--- title: "A Nightmare on Elm Street: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/a-nightmare-on-elm-street/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/a-nightmare-on-elm-street" critics_score: 84 critics_reviews: 5 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984): what the critics said Critics' score 84 from 5 reviews: 5 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. ## Slant Magazine — Nick Schager Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 25 September 2006. The film is a landmark for its surreal atmosphere and iconic villain but also helped usher in an era of campy, pun-filled horror sequels. Craven excels at blending sexualized imagery with dream logic and parental guilt themes. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/a-nightmare-on-elm-street/) ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 23 October 2024. The critic calls the 1984 film an ingenious and jauntily outrageous shocker that upends the idea of being kept awake by fear. They highlight its cheerfully crass black-comic energy and the film debut of Johnny Depp. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/oct/23/a-nightmare-on-elm-street-review-jauntily-outrageous-slasher-is-still-cheerfully-crass) ## Empire — Simon Braund 1 January 2000. The film revitalized the fading teen slasher genre with its premise of a killer invading dreams. It singles out the iconic creation of Freddy Krueger and memorable nightmare sequences like the blood geyser from the bed for praise, while noting a somewhat weak finale. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/empire-essay-nightmare-elm-street-review/) ## The New York Times — Vincent Canby 9 November 1984. The film is a slick, effective horror entry that merges teen nightmares with reality through inventive special effects. Canby notes the emphasis on bizarre visuals over graphic gore from Craven's earlier work. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1984/11/09/movies/screen-nightmare.html) ## Time Out — NRo 22 September 2013. The critic finds the film good scary fun despite the later franchise overshadowing it, praising the genuinely frightening dream sequences and throwaway black humour while noting the subtext wanders. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/a-nightmare-on-elm-street-1) ## Variety — Variety Staff 1 January 1984. A highly imaginative horror film that delivers the shocks expected by genre fans, with original special effects that effectively blend dreams and reality. Craven merges the elements tantalizingly but does not fully resolve the thematic threads at the end. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1983/film/reviews/a-nightmare-on-elm-street-2-1200426163/) ## Collider — Rae Torres Rating A. 27 October 2022. The critic praises the film's innovative premise of a killer invading dreams and Robert Englund's mesmerizing, gleeful performance as Freddy Krueger, which revitalized the slasher genre. It notes the iconic visuals and Nancy as a strong final girl but observes that campy elements and dated effects make it less scary for modern viewers, though still a classic. [Read the review](https://collider.com/a-nightmare-on-elm-street-review-freddy-krueger-not-scary/) ## Paste — Jim Vorel Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 26 September 2019. The critic singles out the film's fresh approach to the slasher genre through Freddy's supernatural dream-based attacks and rich backstory, which allowed for inventive and disturbing set pieces. It calls the original the purest and scariest version, crediting Craven for disrupting stale tropes with a new iconic villain. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/horror-movies/best-horror-movie-of-1984-nightmare-on-elm-street) ## Eye for Film — James Gracey Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 5 September 2014. The critic praises the film's atmospheric and unsettling quality, highlighting its surreal dream sequences and the primal fear of sleep. They note it stands out from typical slashers with rich concepts and haunting ideas, though Freddy becomes clownish in sequels. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/a-nightmare-on-elm-street-1984-film-review-by-james-gracey) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/a-nightmare-on-elm-street.md