A Nightmare on Elm Street

Movie Name: A Nightmare on Elm Street
Year of Release: 1984
Director: Wes Craven
Starring: Heather Langenkamp, John Saxon, Ronee Blakley, Robert Englund, Johnny Depp, Amanda Wyss, Jsu Garcia, Charles Fleischer, Joseph Whipp, Lin Shaye, Joe Unger, Mimi Craven
Genre: Horror
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
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Synopsis and Review:

By the time "A Nightmare on Elm Street" came out, director Wes Craven had already been working in the horror genre for some time. He had already tackled "The Hills Have Eyes" (and the sequel, which coincidentally, also came out in 1984), "Deadly Blessing" and "The Last House on the Left" (his feature film directorial debut). Based on his own script, "A Nightmare on Elm Street" follows the story of Nancy Thompson, a high schooler, who suddenly sees her whole life unravel in a dramatic fashion. It all starts when Nancy and her boyfriend Glen agree to stay over and spend the night at their friend Tina's home. Tina has been having some boyfriend issues, and some scary nightmares. After Tina patches things with her boyfriend, and while Nancy and Glen sleep nearby, she is attacked in her dreams by a badly burnt man, with a set of razorblades in a glove. Tina dies a horrific death, however that death isn't only in her dreams, but also in reality, much to the boyfriend's horror, who witnesses it all without being able to do much. As he escapes, and Nancy discovers the blood fest, she also starts being targeted by the same type of dreams, and the same man, whom she soon discovers to be Freddy Kruger. Kruger is intent on killing all the young people from the Elm Street neighborhood and Nancy has to rely on her own skills to stop him.

Wes Craven is a director that throughout his career, always managed to efficiently tackle multiple genres, while infusing his films with the right amount of humor, thrills and emotion. Of his considerable output, "A Nightmare on Elm Street" may be one of his most famous features, not only for the creation of the iconic character Freddy Kruger, but also for the subsequent series of films that were created, all focused on that iconic villain. This film, the one that started the whole series, may well be its best, in the sense that the mythology behind the villain is created. It's also a film that smartly peels the different layers and what lies beneath this seemingly unstoppable menace. Much like Steven Spielberg's "Jaws" which only showed its menacing creature when needed, Wes Craven smartly and stylistically plays with shadows, to slowly expose Freddy, until fully unleashing him and his carnage across the board. It's a film that while uneven with regards to the acting talent pool it utilizes, it does introduce the great Johnny Depp to audiences, while allowing the underrated John Saxon to add some drama to the proceedings. It's a film that is smartly written, stylistically and visually imaginative, and ultimately always entertaining. Worth watching.