Nightmare on Elm Street

A killer stalks the neighborhood children in the quiet suburbs of a sleepy town. He tortures before he kills, playing with his prey before finally savoring his kill; nobody can stop him and nobody is looking, because he's hunting on his turf. His prey come to him every night in their dreams while they sleep fast in the silence on Elm Street.

This film, and its subsequent series, fought the box office turf war in the '80's and has a few distinctions. First, it saved New Line Cinema from bankruptcy, leaving us to wonder where Lord of the Rings would have turned to had Freddy not saved New Line. The second being that it gave rise to the career of last decades People's Choice winner for Actor of the Decade, a little known performer named Johnny Depp, who's death called for a geyser of stage blood to rise from his bed in a very memorable scene after it has swallowed him whole. Also, Robert Englund, who portrays Freddy Kruger, held the longest-running slasher villain for two decades, regardless of the Friday the 13th series having more films because Jason is played by several actors.

Wes Craven, our director, is the master of drawing tension with long cuts and employing a contemplative and minimalist score. The dreamscape sets are brilliant with their metallic, industrial, sewage-caked and dilapidated states against idyllic suburbia, so bright, clean and and innocent. The film's jump-cuts and ballistic action scenes create the ideal adrenaline rush for the time period. Today, however, it's ludicrous in its hysterical unintentional comedy. I actually have trouble not laughing at most points.

The recent remake, starring Jackie Earle Haley, who coincidentally lost out on a role in this film, has a bit smoother and darker run. And whose madness is felt a bit more keenly. In the remake, Freddy's attacks and revenge are personal and perverse and we don't want to connect, not really, because our skin, and our soul, crawls to think of his reasons and we turn away. The tension mastery is still ever present, with quality performances unlike the original (even young Johnny Depp, despite him being one of my boyz: now and forever) and presents a better package.

So you may wonder: why oh why did I watch this film before bed last night? Well, it was next, for one, and because it's pretty hysterical, with its overacting and comical performances all around, so it's easy to detach my thoughts from the subject, regardless of the quality had for its time. Also because I engaged in something else between the viewing and sleeping: something I recommend when seeing something that is outside your usual comfort zone.

****

In: Fail-safe choice

Out: Johnny Depp

Coming Soon: The Ninth Gate