As a Gen-Xer back in the 80s, now looking back some 40+ years, we really were spoiled for choice in any genre of film you may wish to name. VHS was in full swing by 1984, so movies a nine-year-old had no chance of seeing in theatres were accessible on video, should an inappropriately aged horror kid ask his parents nicely. Leatherface, Jason Vorhees mother, then him, Romero zombie flicks and Hammer horror movies were a steady diet for the warped little fella I was back then. I watched Kevin Bacon’s throat impaled with a spear, cowered behind a couch when a kid vampire scratched at his pal’s window, asking to come in. I loved it! Then Wes Craven brought a new monster into our lives. A hideously burned man with finger knives, waiting for you to fall asleep.

It would be a short list of folks throughout the world that don’t know who Freddy Krueger is, whether horror buffs or not. He is an icon now, the marriage of a brilliant man’s invention and an unknown actor that brought him to stunning reality: Robert Englund. 7 films, a tie in movie and a remake later, we still clamour for more.

In 1984, Craven delivered what he assumed was a one shot. The story of a girl named Nancy (Heather Langenkamp) who is experiencing terrible dreams. Turns out so are some of her friends. They decide to have a slumber party, when her friend Tina (Amanda Weiss) is slaughtered by an invisible force in her sleep. Turns out she is the latest victim of a long-dead child killer, Freddy Krueger. A demonic entity now capable of finding victims in the living world through one of life’s necessities: sleep. Nancy fights to stay awake and finds answers to why Freddy seems interested in taking out all of Elm Street’s teens before it’s too late.

Utterly brilliant story. Taking a benign, everyday moment of life and making the characters of the film vulnerable to attack. A creature so malevolent that he claims your life without detection. The character of Nancy was a quintessential shift in young female horror characterisation. She is a teenage girl, desperate, powerless, and afraid. But she has her wits and great empathy. They help her win the day against an omnipotent adversary. Supporting characters range from serviceable to one note. The adults are deliberately written to be useless, so I guess that’s what they are. The winning hand is Englund’s Krueger. He espouses malevolence as easily as he does glee and sells the terror Craven was going for.

Some of the brilliant set-pieces and effects still hold up to this day. The ill-received remake proved this a decade ago. CGI and fancy lighting were no match for the Tina kill and Freddy morphing through Nancy’s bedroom wall practical effects from the original.

My only real issue with this was a scene Craven didn’t even want to film: the final scene where all four teens are alive and going to school, Nancy’s mom claims she’s quit drinking… and “One, two, Freddy’s coming for you…” He burst through the front door window and wrenches a sex doll inflatable mom back inside. Looked terrible on VHS, just imagine what it looks like in 2024 4K 2160p!

This film is where it started. It’s the epitome of the imagination and risk taking that defined the 1980s and gave us the majority of the IPs now relentlessly milked by Hollywood. Rest In Peace, Wes Craven. You left us Freddy to deal with.

Exclusive 4K Ultra HD Steelbook

Home Video Distributor: Warner Bros.
Available on Blu-ray - October 15, 2024
Screen Formats: 1.85:1
Subtitles: English SDH, French, German SDH, Italian SDH, Spanish, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish
Video: Native 4K (2160p; HDR10
Audio: English: Dolby Atmos; English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1; English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono
Discs: 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc; Single disc
Region Encoding: 4K region-free

VIDEO

Yeah… Not a home run here, folks. First let's start with the good. They fixed the aspect ratio from previous releases to show the full 1.85:1 picture. It’s revelatory in difference to earlier transfers but there is more picture to be seen. Colours are warmer than in earlier prints and consistently more natural. The HDR subtlety improves most things but especially rises to the for in daytime shots. Where it fumbles is in the darker scenes, where a few times I noticed some digital artefacts; I think they call it macro- not blocking. Look, this is an awesome uptick but far from flawless.

AUDIO

This is the reason to spring for this! All new DOLBY Atmos 7.1 mix, baby! And it reinstates missing original sound elements that were excised or replaced in previous mixes. (Sorry I don’t pay that much attention.) This mix really sets the mood, with atmospherics getting a hefty workout. Dialogue is clean and centred. Base is effective and moody. There is also a remastered DTS-HD 2.0 mix, replicating the original mono soundtrack for purists. Perfect in every way.

Supplements:

Commentary:

• Featuring writer/director Wes Craven, actors Heather Langenkamp and John Saxon, and cinematographer Jacques Haitki.
• Featuring Wes Craven; New Line Cinema founder Robert Shaye; actors Robert Englund, Heather Langenkamp, Amanda Wyss, and Ronee Blakley; producers Sara Risher and John Burrows; cinematographer Jacques Haitkin; composer Charles Bernstein; editors Rick Shaine and Patrick McMahon; mechanical special effects designer Jim Doyle; special makeup effects artist David B. Miller; and film historian David Del Valle.

Special Features:

Copious legacy features from earlier releases. Nothing contemporary here, folk. Great stuff, but nothing new. They just won’t spring for new stuff anymore, despite having no compunction charging for it. I will say you get two versions of the film, uncut and theatrical. I got the steelbook edition with a flashy with new cover art to review, and it’s the least disagreeable design for a bunch of crappy photoshop jobs on the new editions. The original poster is a masterpiece! WHY WARNERS? Why did you not use it?

• Focus Points
• Alternate Endings
• The House That Freddy Built: The Legacy of New Line Horror
• Never Sleep Again: The Making of A Nightmare on Elm Street
• Night Terrors: The Origins of Wes Craven's Nightmares

	Movie
	Video
	Audio
	Extras
Composite Blu-ray Grade

MPAA Rating: R.
Runtime: 91 mins
Director: Wes Craven
Writer: Wes Craven
Cast: Heather Langenkamp; Johnny Depp; Robert Englund
Genre: Horror
Tagline: If Nancy Doesn't Wake Up Screaming, She Won't Wake Up at All.
Memorable Movie Quote: "Whatever you do... don't fall asleep."
Theatrical Distributor: Warner Bros.
Official Site:
Release Date: November 16, 1984
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: October 15, 2024.
Synopsis: Teenager Nancy Thompson must uncover the dark truth concealed by her parents after she and her friends become targets of the spirit of a serial killer with a bladed glove in their dreams, in which if they die, it kills them in real life.