A Nightmare on Elm Streettook our fears, literally. The supernatural horror introduced us to Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund), a metaphysicalfigure of perditionwho infiltrates our minds with twisted hellscapes and sucker punches our dreams. They were shadowed in fears, turning them intonightmares. We brought on our own demise; Freddyscratched our itchand jabbed us over the edge.
A fine line exists between business and pleasure: Freddy issadistic and sillywhile teenagers are horny until horrified and become their own heroes. Teenagers experience young love at some point, but when it escalates to sexual freedom (fantasy and desire) it receives punishment or other consequences (reality and censorship) throughthe most menacingand malicious metaphor possible. Freddy does look like a billowing, brutish STD after all.
The inner and outer conflicts of living our dreams and overcoming our fears to do it are seen in the franchise. Injustice, for example, can make us respond out of fear or propel us to do the right thing. Freddy being a child murderer who was burned alive after being acquitted for the killing of twenty children, is wrong and right. Moral ambiguity makespsychological horrorboth a precarious precipice and a deep dive into how our thoughts and actions cross paths.A Nightmare on Elm Streetmanages to skirt the line between the real world and the world we fashion out of fear for ourselves. Leave it to Freddy to work while we sleep.
9Freddy vs. Jason (2003) - Mark Davis
Two horror icons dueling it out in a fated crossover that everyone had waited for since the eighties. The denizens of Springfield forget about Freddy Krueger (mistake) and he summons Jason Voorhees (mistake again). Jason goes on a killing spree and becomes a firebrand for Freddy’s return until they compete for top billing. Freddy takes a backseat compared to Jason’s onslaught; the knife-gloved killer’s penultimate victim, Mark Davis, gets branded like cattle, marking his rightful place in our nightmares.
8A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) - Jesse Braun
The remake brought a darker tone; Freddy’s backstory made him a child molester, an idea Wes Craven intended back in 1984. Jesse Braun stands in for Rod Lane, both murdered by Jason while in jail. The latter is hung by his bedsheets, but Jesse gets a surprise in the infamous boiler room much more gruesome and gut-wrenching.
Related:Kevin Bacon Responds to Robert Englund Casting Him as Freddy Krueger
7Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (1994) - Julie
Oh, the trauma of memories. The hospital scene is a callback to the original death of Tina Grey, passing the knife-glove to babysitter Julie. The difference here is that Freddy can be seen and heard by another one of his victims, the son of Heather Langenkamp (playing herself and Nancy Thompson), Dylan. Craven’s meta script was the stuff of dreams and nightmares.
6A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985) - Pool Party
Dubbed as “homoerotic horror”,Freddy’s Revengefocuses on a new lineup of (mostly male) victims. The exception occurs at a pool party, of all places. Usually Freddy corners his victims one at a time, but here he gets his own killing spree. He becomes the ultimate party crasher as he declares everyone in attendance his children.
5A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child (1989) - Mark Gray
Super Freddy may have been the only time we couldn’t take the villain seriously (Dorian Tyrell fromThe Maskanyone?), but how he ends teen Mark Gray is creative nonetheless. Mark is a comic book creator who becomes his illustrated hero only to turn into confetti thanks to the MPAA who scratched his beheading.
Carlos Rodriguez wears a hearing aid, so naturally Carlos loses his ear like Vincent van Gogh. Sound is used to great effect as Freddy taunts Carlos' inaudible existence. The maestro of fear ends Carlos with a cruel crescendo.
Related:How A Nightmare On Elm Street Reboot Could Work
3A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master (1988) - Debbie Stevens
Debbie Stevens fear of bugs translates well to body horror. With a painful gait, Debbie slowly transforms into a creepy, crawly cockroach. She suffers the fate of Krueger Pest Control. Joey Crusel gets runner-up for having a wet dream on and in his water bed though.
2A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987) - Jennifer Caulfield
If you complain that there’s nothing good on TV, don’t worry,Dream Warriorshas got a show for you. Jennifer Caulfield is one of the few children that got away from the Springwood Slasher. She dreams of becoming an actress and gets her debut role, but on which time slot? Primetime, b*tch!
1A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) - Tina Grey
A supernatural and psychological double whammy, the nightmare and death of Tina Grey left an indelible mark on the franchise. In the very first kill of the series, Tina is being tossed and pulled about like a rag doll as her boyfriend watches helplessly as an invisible Freddy does his dirty deed. Springwood, Ohio, and dreamers everywhere would never be the same again after watching this subtle yet sinister scene.
