A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

Director:

Wes Craven

Writer:

Wes Craven (written by)

Release Date:

16 November 1984 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

She is the only one who can stop it... if she fails, no one survives.

Plot:

In the dreams of his victims, a specteral child murderer stalks the children of the members of the lynch mob that killed him.

Plot Keywords:

Dream | Nightmare | Freddy Krueger | Death | Victim

Awards:

2 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

John Saxon	...	Lt. Thompson
Ronee Blakley	...	Marge Thompson
Heather Langenkamp	...	Nancy Thompson
Amanda Wyss	...	Tina Gray
Jsu Garcia	...	Rod Lane (as Nick Corri)
Johnny Depp	...	Glen Lantz
Charles Fleischer	...	Dr. King
Joseph Whipp	...	Sgt. Parker
Robert Englund	...	Fred Krueger
Lin Shaye	...	Teacher
Joe Unger	...	Sgt. Garcia
Mimi Craven	...	Nurse (as Mimi Meyer-Craven)
Jack Shea	...	Minister
Ed Call	...	Mr. Lantz
Sandy Lipton	...	Mrs. Lantz
David Andrews	...	Foreman
Jeff Levine	...	Coroner (as Jeffrey Levine)
Donna Woodrum	...	Tina's Mom
Shashawnee Hall	...	Cop #1
Carol Pritikin	...	Cop #2
Brian Reise	...	Cop #3
Ash Adams	...	Surfer #1 (as Jason Adams)
Don Hannah	...	Surfer #2
Leslie Hoffman	...	Hall Guard
Paul Grenier	...	Tina's Mom's Boyfriend
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
John Richard Petersen	...	John, Kid in Classroom (uncredited)
Antonia Yannouli	...	Girl in Nancy's English class (uncredited)

Directed by
Wes Craven

Writing credits
Wes Craven		(written by)

Produced by
John Burrows	....	associate producer
Stanley Dudelson	....	executive producer
Sara Risher	....	co-producer
Robert Shaye	....	producer
Joseph Wolf	....	executive producer

Original Music by
Charles Bernstein

Cinematography by
Jacques Haitkin

Film Editing by
Patrick McMahon		(co-editor) (as Pat McMahon)
Rick Shaine

Casting by
Annette Benson

Production Design by
Gregg Fonseca		(as Greg Fonseca)

Set Decoration by
Anne H. Ahrens		(as Anne Huntley)

Costume Design by
Dana Lyman

Makeup Department
Kathryn Fenton	....	makeup artist (as Kathy Logan)
RaMona Fleetwood	....	key hair stylist (as RaMona)
David B. Miller	....	special makeup effects artist (as David Miller)
Mark Wilson	....	makeup effects assistant
Louis Lazzara	....	special makeup effects artist (uncredited)
Mark Shostrom	....	foam latex technician (uncredited)

Production Management
John Burrows	....	production manager
Amy Rabins	....	production supervisor
Rachel Talalay	....	assistant production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Nicholas Batchelor	....	first assistant director (as Nick Batchelor)
Peter C. Graupner	....	second assistant director

Art Department
Dorree Cooper	....	set dresser
Don Diers	....	art department assistant
Bill Kroyer	....	storyboard artist
Kara Lindstrom	....	assistant props
Michael Listorti	....	swing gang (as Michael E. Listorti)
Timaree McCormick	....	assistant props
Gavin McCune	....	swing gang
Barbara Metzenbaum	....	art department assistant
Mix	....	set carpenter
John Krenz Reinhart Jr.	....	construction coordinator (as John Reinhart)
John Stadelman	....	prop master
Craig Clark	....	storyboard artist (uncredited)

Sound Department
Jack Cooley	....	sound re-recording mixer
James LaRue	....	sound mixer
Al Nahmias	....	sound editor (as Albert Nahmias)
Greg Nave	....	boom operator
Abe Nejad	....	assistant sound editor
Jess Soraci	....	supervising sound editor
Karen I. Stern	....	looping editor

