A Nightmare On Elm Street - Review

As I mentioned in my previous review of Carrie, while that was not the first horror film I had seen, it was the movie that truly got me interested in the horror genre. It intrigued me to say the least, enough so that a few days later I happened to notice that this little gem of a film, A Nightmare On Elm Street, was playing on HBO. While normally I would have stayed far away, I was curious enough to sit and watch the film from start to finish. Needless to say, I made it through the movie, and ever since, my passion for horror films has never been stronger. What was it that made me so interested in this slasher classic? Let's just say "One Two Freddy's Coming For You" and check it out!

The original Nightmare On Elm Street was released in 1984, written and directed by renown horror filmmaker Wes Craven. Already featuring an extensive filmography consisting of acclaimed horror films including classics of the genre like The Last House on the Left and The Hills Have Eyes, Craven's Nightmare was made primarily to cash in on the slasher craze started by 1978's Halloween. Nightmare, however, rises above the trends and delivered a thoroughly original and suspenseful film that continues to stand the test of time. The film focuses primarily around Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp), a high school student who, along with her circle of friends (one of which is played by a young Johnny Depp in his first major role), has been having recurring nightmares of a hideously scarred boogeyman named Freddy Krueger. This terrifying man with horrendously burned skin, wears a red and green sweater, a dirty fedora hat, and a glove with four razor sharp blades. What they soon realize is that if Freddy kills you in your dream, you die in real life. Now, with time as a factor and bodies piling up, Nancy must find a way to stop the nightmarish Freddy before it's too late.

A Nightmare On Elm Street was a big hit back when it was released in 1984. As I mentioned, the film was greenlit mainly to cash in on the 80s slasher flick craze, but manages to take a very different and original direction from predecessors like Halloween or Friday the 13th. While it does keep to some of the typical slasher formula, namely making it's main characters teenagers and including a body count, it managed to change up the standards by adding a supernatural element and giving it's villain a voice and witty personality (unlike the silent killers such as Jason Voorhees or Michael Myers). I'll forever go on record saying that the premise for A Nightmare On Elm Street is one of the most ingenious and creative movie concepts to ever be conceived. This brilliant premise leads to countless possibilities for potentially suspenseful and thrilling scenes. Think about it, when are you more vulnerable than when you are asleep? Even more so, there is literally no limit to what can happen in a dream... absolutely none, and this gives filmmakers tons of freedom to think of amazingly creative nightmare sequences. Make no mistake, this film capitalizes on it's brilliant concept, bringing us some of the most creative and memorable scenes to ever be featured in a horror film. Some are slightly limited by the lowish budget but not by very much. Considering it's financial limitations, what they managed to put together is pretty incredible. The nightmare scenes are scary, thrilling, fun, and incredibly creative... pretty much everything you could want in a horror film. Even more so, the film has an intruiging mystery with some creepy undertones. While the movie and it's twists are, for the most part, commonly known by now, they still manage to give the film some suspenseful and intriguing questions and outcomes that don't disappoint. Overall, it's just a solid story, not much else to say other than it just works.

The cast is a bit of a mixed bag, but overall manages to work well enough. The slasher genre isn't exactly renown for the talents of it's actors, and while I don't think Elm Street will win over too many naysayers, it still manages to include a cast of mostly well above average actors. The film's primary character, Nancy Thompson, is played by Heather Langenkamp with inconsistent but mostly good results. Her commitment to her role is commendable, she does a solid job with the scared victim parts, and brings a solid intensity to the flick. While she has a few bland moments, she still manages to serve the film well and brings a satisfactory presence. Another standout has to be John Saxon as Nancy's divorced father and town police lieutenant Donald Thompson. His distant relationship with his daughter, commitment to protecting the public, and dark secrets add to some of the film's more subtle tension and Saxon sells the hell out of his role. Also, I guess I should mention Johnny Depp's part. This was, of course, Depp's breakthrough role and first step to movie stardom. His role as Nancy's boyfriend, Glen, is okay I suppose, but he doesn't leave too much of an impression here. Nothing terrible but nothing special, obviously he would develop his talent later on in his career.

Though, of course the real reason this movie (and series) became so popular is because of it's villain, Freddy Krueger. This demonic boogeyman is played to near perfection by horror icon Robert Englund. As I mentioned, Krueger played against the standard of horror killers being silent brutes and instead turned him into a scarred monster with a witty personality and dark sense of humor. While that sense of humor would eventually become his key trait in the following (and increasingly sillier) sequels, Englund's presence here is consistently scary. Not only does he kill his victims, but he enjoys the act and feeds of their fear. Even his humorous bits are so dark and twisted, that they're less funny and more disturbing. A few years back, the American Film Institute including Freddy on their list of the 50 greatest movie villains of all time, and it's easy to see why. There are few villains to ever grace the silver screen and make as much as an impression as Krueger. Even to this day, he continues to scare audiences who give this flick a watch.

So that's A Nightmare On Elm Street, and it was and still is awesome. Hands down one of the greatest horror films of all time, it's near-perfect blend of suspense, stylistic filmmaking, and thrills continues to make it relevant. If you haven't seen this legendary scary flick, you owe it to yourself to check it out!

My Score: 4.5 out of 5!