10 Classic Horror Movies You Must See Before You Die

9. A Nightmare On Elm Street (1983)

Wes Craven's inventive premise of a murderer pursuing victims in their sleep clings to a ton of ideas that audiences had seen time and time again already, but pulls them together in a way that feels new. And of course, there's Freddy Krueger; a nightmarish creation of pure evil if there ever was one, since made iconic.

Unlike its plentiful sequels, A Nightmare On Elm Street isn't schlocky horror for the sake of it. Craven's script is genuinely intelligent, a point proven by the way in which Krueger delves into the dreams of his victims to get at them. It has a few flaws, of course, but ultimately A Nightmare On Elm Street lives up to to the sinister promise of its title.