A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors is way better than it has any right to be. It expands on the mythology of the series in a really inventive way, provides inspired Freddy Krueger kills, and brings back Nancy Thompson in a satisfying way that caps off her story.
But the best part of this movie actually comes after the credits start rolling, when Dokken’s song “Dream Warriors” starts playing. Dokken has contributed plenty of hits to the ’80s metal catalog, and “Dream Warriors” is a legitimate entry (it did, after all, end up on the band’s album Back for the Attack).
Using the script itself as inspiration for the lyrics, Dokken created a song that stands on its own as being pretty kickass. Then to up the ante, the band filmed a truly wild music video that featured both Robert Englund and Patricia Arquette reprising their roles in some additional footage that is wonderfully bonkers.
A number of things really stand out in this music video. One moment is a play on a great scene in the movie, where Arquette’s Kristen is being terrorized by Freddy in a room that’s being destroyed. But instead of Krueger appearing in the music video, it’s George Lynch busting out of the wall with a killer solo:
Speaking of Arquette, it’s amazing that the house she was crafting at the beginning of the movie turns out to be a shrine to Dokken in the music video:
The other fantastic moment is at the end of the song, where Dokken defeats Freddy through the power of rock, as one does. But the final scene takes a turn, where it’s revealed that Dokken was actually harassing Freddy in his own nightmare, which if you ask me, should be considered canon.
Songs being created specifically for a movie’s closing credits is somewhat of a lost art with a few exceptions, but it’s a practice that’s long overdue for a comeback. And in the pantheon of this musical subgenre, Dokken will always be one of the best. This is an absolutely essential entry for your Halloween playlist.
