Raising a Toast to A Nightmare on Elm Street on its 40th Anniversary

One of the best horror films ever -- and a hugely important one for myself -- hits a milestone and gets a new 4K UHD release.

Originally, I was going to publish a new Viva Physical Media column today, catching up on a bunch of recent releases, among them A Nightmare on Elm Street’s new 4K disc. But then I realized today — November 9th — is the actual 40th anniversary of Nightmare and it felt like it deserved its own spotlight. Because not only is that 1984 film widely regarded as a true horror classic that launched a hit franchise but it also has tremendous personal significance for me, both as one of my very favorite films but also as a movie that helped guide my interests for the rest of my life. 

When I look back at the pop culture that defined me (and my tastes) growing up, I think it can probably be boiled down to: 

• Star Wars

• Marvel Comics

• A Nightmare on Elm Street

I’m a massive horror fan, seeing any new horror release I can. And while the seeds of that began before I was introduced to Freddy with movies like Poltergeist, once I visited Elm Street for the first time, there was no going back. We’ve been covering all of the Nightmare on Elm Street movies on the We Enjoy… podcast this fall and as I’ve mentioned there, the first movie I saw in the series was actually A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge, which my mom took me to - so thank you, Mom! That film definitely had kid me instantly fascinated by Freddy. But once I watched the original on VHS — I believe my sister rented it for me, so thank you, Nina! – I was truly hooked. 

The cast of A Nightmare on Elm Street behind the scenes, proving Freddy just wants to be loved.

Wes Craven’s 1984 original is incredibly well constructed. It’s a slasher movie of sorts, but only kinda/sorta, since its supernatural, surreal approach is very different from your typical scary-masked-guy-chopping-up-his-victims film. The central conceit of a group of teenagers having a shared nightmare about a horrific man stalking them through a boiler room (more on him in a moment) is so compelling, anchored by a very likable group of characters played by a very talented group of actors, including Heather Langenkamp, Amanda Wyss, Jsu Garcia (then credited as Nick Corri) and Johnny Depp. 

The way Craven lays the groundwork for the rules of the film is perfect, as we see that if you get your clothes torn in a dream, it happens for real and if you burn your arm in a dream, it happens for real. But of course the most audacious reveal of what’s at stake is the harrowing death of Wyss’ Tina, who is seen thrown about a bedroom room and dragged up the ceiling in the real world, her body slashed up by invisible blades, because Freddy has her within her dream. It’s amazing to think how low budget Nightmare was, given all it accomplishes, and this sequence – making use of a rotating room to pull off Tina's death – is a big example of that.