through the rest of the mall, the next location to check out would be one of the other entrances that the heroes lock from inside before they go on a hunt.

This particular location was interesting to me as it's actually on the upper level of the mall!

This entrance is relatively unchanged from how it appears in the film!

Also worth noting here is, along the wall leading to this entrance, there's an incredible mural painting that recognizes many great aspects of Pittsburgh history and pride -- including Dawn of the Dead and even The Dark Knight Rises.

The mural itself is actually a little further down than what is shown in the film.

  Here, we also get another famous line from Peter as the heroes finally take over the mall.

"We'll get it all locked off . . . then we're going on a hunt."

 After "the hunt' is over and all of the zombies still inside the mall have been put down, there are several locations highlighted in one of Dawn's best montage sequences.

The first is the coy pond.   In the film, there are several little pond/bridge combos seen, most of which have long been removed except for, of course, the coy pond.  The area around the bridge has changed a bit with the removal of the foliage and refurnishing of the floors, but the coy pond and its bridge remain as one of the last truly recognizable landmarks from the film.

Another area shown in the aftermath of the "the hunt" -- and shown quite a bit in the film -- is the Town Square area at the end opposite the Fountain Square.  This, of course, was home to the mall's famous Clock Tower.  The anchoring department store is now the new location of JC Penny; during filming Gimbel's department store was located there.

At one point, this area housed a trampoline/bungee attraction for kids.

Later on in the film, Roger finally succumbs to the bites he received earlier while blocking the entrances of the mall.  Once he turns and . . . comes back, Peter puts him down and he and Stephen bury him in one of the gardens of the mall.

As you can see, the tropical jungle-esque gardens that once took up a great deal of the lower level's floor space have all but been removed.

Now, let's take a look at one of the more secret filming locations found deep within the bowels of the Monroeville Mall . . . 

The boiler room.

In the shot above, I'm not quite sure if it's the same area.  With that being said, the boiler room itself is quite small and, well, it's a boiler room -- and a fully-functioning one at that!  With all of its lighting on, it's not quite as foreboding as it appears in the film.

Although I'm unsure if I'm in the same area that's shown in the screen cap above, there is at least one place in the boiler room that stands out and is immediately identifiable....

The control room. 

Looking at this photo, I'm wondering if Romero consciously went for moodier lighting to hide the clutter.

 One of the coolest aspects of the Monroeville Mall is that, true to Romero's original inspiration for setting Dawn there, it really is operationally self-contained.  I'm told that it's also one of the first (if only?) climate-controlled malls, operating under its own resources.  So, yeah, when the heroes first arrive to the mall and Peter notices that the power's still on and it "could be nuclear"?  He wasn't bullshitting.

Below, you see the interior of the office (as glimpsed through the door as the technician was getting ready to close up shop at the end of the night).  Looking at all those gauges -- which remain almost identical to the way they were seen in the film! -- I'd say this little, tiny office is truly the nerve center for the entire mall!  Seriously, just looking at the pic as I'm typing this, I'm smiling in amazement that this area hasn't really changed at all! 

"Hit 'em all.  We might as well have power on everything.  We might need it."

Here, we see the famous office where Peter and Roger grab the "keys to the kingdom" and flip on all of the mall mechanical features such as the muzak, displays, and even the escalators . . . 

Yes, this is where the late Clayton Hill, as the Sweater Zombie, took his ride.  Every fan should give it a go in his memory!

Even though the cool staircases originally situated at either of the anchoring ends of the mall have long since been replaced with escalators, the original escalators in the center of the mall have always remained.  Gone, though, is the funky floor tiling, which has been replaced with a marble-esque floor, a "fell off the truck" perfume kiosk, and a set of Lazy-Boy recliners . . . speaking of which, why are we seeing more and more of this sort of "living room" set-up in the middle of shopping malls?  Are we really that lazy that we need to sit down in a faux living room while we're shopping??

Also worth pointing out are the French marble columns seen throughout many of these photos.  From my knowledge, they're original to the mall and, at first glance, most of them look as though they've never been replaced outside of minor patch-up work here and there.  
Speaking of the marble columns, you may also notice something a little different . . . the light fixtures.  Unfortunately, the original light fixtures seen so prominently in the film, have long since been replaced by the night stand-like shaded lamps.  

Of course, the late Monroeville Zombies museum and gift-shop managed to hold onto a few of those awesome fixtures . . . 

Wouldn't these lights make the coolest living room centerpiece?

Maybe one day, I really will have one of these in my house.

 Speaking of Monroeville Zombies, fear not fiends . . . like any good zombie, they won't stay dead!  The museum will be returning VERY soon in its new home as The Living Dead Museum in the place where it all really began:  Evans City, PA.

