A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET

                 Wes Craven's

                      A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET

1A.   INT.  (MONTAGE).                                                   1A.

      NIGHTMARE MUSIC THEME begins as we FADE UP on a SERIES OF SHOTS,
      all CLOSE and teasing.

              -- A man's FEET, in shabby work shoes, stalking
                 through a junk bin in a dark, fire-lit, ash-
                 dusted place.  A huge BOILER ROOM is what it
                 is, although we only glimpse it piecemeal.
                 Then we SEE a MAN'S HAND, dirty and nail-bitten,
                 reach INTO FRAME and pick up a piece of METAL.

              -- ANOTHER ANGLE as the HAND grabs a grimey
                 WORKGLOVE and slashes at it with a straight
                 razor, until its fingertips are off.

              -- CLOSE ON SAME HANDS dumping four fishing knives
                 out of a filthy bag.  Their blades are thin,
                 curved, gleaming sharp.

              -- MORE ANGLES, EVEN CLOSER.  We can HEAR the MAN's
                 wheezing BREATHING, but we still haven't seen
                 his face.  We never will.  We just SEE more metal
                 being assembled with crude tools, into some sort
                 of linkage -- a splayed, spidery sort of apparatus,
                 against a background light of FIRE, and a deep
                 rushing of STEAM and HEAVY, DARK ENERGY.

              -- And then we see this linkage attached to the glove.

              -- Then the BLADES attached to all of it.

              -- Then the MAN'S HAND slips into this glove-like
                 apparatus, filling it out and transforming
                 it into an awesome, deadly claw-hand with
                 four razor/talons gleaming at its blackened
                 fingertips.  Suddenly the HAND arches and STRIKES
                 FORWARD, SLASHING THROUGH a DARK CANVAS, tearing
                 it to shreds.

1.    EXT.  LOS ANGELES.  NIGHT.  (2nd Unit)                             1.

      A PULSATION OF LIGHT AND SHADOW.  MUSIC DROPS AWAY to a hushed
      RUSHING OF WIND and DISTANT SIRENS.  CAMERA RACKS INTO FOCUS on a
      HIGH PANORAMA of the San Fernando Valley, its night sky lit from
      within by a strange GREENISH LIGHT.  TITLES BEGIN.

      CAMERA TILTS DOWN and ZOOMS SWIFTLY into the valley's web of
      light.

                                                CUT TO:

    
2.    INT.  CONCRETE PASSAGEWAY.                                         2.

      TITLES CONTINUE as TINA GRAY, a strong girl of fifteen in a thin
      night shift, moves towards us down a dark concrete corridor.  Her
      steps quicken as TITLES appear in the portion of frame she leaves
      free.

      A subliminal COLLAGE of SOUND threads in and out of the MUSIC.
      Distant insane LAUGHTER.  Slamming iron DOORS.  A bleating animal
      CRY.  A LAMB, white and blank-faced, skitters across her path and
      on into the dark.  No reason why it's there.

      Then another SOUND, much nearer -- the slithering SCRAPE of
      something like fingernails across slate.  It sets our teeth on
      edge, twists the MUSIC, and sends TINA running.

3.    INT.  BOILER ROOM.                                                 3.

      Suddenly TINA's a tiny figure running among huge boilers steam
      pipes and catwalks -- a shadowed forest of iron and stone.  She
      stops, listening intently as the SOUND of tiny hooves suddenly
      turns into the rattle of DISTANT RAIN.

      Then she hears RIPPING FABRIC.

      Someone is shouldering behind a ragged screen of dirty canvas,
      approaching TINA.

      CLOSER ON THE CANVAS.  The long curved fingerblades suddenly
      punch through, flashing in the firelight, and begin ripping
      through the thick fabric, as easily as scalpels through flesh.
      They make a hideous, extended RIPPING SOUND.

      TINA rushes away, hands over her ears.

      ANOTHER ANGLE -- as the blinded girl stumbles backwards.  Then
      the canvas flaps free.  The blades are gone.  The TITLES END, and
      everything goes silent.

      CAMERA CIRCLES until TINA's looking right into our eyes.  The
      light from a nearby boiler pours through her thin night dress,
      leaving her naked and vulnerable.  Then a deep, ragged VOICE
      whispers at her as CAMERA CLOSES IN ON HER FACE.

                                      VOICE (O.S.)
                      One two, Freddie's coming for
                      you...

      TINA opens her mouth to scream but only a dry, yellow dust pours
      out.  And at that precise moment a huge shadowy MAN with a grimey
      red and yellow sweater and a weird hat pulled over his scarred
      face lunges at her.  And it's his fingers that are tipped with
      the long blades of steel, glinting in the boney light and giving
      the hulk the look of an otherworldly predator.

      TINA dodges away, her legs suddenly elephantine and slow.  The
      MAN seizes the trailing hem of her nightgown and hauls her back.

