This is the horror film that probably had the biggest influence on me. Freddy Krueger is the ultimate boogeyman. A guy that can kill you in your sleep. And enemy that you have no defense against. And a threat that no one is going to take seriously because it's just a nightmare. Not to mention that face. You never saw a horror killer that looked so horrific up to that point. Leatherface definitely pushed buttons with his look, but the practical effects with Freddy's make-up was off the charts at that time.
And speaking of special effects, this movie was soaked in blood. The opening scene where Tina is dragged up the wall and across the ceiling, oh man, the first time you see that you are in amazement. (And from what the documentary said, that scene actually used a rotating room and was the most costly practical effect in a horror film up to that point.) Then you had Johnny Depp's death-scene where his bed literally just explodes with blood, brutal. The kills were creative as hell and the effects behind them were phenomenal. CGI can kiss my butt.
The characters in the movie felt real, too. Most of us had friends like that growing up, had a messed family background, and they had real teenage problems (not exaggerated Hollywood teenage problems). They looked like normal people, too, not all plastic and perfect looks. And that added to the tension of the movie, I felt.
The original was also the most horror of them all. While I do enjoy the entries in the series, they have more humor built-into it. While this was just trying to creep you out, Wes Craven wasn't trying to make you smile in the original. Remember Tina showing up later in the body bag at the school? Or how about when Freddy cuts into his own body?
And Robert Englund. That man was born to play Freddy. It's more than just the bladed glove and the charred face. Robert Englund brings a certain swagger to the role. The way he flashes his glove, or holds that right arm a bit further down like a gunslinger. The looks of disgust he gives the teenagers, and sheer joy in his face as he makes the killing stroke. He revels in his evilness. While Jason is sympathetic to a degree, and Michael Myers is shrouded behind mental illness; Freddy is just a sadistic son of a bitch and he makes no apologies for it.
What did you think of this one? Do you consider it the all-time classic that I do? Do you like the other entries in the series? (I'm a fan of everyone of them)
