It’s 1987 and the slasher genre was already starting to smell a bit like a basement after a flood. We’ve seen enough silent masked guys in the woods to be on the verge of burnout. The ‘Summer of 1984’ was a distant memory, and New Line Cinema was facing a crisis of identity. A Nightmare…

By 1984, two of the big ‘unholy trinity’ of 80s slasher franchises, Halloween and Friday the 13th, had already been established. Wes Craven was late to the party, but he brought with him the film that would not only complete the slasher picture but would also birth the franchise that arguably became the biggest pop…