Made to be Monsters: ‘Freddy’s Revenge’

What to do when “he” is “inside of you”

Welcome back to ‘Made To Be Monsters’, the series where I talk in-depth about my favorite films and why I think they’re secretly about the transsexual/queer experience. Remember: I am not trying to argue for the genuine, intended text of these films, and this is all in good fun.

Parts one, two, three, and four can be found here.

It’s hard to bring something new to the table when you’re talking about “the gayest horror movie ever made”.

The first Nightmare on Elm Street was successful, but it wasn’t until its first sequel, Freddy’s Revenge, that Wes Craven’s story became a franchise and a worldwide phenomenon. But because of the sequel’s two defining characteristics- namely its homoerotic text and its severe breaking from the previously established lore and rules- it is the film that has also gone the most ignored within its own canon. Many characters appear in multiple installments, but the likes of Lisa (Kim Myers) and Jesse (Mark Patton) are the only surviving protagonists to never come back in sequels.

There’s a long history of reclamation behind this film, and rather than laying it all out here, I would much rather you watch the documentary about it and then come back. In insultingly short terms, it’s only…