Are you ready for Freddy?

News of a new “Nightmare on Elm Street” didn’t cause me to clutch my covers in fear.

It triggered my customary eye roll that another horror “classic” was being rebooted.

Then, word leaked that Jackie Earle Haley would be the new Freddy Krueger. Suddenly, the remake wasn’t a laughing matter.

But while Haley is the perfect choice to replace Robert Englund, let’s not forget the source material is hardly “The Shining” or “The Exorcist.”

Nostalgia plays funny tricks on movie fans, convincing them that seriously mediocre films (sorry, “Red Dawn” lovers) should suddenly be seen as “classics.”

The original “Nightmare” introduced a wicked new monster to the horror movie pantheon. But it’s only a few shades better than the “Friday the 13th” franchise.

Maybe the new “Nightmare” will improve on the original. But let’s remember the source material could use some serious tweaking.

(Photo: Jackie Earle Haley stars as Freddy Krueger in New Line Cinema’s horror film, “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo Courtesy of New Line Cinema)

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