Special Effects by
Tassilo Baur	....	special effects assistant
Charles Belardinelli	....	special effects assistant
Lou Carlucci	....	special effects assistant
Jim Doyle	....	mechanical special effects design
Peter Kelly	....	special effects assistant
Larry Lapointe	....	special effects assistant
Christina Rideout	....	special effects assistant
Jim Rynning	....	special effects assistant
James Upham	....	special effects assistant
William Guest	....	special effects assistant (uncredited)

Stunts
Cynthia Brannon	....	stunts
Bruce Carson	....	stunts
Tony Cecere	....	stunt coordinator
Tony Cecere	....	stunts
Kerrie Cullen	....	stunts
Jeff Habberstad	....	stunts
Leslie Hoffman	....	stunts
Christina Johnson	....	stunts
Maggie Koehnen	....	stunts
Larry Phillips	....	stunts
Don Pike	....	stunts
Christina Rideout	....	stunts
Tanya Russell	....	stunts (as Tanya Lee Russell)
Paul Shaver	....	stunts
Jim Stern	....	stunts (as Jim Stearns)
Cindy Wills	....	stunts
Sandy Wilson	....	stunts
Debby Porter	....	stunts (uncredited)
George A. Sack Jr.	....	stunt driver (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Joseph Adolph	....	best boy grip
Scott Buttfield	....	gaffer
Anne S. Coffey	....	first assistant camera (as Anne Coffey)
Stephen Crawford	....	gaffer: second unit (as Steve Crawford)
Nelson Elwell	....	grip
Rowdy Herrington	....	best boy electric
Warren Kroeger	....	grip
Cindy Lagerstrom	....	key grip: second unit
Joyce Rudolph	....	still photographer
Henning Schellerup	....	camera operator: second unit
Toni Semple	....	electrician
Thomas Vanghele	....	second assistant camera (as Tom Vanghele)
Craig Horwitz	....	set lighting (uncredited)

Casting Department
Lauren Roman	....	casting assistant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Lisa Jensen	....	costume supervisor
Terence McCorry	....	costumer

Editorial Department
James Flatto	....	apprentice editor
Kevin Krasny	....	editorial assistant: Los Angeles
Alison Paul	....	apprentice editor
Valerie Schwartz	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Michael Arciaga	....	music supervisor (uncredited)
Jeff Vaughn	....	score mixer (uncredited)

Transportation Department
Chuck Clarke	....	transportation coordinator
Brian Delahanty	....	transportation captain

Other crew
Stephen Abramson	....	production executive
Steve Cassling	....	production assistant
Lisa C. Cook	....	production coordinator
Lillian Fuentes	....	craft service
Steve Harris	....	production assistant
David B. Householter	....	set production assistant (as David Householter)
Sheridan Liu	....	assistant accountant
Anita Luccioni	....	assistant to producers
Steve McAfee	....	production assistant
Dan Perri	....	title designer
Jim Picciolo	....	animal wrangler
Craig Pointes	....	location manager
Wally Uchida	....	production assistant
Kathryn Weygand	....	script supervisor (as Kathy Weygand)
Benjamin Zinkin	....	legal consultant
John Burrows III	....	blood sweeper (uncredited)
Sean S. Cunningham	....	director: chase scene (uncredited)
Don Wyse	....	fire safety (uncredited)

Thanks
Sean S. Cunningham	....	special thanks (as Sean Cunningham)
Sam Raimi	....	special thanks
Jack Sholder	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• New Line Cinema (presents)
• Media Home Entertainment (presents)
• Smart Egg Pictures (presents)
• Elm Street Venture, The (copyright owner)

