The Scariest of them all

Rating: 10/10 (14 June 2005)

Wow the 80's certainly was a great time for slasher movies, and this one came out in the nick of time and saved the slasher genre from becoming stale, because by 1984 the golden age was coming to an end and following in the footsteps of Jason, Michael Myers, Norman Bates and Leatherface, come Freddy Kruger.
This was actually the 2nd movie I saw in the franchise as I'd only seen part 3 at the time and plus it was rather interesting to see where Freddy came from. I knew from the opening when we first get a glimpse of Freddy's iconic glove that this would be the start of something special, while terrifying the first would be victim. This one is definitely the scariest of all the sequels and Freddy plays straight up evil and minus the wise cracks as he becomes later known for. The concept of a maniac stalking and killing you in your dreams and then dying for real is rather chilling and disturbing and this film works really well in all aspects, director Wes Craven really got it spot on with this movie with its interesting plot, execution and style.
This movie has really aged well and is still quite fresh and terrifying even by today's standards. This movie is more character based and focuses more on the plot than being a straight out gore flick which I do like as it never gets boring and keeps you interested all the way through, but the death scenes that this movie has are awesome and brilliantly played out like when the girl is slashed to death in the bedroom and being dragged up the walls, which never looks silly and always looks effective. The boiler room sequence when Nancy first comes across Freddy is truly terrifying.
The acting is overall decent in this film as well, which makes it work despite some inexperience. Heather Langenkamp definitely gives a stand out performance as Nancy strong willed and determined making her a definite all time final girl. Johnny Deep in an early appearance does okay as the dutiful boyfriend although a bit wooden at times but still decent. Amanda Wyass brings in a memorable performance and even makes you feel sad when she bows out. And of course Nancy's parent Ronee Blackely and John Saxon are both interesting and adds layers to both the characters as the movie progresses. And last but not least Robert England as Freddy of course stole the show with his wonderfully depraved, chilling and lasting performance.
All in all a great start to a brilliant franchise, ambitious and cleaver.