A Nightmare on Elm Street (Two-Disc Infinifilm Special Edition) (1984)

And what better foundation to create a horror film? Craven decided that his generation's horror films weren't up to snuff, and tended toward the "slasher" genre that was becoming very popular after the release of "Halloween." He upped the ante by attacking vulnerable young people the only place they felt safe: asleep.

This is an effective and unsettling idea, and is executed with masterly precision. Craven knows how to create suspense while building strong, endearing characters the audience will actually care for. The dream sequences are put together very well, and while the special effects seem dated as compared to today's high-budget Hollywood standards, it is perhaps their gritty, slimy quality that enhances the fright factor.

Overall, the acting is fairly decent. Johnny Depp isn't quite the Johnny Depp we know and love yet, so don't get moist in the panties when you see his name. Heather Langenkamp is convincing as the innocent, virginal girl caught in a web of parental lies and secret cover-ups. But it's Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger who steals the show. Later in the "Nightmare" series, Freddy became a comedic character, and all the scariness was lost. Sure, his face became more mangled, and his style of slaughter grew sophisticated and detailed, but the true allure of the Freddy character is portrayed only in this film.

"Nightmare" revolutionized the modern horror film, and brought science fiction and horror one step closer to each other. This allowed writers and directors to take more challenging projects and demand an imagination of their audience. Like all good things, though, Freddy was sucked in by Hollywood and New Line Cinemas and turned into an absolute joke. It wasn't until the final addition to the straight-up Freddy series, "Wes Craven's A New Nightmare" that the fright and creativity was redeemed, as once again Craven took it to the next level of horror and surreality.

Not only is Craven masterful in his directing, the film is an enjoyable hoot. It's a fun and scary journey into the black heart of a ruthless serial killer -- and cultural phenomenon -- you cannot escape.


Is This Really That Great?   June 28, 2004
Ok, let me get this straight right now. I am 15 years old. While I do know that the film had a small budget, and I tell you I was impressed with a lot of the special effects (Especially for the time it was made and budget) the acting just ruined it for me. It was not scary to me at all. The gimmick of Freddy killing people in their dreams was pretty cool. Sadly, it just fell apart. The dreams were really not that, well, dreamy. The end just fell apart as well. This was an ok film. Maybe it was because I bought this with Texas Chainsaw Massacre. But I think the movie was ruined because of one reason.

Everybody started to like Freddy. Can you really be afraid of a figure that appears as a friend?


Pretty good, but not too "Nightmare"-ish   June 24, 2004
After catching-- and, to my surprise, enjoying-- "Freddy vs. Jason" at a friend's place a while back, I decided to delve into the titular combatants' previous cinematic outings. I started with the original "Nightmare", and was shocked. I wasn't really shocked by how scary & bloody it was, but by how scary & bloody it wasn't. Having seen a handful of horror flicks done in a similar vein as this, I found the scary parts rather predictable and a lot less gory than I'd expected them to be. Of course, when you're a fan of the over-the-top violence that the likes of Paul Verhoeven, Quentin Tarantino and John McTiernan put in their films, it's kinda hard to be too shocked by the relatively toned-down blood and guts moments depicted in other cinematic fare...

On the upside, I got a vicarious thrill outta seein' a few glamorous and popular teenagers get taken out in such grisly manners. Ain't nothin' like a nice puree of Johnny Depp to have me makin' like the pathetic still-bitter-over-bein'-picked-on-in-high-school loser that I am! Yeah, that's what'cha get for makin' fun of me and my fellow geeks, you hunky, buff, and painstakingly-moussed slabs o' beefcake! AH-HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-HAAAAHH!!!

Also included with this DVD is the obligatory theatrical trailer, and a secondary commentary track featuring director Wes Craven, star Heather Langenkamp, and John Saxon (Heather Langenkamp's "dad" in the movie). As you'd expect, this trio gives the viewer the usual mix of amusing on-set anecdotes and technical info as the movie plays on. Well, at least I THINK that's what they were talkin' about; I sorta zoned 'em out about halfway through the feature, paying more attention to the English subtitles I'd turned on...

'Late