RENFIELD'S BIG BLOG O' FUN

A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET
DVD/ NEW LINE HOME ENTERTAINMENT
1984 (Say NO to Michael Bay and Platinum Dunes)

Ok. Let's forget there ever was an "Elm Street". Will Michael Bay's tepid remake ever be as powerful alongside the care and energy Wes Craven pumped into his 1980's darling?

Definitely not. It was a question of craft as well as money. At least it was to Craven, who shopped his script all over, only to have it fall into the hands of a tiny company called "New Line Cinema". The small studio that could was first founded by producer Robert Shaye, who distributed indie titles and cult hits like "Reefer Madness" to college circuits. With "A Nightmare on Elm Street", the movie apparatus was in full swing, with Shaye adding up even more talent soon afterwards, calling the whole result, "The House That Freddy Built". It was a one of a kind film that set up new rules for a slasher film while providing an innovative new concept which was having an adventure in a dream land, or in this case, nightmare.

When it first appeared in 1984, people couldn't stop talking about it. It made for countless imitations and star Robert Englund was made into an instant celebrity, with fame for Johnny Depp just around the corner. Fangoria magazine was all over it and horror fans were excited for they found their new idol of fear, Fred Krueger, the man with "knives for fingers" who came into your dreams with one goal, to kill you before you screamed yourself awake.

The whole idea came from a series of newspaper clippings that Craven collected. Yep, the movie was based upon a series of true stories about kids who were traumatized by believing that there was indeed something or someone after them in their sleep, and if they dozed off, they were convinced it would lead to instant death. Some would avoid sleeping pills and one even hid a pot of coffee under his bed. Interestingly enough, the case was cemented as frantic parents would run into their screaming child's bedroom only to find that he had died within a matter of moments after having fallen asleep. Pretty scary stuff, and it inspired Wes Craven, an interpreter of dreams himself, to write his newest screenplay.

Craven himself wasn't foreign to horror before the events of Springwood, Ohio, after having made two of the most controversial horror films back to back. "The Last House on the Left" and "The Hills Have Eyes", were both dealing with the deconstruction of the family unit. In "Elm Street", he once again mixed the flavor of Mom's apple pie with a bitter worm. Somehow I got the feeling that he was trying to hide something in a picturesque world full of picket fences and happy go lucky suburbia. A dirty secret underneath all that was leaking out into the real world, and chewing us up faster than it could swallow whole.

The film centers around a small knit group of friends having the same horrid nightmares about a shady, disfigured man with razor fingers. Much like the newspaper clippings that Wes Craven read, they try to stay awake, ever fearful that they would be the next victims to be claimed. Enter Nancy Thompson, a possible hero who learns the true power of what her dreams hold and tries to stop the evil from being released throughout her neighborhood. This would involve stepping through the dream itself and having many encounters with said slasher Krueger. He would pop up instantaneously whenever she, or any of her friends slept. Frankly, the best ideas were saved for when the killer showed up. It usually was where you would least expect it, such as in a girl's bathtub, and how are you more vulnerable than when you are naked?

It isn't a slash and stalk film, and takes a story idea to new and imaginative levels rather than quickly finishing the characters off one by one. We see the fear and eeriness creep into the frames by presenting the menace and how far it progresses. Except for a few bloody sequences, the movie is encased with atmosphere, whether in asbestos filled boiler rooms or dank police stations. There is nothing flashy or bright in any part of the film, which means that a setup could be waiting behind any corner.

The Infinifilm version contains a very clear print of the movie itself with extra commentary by Heather Langenkamp, John Saxon, Wes Craven, Amanda Wyss, and Robert Englund. The original commentary track is along for the ride as well, so you have two for the price of one. Of course that's only the tip of this iceberg.

Extras include:
Remastered Picture
Documentary: "Never Sleep Again"
BEYOND THE MOVIE
"The House That Freddy Built"
"Night Terrors:The origins of Wes Craven's Nightmares"

Infinifilm INTERACTIVES:
*Pop up prompts, Nightmare fact track and video clips
*Rom Content

ADDITIONAL FEATURES:
*Alternate Endings
*Audio commentary

As I have said many times, it is very important to own a copy of this film if you have a curious lad or lass just itching at the teeth to see the new remake of this film. It would be better for you and your wallet to show them the original 1984 film and to stay out of theaters when the remake hits. To recall Michael Moore's Oscar rant, "Shame on you Michael Bay!" "Shame on you!"

.....Like Bay would care. He used a "MUSIC" director for his film. That's a bad enough sign. When we are finished with remakes, the sooner the genre will have a chance to grow again and prosper, with new scares and imaginative possibilities.