Product Details

• Actors: Heather Langenkamp, Johnny Depp, Robert Englund, John Saxon, Ronee Blakley
• Directors: Wes Craven
• Writers: Wes Craven
• Producers: John H. Burrows, Joseph Wolf, Robert Shaye, Sara Risher, Stanley Dudelson
• Format: Widescreen, Digital Sound, Color, Full Screen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono), English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: R (Restricted)
• Studio: New Line Home Video
• DVD Release Date: August 21, 2001
• Run Time: 91 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (466 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00000JQTT
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #76,197 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• Learn more about "A Nightmare on Elm Street (Digitally Remastered)" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Wes Craven's 1984 horror film is a better movie than it is generally credited for being. Forget the tawdry sequels; this highly original, almost surrealist work stars Robert Englund as a mutilated monster who kills teenagers during their dreams. Craven, who only directed one Elm Street sequel (Wes Craven's New Nightmare), takes the Hitchcockian step of layering in psychological explanations for the terror and then proving them all irrelevant in the face of mindless evil. The horror in the film is emotionally raw, in contrast to the overimaginative set pieces of most of the sequels that followed; and the final scene is as deeply unsettling as anything Luis Buñuel ever committed to film. --Tom Keogh

Product Description

Digitally remastered, this is the original Nightmare film that started it all. Written and directed by Wes Craven and starring Robert Englund as Freddy Krueger, A Nightmare on Elm Street remains an innovative and shocking horror-fantasy.

DVD Features:
Audio Commentary
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer

See all Editorial Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

70 of 82 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Not complete or definitive October 1, 2006

By A reader

Format:DVD

Overall this two-set disc DVD is great. It includes many deleted scenes and the sound and picture is great as well.

Although this is certainly not definitive/complete. There are out takes, extended scenes, FX shots, TV spots, etc., that are not included. Such as a dialog between Lt. Thompson and Sgt. Garcia in the police station, more scenes of Nancy getting ready to battle Freddy (like pouring gasoline in that glass bottle she threw at him in the basement), another take of Glen's body rising out of the bed, an extended dialog between Marge and Mr. Thompson at the cemetery, a dialog between Lt. Thompson and Mr. Lantz (Glen's father), etc. These others were released in 1996 on laserdisc by Elite Entertainment and a two-cassette VHS by Anchor Bay. There is also trivia missing from the movie like, for example, the guy who was reading Hamlet aloud in English class is Daryl Hannah's brother. Although there is a discussion of the different types and ways of doing Freddy's makeup, there's no mention of what Wes Craven originally wanted (such as the teeth showing through the flesh above the jaws, which ironically was used on the "demon" version of Freddy when he jumps out of the lake in Jason vs. Freddy). Nor mention of all the actresses Heather Langenkamp beat out such as Jennifer Grey (Dirty Dancing), Demi Moore, Courteney Cox (Ave Ventura, Scream, Friends), and Tracey Gold (Growing Pains).

But this is as close to complete as currently available on DVD. Now that we have the infinifilm special edition, hopefully a special edition director's cut/uncut will appear one day with (if possible) the extended scenes placed back in the movie itself and not as special features to be viewed separately along with all the goodies in this and the VHS/laserdisc versions....

It was nice to finally have Amanda Wyss and Ronee Blakey (boy she changed!) interviewed. But it would have been also nice to get Mr. ever-so-famous Johnny Depp, Jsu Garcia, and John Saxon (71 yrs old now!) interviews.

Overall, I give it 4 and a half stars. Read more ›

50 of 59 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The film that revolutionized the horror genre January 17, 2004

By Daniel Jolley HALL OF FAMETOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

It is a true testament to writer-director Wes Craven's genius that many people now first think of Scream rather than A Nightmare on Elm Street upon hearing his name. While Scream certainly re-energized the horror movie genre, A Nightmare on Elm Street revolutionized it entirely when it was released in 1984. Twenty years after the fact, the movie doesn't seem quite as scary as it did originally, but this movie has truly shocked and frightened many a moviegoer over the years, resonated with untold numbers of men and women in a new and undeniably powerful way, drawn in many viewers that had never cared about horror before, and introduced one of the greatest, most popular horror icons of past, present, and future in Freddy Krueger.