Moving on to some other locations in the mall, let's lace up our skates and go for a spin around the ice rink at the Ice Palace shall we?

Oh wait . . . it's been replaced with a food court.  Damn!

Well, there were some zombies eating on the ice, so I guess this is only fair, right?

As far as I'm concerned, there's only ONE Sbarro Pizza and it's at the Monroeville Mall.

It's pretty much your standard mall foodcourt with all the usual types of food you'd find; Asian, BBQ, Chicken, Burgers, and a Sbarro Pizza.  Naturally, I recommend the Sbarro Pizza myself, as the slices are always great (especially when they're fresh) and the service is always top notch and friendly!   

Also, a brief word of caution:  the bathrooms in the foodcourt area are disgusting!

"Say 'goodbye', creep!"

One thing that pretty much any Dawn fan can agree on is how amazing Tom Savini's special make-up and effects are in the film.  One of the absolute standout images from the film occurs when the raiders invade the mall, letting thousands of zombies in with them; almost like they're having a good old time, the raiders start butchering the zombies.  

Savini's character of Blades is knocked off his bike by a zombie passerby.  Back on his feet, Savini swings his machete down into the ghoul's skull, effectively showing some of his cinema magic, as well as turning young Lenny Lies (who stood in as said zombie) into one of the most famous zombies in film history!

Soon, Peter and Stephen start shooting at the raiders, taking them out one by one.  Blades catches on and tries to hunt Peter down . . . 

"Ohhhh, you mother!"

 Before Penney's was torn down and moved, one of the only other stores that remained from the film is this Naturalizer.  Believe it or not, it was a Naturalizer store during filming and remains so to this day!

Also a stuntman, Tom Savini actually did this stunt himself . . . twice.  The first time didn't go so well.   When visiting the mall, please don't try this kids!

Another famous and notorious spot in the mall is the blood pressure machine.  These days, you don't see too many of these machines actually inside a mall, as they're usually tucked away inside pharmacies or mega stores like Wal-Mart and Target.

"Hey man!  What the hell ya doin, playin' around when someone's up there shootin' at us?"

These days, the blood pressure machine has been replaced by a Vitamin Water machine!

Outside the mall, there are still many more places to check out . . . 

As I said earlier, a lot of action takes place outside the Loading Dock entrance.  This area is also home to a shot in the film that forever had me puzzled in terms of layout . . . 

Obviously, the shot in the film was taken from the rooftop, which gives the illusion that there are more than two levels to this area of the mall.  In reality, the little squared off area looks down right above the loading dock doors themselves.  Right behind the railings is the mall entrance to the second level directly above the loading docks hallway.

This spot is great, though, as you can see out across most of the back end of the parking lot -- again, where a lot of action occurs in the film.  Directly to the right of the railing is where the famous, pod-like lamp posts were as seen when the heroes first arrive at the mall.
Looking at the pic below, I see what they did when the mall was updated . . . there originally was a staircase, similar to the ones by the Clock Tower and fountain.  In the screen cap, you can see the handrail for the stairs in the right hand corner. 

Looking out across the parking lot, you'll instantly recognize the service road that Peter and Roger tear down in the trucks as they block the entrances.

Those of you outside of the East Coast, might not be familiar with A & P grocery stores, but seeing that store in the strip mall across the parking lot in the film always made everything feel a lot more real and much closer to home.  Growing up, my hometown had an A & P and, along with that one, I used to go to at least two or three others, so this inclusion here always made me chuckle.  

These days, the A & P is now a Guitar Center.  In the film, you don't really much more of that annex where A & P was located, but these days, it's almost like a mini mall in and of itself!

Again, this area is where the second truck blocking scene takes place and it's also home to one of the squishiest (if not underrated) scenes in the film!  As Roger backs his truck up against the Loading Dock doors, he runs over the head of a zombie that Peter hit while turning into the area in front of the entrance.

Oddly enough, as we were leaving the mall, a truck was making deliveries and was parked in almost the exact same spot as Roger's truck!  

Well, there you have it.  I can't say this enough:  If you're a Horror movie fan, you owe it to yourself to check out the Monroeville Mall.  Sure, a lot of it has changed and it may very well be unrecognizable to the untrained eye . . . but to the rabid, dare I say "obsessed" Dawn of the Dead fan, it's like stepping into the film!  Every time we go back to the mall, it's like seeing an old friend that I've known for most of my life.  

So, what are you waiting for?  Plan your trip and see it for yourself!

The Monroeville Mall:  After Hours

Thanks for sticking around and reading through this piece; I've been slowly working on it for almost a year now!  It's been fun going through and finding the locations and matching them up to their film versions.

Remember, this is by no means a final guide to all of the Dawn locations . . . I've still got a few more to search out!

In the meantime, feel free to also check out the video version of this article . . .