Distributors

• New Line Cinema (1984) (USA) (theatrical)
• Succéfilm AB (1985) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• Senator Film (1985) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Image Entertainment (1985) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Image Entertainment (1995) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Elite Entertainment (1996) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• New Line Home Video (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• New Line Home Video (2001) (USA) (DVD)
• New Line Home Video (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• RCV Home Entertainment (2003) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Alliance Atlantis Home Video (2006) (Canada) (DVD)
• New Line Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Tele 5 (2006) (Germany) (TV)
• RCV Home Entertainment (2007) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Lucernafilm - Gama (1992) (Czechoslovakia) (theatrical)
• Pan-Canadian Film Distributors (198?) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Abril Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Alliance Atlantis Home Video (19??) (Canada) (VHS)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (????) (USA) (DVD)
• Asso Film (video)
• Astral Films Limited (1985) (Canada) (VHS) (with Media Home Entertainment)
• CBS / Fox Video (19??) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• CBS/Fox Home Video (19??) (New Zealand) (VHS)
• Fox Video (199?) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Media Home Entertainment (19??) (USA) (VHS)
• RTL2 (????) (Germany) (TV)
• Video Treasures (19??) (USA) (VHS)

Other Companies

• Cinema Research  opticals
• Cinopticals  opticals
• Glen Glenn Sound  production sound
• Gomillion Sound  looping and adr
• Leonetti Cine Rentals  grip and electrical equipment
• Magno Sound  sound re-recording
• Magnofex  sound editing
• Optical House, The  opticals

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:MA (2005 re-rating) | Portugal:M/18 | Iceland:16 | Germany:16 (re-rating) (2007) | West Germany:18 (original rating) (1984) | Singapore:PG (heavily cut) | New Zealand:R16 (DVD rating) | Netherlands:16 | Singapore:M18 | Italy:VM18 (original rating) | South Korea:18 | Argentina:18 | Australia:R (original rating) | Canada:R | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Ireland:18 | Italy:VM14 (re-rating) | Mexico:C | Peru:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | Canada:18+ (Quebec) | Norway:18 (video premiere) (1987) (cut) | Germany:BPjM Restricted

Filming Locations:

1419 N. Genesee Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

New Line Cinema

Trivia:

Wes Craven's original concept for Freddy Krueger was considerably more gruesome, with teeth showing through the flesh over the jaw, pus running from the sores, and a part of the skull showing through the head. Make-up artist David B. Miller argued that an actor couldn't be convincingly made up that way and a puppet would be hard to film and wouldn't blend well with live actors, so these ideas were eventually abandoned.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Freddy intimidates Tina by slitting off his own pinkie and ring fingers, but blood only spurts from the pinkie.

Quotes:

Tina's Mom: [On seeing Tina's torn nightgown] Tina, you either gotta cut your fingernails or ya gotta stop that kind of dreamin'... one or the other.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Heartstoppers: Horror at the Movies (1992) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Nightmare

A real horror classic and among the best of all time.

This movie might very well be one of the best horror movies of all time, together with movies like "Poltergeist", "Dawn of the Dead (1978)" "The Exorcist" and "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)".

I didn't expected it to be but this movie was just brilliant. Certainly the best slasher movie ever made. There are several things that make this movie a good horror classic. Of course the classic 'killer' Freddy Kruger is one of them. Another thing is the concept. Yes, the story of course is just simply ridiculous at times but it's the perfect concept to fill a movie with, with some scary scene's and brutal killings with tons of blood.

The movie has the same scary gritty atmosphere like a horror movie from the 70's, when the horror genre was at an all-time high.

The actors are giving their best but some of the dialog is just plain cheesy. Still I think that the actors should deserve more credit then they are getting right now, especially Johnny Depp made a impressive movie debut. The talent was already showing, back then. His role in this movie was way bigger than I expected it to be by the way.

Really entertaining horror classic. Some things might look cheesy, especially the ending (I really laughed my butt off!) and the story in general but the atmosphere, gore and Kruger make up everything! Guess you have to be a fan of the genre to fully appreciate it though.

10/10