When you really look at the genesis of this movie, its incredible success is truly mind-boggling. Wes Craven had already made waves in the business with such horror classics as Last House on the Left, but the script for A Nightmare on Elm Street made the rounds of Hollywood for three years before the relatively unknown New Line Cinema stepped up to make the movie a reality. The total budget for the film was well under two million dollars, and the filmmakers basically worked miracles to make the film as viscerally shocking and beautifully gory as it is. A tremendous cast was assembled: veteran actor John Saxon and newcomer Johnny Depp (in his very first role) are terrific, Robert Englund needs no introduction for his unforgettable portrayal of Freddy Krueger, and a young and innocent Heather Langenkamp delivers a dazzling performance as Nancy Thompson. (Ronee Blakley's performance as Nancy's mother is over-the-top and rather poor in general, but this is essentially the movie's only weakness....) Many people think that Englund carries this film with his brilliant portrayal of the nightmarish killer, and in a sense he does, but for me it is Langenkamp's performance that absolutely makes this movie something way beyond special. I have always been a big Langenkamp fan; she brings to Nancy a mesmerizing sense of innocence, charm, and natural beauty that wins the audience over completely. Freddy is a dark and menacing presence, but he really doesn't get that much camera time in this first film; Nancy is the essential conduit that connects the audience to the horror.

I don't think much is required in terms of explanations or plot summaries here. Freddy Krueger was a murderer of children who was hunted down and burned to death by local parents. He still exists, though, in the world of dreams, and now the teenaged children of the men and women who destroyed him are his targets. Nancy and her friends all begin to see this strange burnt man in an old fedora and a dirty red and olive green sweater in their dreams; Nancy soon learns that whatever happens in these awful dreams also happens in real life. The first victim dies a spectacular death, one that surely poured heaps of shock value on 1984 audiences and which still works wonderfully today. Several other notable deaths follow, and Nancy knows that she alone must face Freddy and somehow engineer a trap with which to snag him. It's not easy killing a dead man who lives in dreams, of course, but Wes Craven built a really beautiful logic into the story that makes it work convincingly.

The special effects of this film are remarkable, especially given the tight budget restraints. The death scenes are powerful and bloody, the atmosphere and look of the boiler room sets in particular are dark and malevolent, everything about Freddy's look and performance are perfect, and even really cheap effects such as the phone tongue and melted stairs work beautifully. The special features included on the DVD are nothing short of superb, especially the commentary by Wes Craven, Heather Langenkamp, John Saxon, and director of photography Jacques Haitkin - I learned so much from this commentary (including the fascinating true-life facts that helped give birth to the original idea in Craven's mind), all of which made me all the more impressed with this seminal horror classic. A Nightmare on Elm Street is one of the most enjoyable, powerful, and influential horror films ever made, and the transfer to DVD makes this film look better than ever. Read more ›

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Nightmare on Elm Street Bluray review! April 14, 2010

By Robert D. Phelps

Format:Blu-ray

I just got the new nightmare on elm street bluray and after watching it I must admit this looks great! The video transfer looks amazing! Considering this movie is 26 years old, I am amazed this looks so good! And if your asking, yes this is a big improvement visually and audio wise to the previous DVD editions. The bonus features are good and stick to the original movie, instead of focusing on the new remake. The bonus features are mostly making of and creation of the Freddy saga! But another sweet addition included is the alternative endings all in 1080p HD! I hope the rest of the sequels are released aswell as the Jason goes to he'll and Jason x movies on bluray! Anyways the verdict, the video transfer looks crisp and shows little grain or film damage, the HD transfer looks amazing! The audio is 7.1dts and sounds amazing from my Bose entertainment center! The bonus features are awesome!

Video: 9 out of 10
audio : 8 out of 10
bonus features : 8 out of 10

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Meet Fred Krueger February 19, 2008

By William

Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase

Freddy Krueger is something else. Robert Englund plays the slasher/boogeyman with the relish of a Batman villian without sacrificing his menace. Compared to Jason or Michael Meyers, Freddy is the life of the party...or the death of it if he catches you asleep. Not that this first installment of the Nightmare series is full of laughs. In his first appearance Freddy is truly scary. But he enjoys being scary and as audience members we enjoy being scared by him. As a horror personality Freddy is unequaled and seeing how he was introduced to audiences you can see that he was both a charismatic monster and a terrifying threat from the start.
But I need to admit something: I generally think less is more where blood is concerned. It's a matter of taste, I know, but that said I decided I really like this movie.
This is an unabashadly bloody slasher movie but one cannot deny that it is an imaginative one. I have been more terrified by other horror movies But few horror movies stay with you like A Nightmare on Elm Street. You'll likely be dreaming of Freddy Krueger yourself afterwards.
I recall one horror movie historian saying that horror movies are our way of making friends with the monsters of our imagination. I think he's right. And I think therein lies the appeal of Freddy. He's a sick killer but we also want to make friends with him.
Finally, I think the extras on this two disc set are what really make it special. If it were the movie by itself I might subtract a star or two, but I really liked the making of video and extra documentaries. Wes Craven tells you about the origins of Freddy down to the reasons for the color selections for his stripped sweater.... (That particular shade of red and green were said to be the most distressing color combination to the human psyche).
So if your a horror fan, get A Nightmare on Elm Street (if you don't already have it). Read more ›