After such gruesome drive-in flicks as "The Last House on the Left" and "The Hills Have Eyes," master of horror Wes Craven wanted to make a movie that would bring the slasher genre back to life, since the genre was clouded by untalented, unoriginal films that shouldn't have been made. So, along came "A Nightmare on Elm Street." To this day, Craven's masterpiece of modern horror is the movie that elevated the horror genre. Avoid the awful sequels that followed it. The first "Nightmare on Elm Street" movie is still the scariest and most effective movie in the series.
The story revolves around four teens in the town of Springwood: Nancy Thompson, Tina Gray, Rod Lane and Glen Lantz. All four have had horrifying dreams involving a terribly burnt boogeyman in a red and green sweater and a brown fedora on his head with extremely sharp blades for fingers. Sure, they're just dreams. But not until Tina is graphically murdered in her sleep. No weapon was found, but there were four long cuts in Tina's chest. The rest of the group soon finds out that it is the Springwood maniac Freddy Krueger that is haunting their dreams. None of them are safe. If they fall asleep, they will meet their gruesome demise. Now it's up to Nancy to stop Freddy once and for all. But how can she stop somebody that isn't supposed to be real?"
A Nightmare on Elm Street" created a terrifying villain, a plot that is very original, and a group of characters that you care about. Everybody knows who Freddy is, just like everyone knows who Michael Myers is, or Jason Voorhees, or Leatherface. He is now one of the most iconic slashers in horror cinema.
One of the things that I admire the most is the cast. Heather Langenkamp is an awesome heroine. Nancy is one of the girls in the genre that fought the villain and didn't run. Langenkamp creates a suburban teenage girl that is filled with pizazz and wit, which she has the most of out of all the characters. In a very brief performance, Tina is played by Amanda Wyss of the hit comedy "Fast Times At Ridgemont High." Her character's death is uncomfortable and disturbing to watch. Craven shows no mercy during Tina's death, not having an ounce of the scene edited. He makes you watch all of it, and that creeps the viewer out even more. Nick Corri is a very good rebel. And you'll also notice Johnny Depp in his first big movie as Glen. His death is second best. Nancy's parents, Donald and Marge Thompson, are played by John Saxon of "Black Christmas" and Ronee Blakely of "Nashville." They are the last of the parents on Elm Street to hold a very dark secret about Freddy, something that they aren't telling Nancy or the others. Not such a good idea, since Freddy never seems to leave them alone. I can't imagine anybody else playing Freddy other than Robert Englund. Englund is flawless in the role that made him a star. This is where Englund is scariest as Freddy. In the sequels, Freddy becomes a comedian with rather stale wisecracks. What makes Freddy so scary in the first "Nightmare on Elm Street" movie is how his dark, macabre sense of humor comes off as frightening. And he's always there, wherever you are. "Since he's a dream figure, he can basically do anything," says critic Aviva Briefel. "He can transform into anything. That's what makes him so scary. How can you resist sleep? He's everywhere." If horror movies got nominations, Englund would be first in line to win the award.
Craven's direction is perfect. He films "A Nightmare on Elm Street" with a great amount of flair and he provides plenty of gore that will satisfy gore-hounds and enough scares to make you jump.
The verdict: "A Nightmare on Elm Street" still holds up as one of the scariest horror movies ever made. And people are always going to remember it. When kids are off to summer camp or they want their parents to tell them a scary story before bed, they most likely will hear about Freddy Krueger and his razor-blade glove. Nightmares are guaranteed. "One, two, Freddy's coming for you...Three, four, better lock your door...Five, six grab your crucifix...Seven, eight, gonna stay up late...Nine, ten, never sleep again!"
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