      The MUSIC shrieks as TINA manages to tear free -- the MAN lurches
      after her with a hoarse SHOUT as we --

                                              SMASH CUT TO:

4.    INT.  TINA'S BEDROOM.  NIGHT.                                      4.

      TINA convulses in bed with a SCREAM, looking around wildly.
      Someone is KNOCKING on her door.

                                      WOMAN'S VOICE (O.S.)
                      You okay, Tina?

      TINA'S MOTHER sticks her head in with a worried look.  TINA sits
      up and blows out a breath, groggy.

                                      TINA
                      Just a dream, Ma...
                              (more to herself)
                      Damn dream, is all...

      The woman, once attractive, ventures a step into the room.  A MAN
      hovers BACKGROUND.  TINA'S mother waves him away without looking,
      shoving a strand of bleached hair from her eyes.  She appraises
      her daughter.

                                      TINA'S MOTHER
                      Some dream, judging from that.

      She nods at TINA's nightshift.

      TINA looks down at her nightgown, only now aware of the chill
      penetrating it from the room.  There are four long slashes up its
      middle, cleanly cut as if by scalpels.

                                      MAN (OS)
                              (distant, annoyed)
                      You coming back to the sack or
                      what?

                                      TINA'S MOTHER
                      Hold your horses.
                              (lower, to Tina as she
                               stands to leave)
                      You gotta cut your nails or stop
                      that kind of dreaming, Tina.  One
                      or the other.

      The woman shuts the door behind her.  TINA looks back to her
      nightgown.

                                      TINA
                              (low)
                      Oh, shit.

      She suddenly snatches up the cross that hangs over her head, her
      face white as her sheet.

                                              FADE TO BLACK

                                              BURN ON

5.                            THE FIRST DAY                              5.

                                      CHILDREN (OS)
                              (singing)
                      One two, Freddie's coming for you...
                      Three four better lock your door
                      Five six grab your crucifix...

6.    EXT.  HIGH SCHOOL.  DAY.                                           6.

      FADE UP ON SHOT OF this large highschool and its crowds of
      STUDENTS.  FOREGROUND, TINA climbs out of a cherry-red 1959
      Cadillac convertible with two other students, best friend NANCY
      WILSON, and Nancy's boyfriend and owner of the car, GLEN LANTZ.

      FOREGROUND several GRADESCHOOLERS are playing jump-rope, and the
      old ditty they sing continues unbroken from TINA's bedroom.

                                      ROPE JUMPERS
                      Seven eight, gonna stay up late!
                      Nine ten -- never sleep again!

7.    MOVING ANGLE FAVORING NANCY.  She's a pretty girl in a letter      7.
      sweater, with an easy, athletic stride and the look of a natural
      leader.  GLEN, holding her hand, wears one of the school's
      football jerseys; a good-natured, bright kid.  Tina's in
      mid-conversation.

                                      TINA
                              (referring to kids' song)
                      That's what it reminded me of --
                      that old jump rope song.
                              (shudders)
                      Worst nightmare I ever had.
                      You wouldn't believe it.

      Nancy nods.

                                      NANCY
                      Matter of fact I had a bad dream
                      last night myself...

      TINA turns to NANCY, but before either can say more, ROD LANE, a
      lean, Richard Gere sort in black leather and New Wave studs joins
      up with them and interupts.

                                      ROD
                              (to Tina)
                      Had a hardon this morning when
                      I woke up, Tina.  Had your name
                      written all over it.

      Tina cracks her gum with a look of withering indifference.

                                      TINA
                      There's four letters in my name,
                      Rod.  How could there be room
                      on your joint for four letters?

      The guy's stopped in his tracks.

                                      ROD
                      Hey, up yours with a twirling lawn
                      mower!

      He cuts off across the lawn.

                                      TINA
                      Rod says the sweetest things.

                                      NANCY
                      He's nuts about you.

                                      TINA
                      Yeah, nuts.

      TINA makes a face and rakes her fingernails across a tree as she
      passes.

                                      TINA (CONTD)
                              (yawns)
                      Anyway, I'm too tired to worry
                      about the creep.  Couldn't get
                      back to sleep at all.
                              (beat)
                      So what you dream?

                                      NANCY
                      Forget it, the point is, every-
                      body has nightmares once in a while.
                      No biggy.

                                      GLEN
                      Next time you have one, just
                      tell yourself that's just all
                      it is, right while you're having
                      it, y'know?  That's the trick.
                      Once you do that, you wake right
                      up.  At least it works for me.

      TINA looks at GLEN sharply.  He kisses NANCY and darts off for
      class.

                                      TINA
                      Hey!  You have a nightmare too?

      But GLEN's gone.

                                      TINA (CONTD)
                      Maybe we're gonna have the Big
                      Earthquake.  They say things get
                      weird just before that...

      BELLS ARE RINGING, and STUDENTS crowding; TINA and NANCY are
      drawn into the crush.