I think it's actually one of the best FILMS of all time. Period. A masterwork of horror and none of the sequels or imitators come close (although I do enjoy most of them).
Ah, the Good Ole Days. When Freddy was still labeled a child "molester" (instead of just child "murderer"). Before he became a lovable jokester for the MTV babies. When Wes Craven still had an edge.
Best one of the NOES bunch, IMHO. This and NOES3. Freddy at his best. Also, Heather Langenkamp is hot!! Love her hair.
Another solid 10. When I first saw as a kid, I couldn't sleep the entire night and was looking over my shoulder for days.
I gave it a 9.5. It's easily one of the scariest and well made horror movies of the 80s. Forget all of his other movies, this is Wes Craven's best work. It was truly original, scared the hell out of me as a kid, and inspired countless other wisecracking villains in other horror movies. It's a nearly flawless horror movie. I only gave it a 9.5 because only 2-3 horror movies IMO get a 10, but this one is awfully close. This was probably the only time in the series where Freddy could be taken seriously. No one watching this movie for the first time knew what the hell he was and how to stop him. That scene where Tina gets killed in the bedroom next to Rod is one of the most amazing things I have ever seen in a horror movie. Good acting all the way around, a good background story, that only gets ruined by a cheesy ,although funny ending.
Gave it an eight. My favourite Nightmare by far before Freddy was spouting off one-liners. All this and John Saxon too!
You know, I've always wondered why so many people consider this a slasher film. To me, a slasher has no supernatural elements, it's just about a crazy person stalking victims. NOES reminds me more of Carnival of Souls and Phantasm, in blurring the world between nightmares and reality. That said, I watched this again last year at my annual Halloween horror-fest, and it does not hold up as well 20 years later. It drags a LOT, had most of us looking at our watches and discussing the next film on the schedule.
I'm not a huge fan of this movie but I respect it for what it accomplished. Englund is awesome whether he's spouting one-liners or not. I mainly agree with Paff that a lot of the film drags.
This film was plainly insane for those of us who saw this at a younger age. A slasher/boogeyman flick you could take seriously. Films like this make me feel really nostalgic. It actually made me proud for being the type of kid I was. Fuck Disney!
9/10 for me. Doesn't hold up quite as well currently, but still holds so much nostalgia. Part 3: The Dream Warriors was the best sequel by far. Part 4: The Dream Master was probably the last film in this series I cared about.
I hated this when I first rented it in 1999, on the old Media VHS which was impossibly dark. Couldn't see most of it. So, over the years, it's been an uphill kind of thing. Now it's one of the most rewarding and satisfying horror films to watch. Period. Never fails. 8/10, based on some technical flaws. (And the line, "guys can have nightmares too, you ain't got a corner on the marketplace.")