Movie Meme...Horror

Hannah has finally unleashed the greatest genre into the Blogosphere with this week's theme for Metal Mummy's Movie Meme....Horror!

I could write pages about my love of horror films.  From the psychological to the supernatural to the slasher to the downright nasty...horror films encompass the same thrills as a scary ass roller coaster.  The increased heart rate, the adrenalin and the gut churning thrills are all very similar!

The film I am choosing isn't necessarily the best in terms of story, effects or acting.  However, it is the film that saw the rise of one of the most iconic horror characters and the subsequent inspiration for the naming of my baby boy.  Yes, predictably maybe, but my choice is "A Nightmare on Elm Street".

Released in 1984, I was 15 and it made such an impression on me.  The character of Freddy Krueger was pure genius...he personified the terror of nightmares with an added dash of comedy, which served to make him all the more sinister!

He stalked the teenagers of Elm Street in their sleep, wreaking revenge on the parents who had burned him alive in his boiler house for being a child killer.

I saw it at the cinema back in 1984.  My friends and I were literally huddled together screaming and laughing and loving every minute of this film.  The part where Freddy's tongue comes out of the telephone had us squirming in disgust at a time in our lives when we were just discovering boys and snogging!!  Wes Craven pitched this film perfectly to the intended audience.  We empathized with Nancy as she tried to make the disbelieving adults help her and her friends who were being picked off one by one by Krueger.  It was just horror gold!

Johnny Depp makes an early appearance as one of the teens who meets a gruesome end at the razor fingered hands of Freddy Krueger.  Robert Englund played the lead brilliantly with the perfect blend of terror and humour.  The iconic gloves, hat and jumper make him instantly recognisable.  The NOES franchise produced a series of excellent sequels.  The third one was my favourite "Dream Warriors" which was released in 1987.  I liked how the story was padded out with more background on Krueger whilst remaining true to the original. The character was embellished allowing a degree of humanity without ruining his horror credentials!

To this day, I still don't like having my wardrobe door open when I go to bed...not even a crack...in case Freddy Krueger decides to come through while I'm asleep!  The spectral killer is certainly the stuff of nightmares...and I for one, love it!!