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A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors

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A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors

R

Released Feb 27, 1987

1h 35m

Horror

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Popcornmeter

68%

Tomatometer

63 Reviews

68%

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250,000+ Ratings

During a hallucinatory incident, young Kristen Parker (Patricia Arquette) has her wrists slashed by dream-stalking monster Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund). Her mother, mistaking the wounds for a suicide attempt, sends Kristen to a psychiatric ward, where she joins a group of similarly troubled teens. One of the doctors there is Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp), who had battled Freddy some years before. Nancy senses a potential in Kristen to rid the world of Freddy once and for all.

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Critics Consensus

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors offers an imaginative and surprisingly satisfying rebound for a franchise already starting to succumb to sequelitis.

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Nigel Andrews

Financial Times

Abysmal, and the only thing worth cheering is special effects work by Peter Chesney.

Jul 27, 2023

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Desmond Ryan

Philadelphia Inquirer

It's the dumbest installment in the series.

Jul 25, 2023

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Bill Briggs

Orlando Sentinel

Drive-In Academy Award nominations for... Robert Englund, as Freddy Krueger, the one and only, and Chuck Russel, the director, for doing a heck of a job.

Jul 24, 2023

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Alan Jones

Radio Times

Full of great special effects and with Freddy's pre-history filled in very satisfyingly, this is a rollercoaster ride from the opening Edgar Allan Poe quotation to the final Ray Harryhausen homage.

Rated: 3/5

May 23, 2025

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Easily the best film in the series.

Rated: 3/4

Oct 20, 2024

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Michael D. Reid

Victoria Times Colonist (B.C., Canada)

The ingeniously, splendidly executed fantasy sequences are what make the movie so ultimately enjoyable.

Rated: 3/4

Jul 25, 2023

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Nick O

Freddy Krueger becoming the irresistible psycho he was destined to be, as he sleep-stalks the last group of Elm Street kids in maybe the best sequel of the franchise.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/29/25

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Shaun R

The sequels to the original classic are silly and not scary.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

05/03/25

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Gordo L

This is a master piece I like how freddy krueger looks like gorgeous the kills in this is amazing my favorite one in the franchise 10 out of 10 I rank this in the 2 spot.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/27/25

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Jasper J

This is another must watch in the nightmare on elm street series, see it if you haven’t already. A great blend of horror and comedy that makes it scary and funny at the same time, a great movie

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

04/10/25

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Audience Member

After 35 years it’s still one of the franchises best I'm very happy Wes Craven came back to produce and write the script as well as Heather Langenkamp as Nancy Director Chuck Russell takes the reins focusing on a young girl named Kirsten; she starts having nightmares about Freddy Krueger and ends up with a select group of kids in a psychiatric hospital, each of them start to fall victim to Freddy’s antics and only Nancy Thompson might be able to save them, the key to defeating him might be a mysterious nun Mary Helena who has known about his history since the beginning This was my first introduction to Patricia Arquette The movie also lead to many memorable dream sequences and the very first of Freddy Kruger's one liners turning people's worst fears against them Plus this also commented on the terrible increase of teen suicides epidemic during the late 80's Made the concept of lucid dreaming fascinating too and I like the setting being a psychiatric ward full of teens on watch being very fleshed out

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/28/25

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Ma. Catherine V

🎶 DREAM WARRIORS 🎶

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/01/25

Full Review

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Chuck Russell

Director

Heather Langenkamp

Nancy Thompson

Patricia Arquette

Kristen Parker

Craig Wasson

Dr. Neil Gordon

Laurence Fishburne

Max

Priscilla Pointer

Dr. Elizabeth Simms

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Synopsis

During a hallucinatory incident, young Kristen Parker (Patricia Arquette) has her wrists slashed by dream-stalking monster Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund). Her mother, mistaking the wounds for a suicide attempt, sends Kristen to a psychiatric ward, where she joins a group of similarly troubled teens. One of the doctors there is Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp), who had battled Freddy some years before. Nancy senses a potential in Kristen to rid the world of Freddy once and for all.

Director: Chuck Russell
Producer: Robert Shaye
Screenwriter: Wes Craven
Distributor: New Line Cinema, Image Entertainment Inc., Media Home Entertainment
Production Co: New Line Cinema
Rating: R
Genre: Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 27, 1987, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 30, 2010
Box Office (Gross USA): $44.1M
Runtime: 1h 35m

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