Remembering Alice Cooper’s shockingly cheesy role in a 1990s horror dud ‘Freddy’s Dead’
Who would you choose to play the sadistic father of one of horror’s most iconic villains? Dwyane ‘the Rock’ Johnson? Nope. What about Harrison ‘The Fumbler’ Ford? No dice. Okay…Danny Devito? No, we’re definitely getting colder here. Director Rachel Talalay was faced with this very conundrum when she was casting the sixth instalment of the Nightmare On Elm Street franchise, 1991’s Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare, which really should have been titled The Penultimate Nightmare, because they made another one in 1994. Oh, and another one featuring Jason in 2003. Not to mention the 2010 reboot. Anyway, you get the picture. So who did she end up casting in the role? None other than America’s prince of darkness, Alice Cooper.
Cooper should have been the perfect fit. His own act was heavily inspired by horror cinema, and he’d already starred in Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives a few years before. The glam-rock icon was just one of the big names the film’s producers had secured in an attempt to transform Wes Craven’s weak script into something movie-goers would flock to see. For example, original cast member Johnny Depp also appeared as himself in a spoof anti-drugs commercial.
Alas, it was all for nothing. Nothing could disguise the reek of creative decay emanating from Freddy’s Dead, not even Alice Cooper. In fact, many critics cited the musician’s presence when criticising the film, arguing that he ruined what would otherwise have been a very sinister moment. Instead, the scene was bloated, broad and distinctly unscary – not what you want in a horror film hoping to end things with a bang.
That being said, Cooper gives the character his all. Sloping down the stairs in a sleeveless flannel shirt, a pair of grubby jeans and a baseball cap, he is your stereotypical red-neck, though clearly much for sadistic. Belt in hand, he prepares his son for a beating with the line: “You ready boy?” before laying into him. But something has changed in Freddy. He no longer feels the lash of his father’s belt. He doesn’t feel pain at all, come to think of it.
Sadly, Cooper’s real personality shines through – much to the detriment of the character. The whole time you’re watching him beat his son, you’re thinking “that’s Alice Cooper doing that.” When he pulls back his hat, you’re thinking “that’s Alice Cooper’s hair underneath there.”
It’s really a very tiring way of watching a film, and I can see why people criticised it. Still, it’s a damn sight better than Don’t Worry Darling. Just kidding, I haven’t seen it. Or have I? No, I haven’t.
