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Starring:
John Saxon, Ronee Blakley, Heather Langenkamp, Amanda Wyss, Jsu Garcia, Johnny Depp, ... Genre: Horror / Thriller
Available on DVD: Sep 26th 2006
Review By:
Stephen Snart
School:
NYU Class of 2007
Favorite Quote:"I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose." - Woody Allen
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its release, the film holds up rather well. The acting and certain excerpts of the musical score reveal its age but many of the special effects still seem cutting-edge in their execution. If anything, their ingenuity is more impressive than many of today’s computer-enhanced schlock-fests. Another pleasant effect of the aging process is how much the film has opened itself up to different interpretation as the years have gone by. In addition to being the morality tale that so many of these slasher flicks purport to be, the film also exists as an allegory for depressed teenagers.
“Why can’t you just give me a pill to not dream,” a stressed-out Nancy demands of her doctor. This single line encapsulates a horde of teen-angst. While their home life is dominated by obtuse parents that are preoccupied with work, alcoholism, divorce, disinterest or altogether non-existence, even their dreamscapes become infected. Freddie’s return is a direct response to the behavior of the previous generation and it’s quite old testament in the way the sins of the parent are transferred to the child. Even semiotics is applicable to the film as the occasional religious symbol pops up both in the dream world and reality. Craven may not have had all this in mind when he put together his film in 1984, but there’s no doubt that he’s a skilled craftsman and A Nightmare on Elm Street will always stand as a benchmark film within the slasher genre.
Special Features:
New Line has released a new digitally-remastered double disc special edition of A Nightmare on Elm Street under its Infinifilm label. This means that you have the option to watch the film with the aid of an interactive subtitle track that not only provides textual facts about the film but also gives you the option to segue into a pertinent excerpt from the behind-the-scenes material at several times throughout the film. They also provide the option to watch the entire behind-the-scenes footage in a more traditional way on the second disc.
The House That Freddy Built: The Legacy of New Line Horror is a highly informative 20-minute featurette about the remarkable impact that A Nightmare on Elm Street had on New Line Entertainment. In 1984, New Line was a tiny studio that barely got by as a domestic distributor of 16mm films. This all changed when studio founder Robert Shaye convinced Craven to make his film at New Line. If it wasn’t for the enormous success of Nightmare, New Line would have likely gone out of business within a year or two. Shaye, an ardent horror fan, was ecstatic about the film’s success and developed it into a franchise spanning seven films and two decades. This featurette chronicles the entire lineage of the series and isn’t afraid to take a critical look at their films, citing problems with the second installment and the unimpressive 3-D attempted in the fifth film.
Night Terrors: The Origins of Wes Craven's Nightmares, a 15-minute featurette opens with a quote from Hamlet, bracing the ...
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