Here's Freddie!!!!

Rating: 9/10 (1 December 2015)

A group of teenagers are experiencing strange dreams whereby a mysterious person is trying to kill them while they sleep. At first it seems that this is just happening to one member of the group called Nancy (Heather Langenkamp), but when Nancy starts discussing these strange dreams with her friends it appears that a couple of them have experienced similar nightmares. However, Nancy soon learns that the dreams her and her friends have been having about an insane killer are more real and frightening than they initially realised.
Nearly everyone knows one of the most iconic quotes for this film is "Whatever you do, don't fall asleep". Whilst you may have trouble sleeping after watching this film there is no way on this earth that you will fall asleep during its 90 minute or so running time because whilst Nightmare on Elm Street may be a lot of things one thing it certainly isn't is boring.
I watched A Nightmare On Elm Street about 15-20 years ago and I was worried that it wouldn't seem as good after all these years and I was actually surprised that I thought that it was every bit as brilliant as I remembered it to be. The thing that struck me about this film all those years ago (and again today) is how imaginative it is as a concept. Wes Craven has created a film that shows a killer going round picking off victims one by one (giving it its slasher element), but he gives this film an extra layer in that the killer only kills you when you're asleep. Whilst the slasher element makes it exciting and undoubtedly will be enough to satisfy the masses I actually think that the idea of Freddie Kruger killing people in their sleep is the most terrifying aspect about this film. With other slasher films there's always a sense of hope that a victim can escape from their killer or that they can outwit their killer and get the better of them, but how do you do that when someone tries to kill you while you're asleep?. Looking at the bigger picture it's also impossible to survive without sleep so effectively there is no apparent solution to the problem. It's this aspect that makes A Nightmare On Elm Street so terrifying and is what makes it rise head and shoulders above a lot of other horror films. Craven even manages to expand on Kruger's character which again gives it a sense of depth which most horror films seem to ignore.
As well as the imaginative concept, Craven also proves to be just as impressive behind the camera. Some of the horror here is merely suggested and that actually helps to crank up the suspense and keep the film both relatively scary and interesting. It was also nice to see that cheap jump scares were kept to a minimum (which is something many modern horror films seem to depend upon to get scares). Craven also really goes to town to make the flick scary - 2 of the death scenes did shake me up a bit and Craven's imagination and directional flair really showed in these two scenes. The score is also excellent (although I personally thought the slower score was more effective in drawing tension than the faster score, but the latter was still very good).
Finally we come to the performances; every good horror film needs a good killer and Robert Englund's excellent performance as Freddie Kruger has made the character one of the most iconic killers around. Englund makes Kruger sinister, terrifying and creepy and his performance here was sublime. Heather Langenkamp was also excellent as the protagonist Nancy. A Nightmare On Elm Street is notable as being the debut picture of Jonny Depp and all I can say is that his acting has definitely improved over time - this is not one of his better performances, but he was still OK I suppose.
A Nightmare On Elm Street really has it all; imagination, a creepy killer, a terrifying concept, impressive direction and some memorable performances. It is a landmark film and is up there with the likes of The Shining and Psycho as being one of the best films that the genre has to offer.