Happy new year folks, 2017 is well and truly over and 2018 is here to stay (for another 12 months at least), so what better way to kick off the new year than another horror-themed post! I've spent the guts of the previous month sort of reviewing the best of 2017, so I feel like the best way to kick off 2018 is to look at some good old fashioned horror films. However, this isn't just any old horror film blog post, no siree, this is something a lot stranger, a post about dance scenes in horror cinema. Now dance scenes can be strange enough in any context outside musicals, but something about horror film dance scenes are particularly bizarre. In a genre that mainly focuses on the morbid and macabre, dance sequences don't usually seem to fit the bill, however, there are actually a good number of horror films that have them. While some of them are odd and truly out of place, others actually surprisingly suit their respective films. and this list will see a combination of both. I should also note that I will not be including any of the dance scenes from The Rocky Horror Picture Show as it is a musical after all so dance scenes are to be expected. Anyway, here we go:
10. Suspiria (Dario Argento, 1977)
As it is set at ballet school, it's natural that Dario Argento's Suspiria has a couple of dance sequences, otherwise what's the point of having it set there in the first place? This particular scene takes place after Suzy (Jessica Harper) has an unusual encounter in the hallway that leaves her feeling rather ill. Despite her protests, she is forced to participate in rehearsals with her fellow classmates under the strict supervision of Ms. Tanner (Alida Valli). While her classmates proceed to dance elegantly, Suzy struggles to keep up and as the scene progresses she becomes more and more disoriented. It's an effective scene, as Harper's performance and the irritating instructions from Ms. Tanner give us an idea of how dead Suzy really feels. We can almost feel her relief when she collapses to the floor.
9. A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge (Jack Sholder, 1985)
The first sequel to Wes Craven's seminal slasher flick has been interpreted by critics as a metaphor for closeted homosexuality and coming to terms with it. It's true that the film does have some underlying themes of sexuality and repression, and the moment where this is most evident is during the dance scene. As he unpacks in his new room, Jesse (Mark Patton) begins to break into dance, gyrating his hips and twerking his drawer shut while miming to the song on the radio. Actor Mark Patton was in fact gay himself, and it's a shame that the filmmakers didn't write the character as a gay man instead of just providing subtext. However, the oddly place dance scene has been one of the many scenes in the film that critics reference when looking at said subtext, and it's nice to see Jesse let loose for once instead of holding himself back as in the rest of the film. This gave us twerking before it was mainstream.
8. Friday the 13th: A New Beginning (Danny Steinmann, 1985)
Elsewhere in 1985, the Friday the 13th franchise was also incorporating dance scenes into their franchise. This scene from the fifth installment sees goth girl Violet (Tiffany Helm) dancing the robot in her bedroom, for some reason. Unbeknownst to her however, the hockey-mask-wearing killer is watching, and about to make his next move. It's a shame that 80's kids loved to dance alone in their rooms, because if she was less distracted by doing the robot then perhaps Violet would have survived, but unfortunately she did not. She may have been killed, but at least she got to break out her sick dance moves beforehand. Oddly enough however, this isn't the only Friday the 13th film on the list, but we'll get to that.
7. Stage Fright (Michele Soavi, 1987)
Michele Soavi's slasher/giallo hybrid begins with a woman walking down a dodgy looking street before being grabbed by an unseen assailant. The surrounding civilians then proceed to investigate before the killer bursts out of the alleyway and.. breaks into dance. Yep, this was a musical number in disguise the whole time! What we were actually watching was a rehearsal for the play-within-a-film called The Nite Owl, and the opening scene was actually one of its musical numbers. It's a clever way to start a film and left me in tears of laughter when I watched it first, of course there are plenty of actual murders later on, but this was just a dance scene in disguise. As well as that, the fact that the dancing killer wears a giant owl mask just makes things all the more hilarious.
6. House of the Devil (Ti West, 2009)
This cool 70's throwback from Ti West contains the most recent horror film dance on the list, but by no means does that make it any less memorable. While looking after a house owned by the mysterious Ullman's, Samantha (Jocelin Donahue) decides to explore their extensive abode, but not just in any old fashion, oh no, she explores the house whilst dancing. Samantha sticks on her headphones and rocks around the house, checking out the kitchen, grooving up the stairs, before knocking over a vase and cutting her dancing short. It's a surprisingly upbeat scene in a film that becomes gradually chilling afterwards, at least Samantha got to break out some moves before things got grizzly.
5. From Dusk Till Dawn (Robert Rodriguez, 1996)
The most iconic scene from this Tarantino-penned vampire flick is of course the sensual dance of Santanico Pandemonium (Salma Hayek), one of the vampiric strippers at the Titty Twister bar. Set to the tune of 'After Dark' by Tito & Tarantula, Santanico Pandemonium almost hypnotizes all of the onlooking men, dominating the room and holding every single male gaze. She even gets a little bit intimate with Richie Gecko (Quentin Tarantino himself) when she ehh, sticks her foot in his mouth, I mean he did write this after all so what do you expect? Hayek truly owns the scene, and it acts as a fitting calm before the storm of gory violence that follows.
4. Troll 2 (Claudio Fragasso, 1990)
Now there are many, many oddities in Troll 2 that would make even Tommy Wiseau cringe, from the popcorn love scene (don't ask), to 'pissing on hospitality', it's a bizarre film altogether. Naturally, there is also a dance scene which, in retrospect, doesn't seem as weird compared to the rest of the film, but as far as dance scene standards go it's pretty unusual itself. Holly (Connie McFarland) takes inspiration from the 80's teens that preceded her and begins to dance alone in her room, watching herself in her mirror as she does so. After a few seconds however, she abruptly decides to stop and that's it, the film can't even get oddly placed dance scenes right. It's one of the less puzzling moments of the film, which is saying something, but it's still a memorable one nonetheless.
3. The Wicker Man (Robin Hardy, 1973)
There are actually a few dance scenes in The Wicker Man, from the maypole to Christopher Lee's peculiar cross-dressed dance, but the one that has the most importance in terms of the films plot and themes is Willow's (Britt Ekland) dance. As Sergeant Howie (Edward Woodward) settles into bed, the landlord's daughter Willow calls to him in song from the next room. She is attempting to seduce Howie and from his reactions it is clear that he is struggling not to give in. This is an important moment as Howie, a devout Christian, is attempting to resist the temptation of the seductive Willow. It ties into the films themes of faith, and the conflict between Christianity and the older 'pagan' religions. Howie manages to resist Willow in the end, but only just about by the looks of things.
2. Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (Joseph Zito, 1984)
The definitive Friday the 13th film contains an iconic dance scene from the man himself, Crispin Glover. While many may know Glover more for his roles in the likes of Back to the Future, and Alice in Wonderland, in 1984 he was being stalked by Jason Voorhees at Crystal Lake. This scene sees Glover's character Jimmy attempt to attract the attention of a girl by breaking out some truly sick dance moves. Jerking, and jumping around in true Glover fashion, he finally manages to woo Tina (Camille More) and get his bit before being stabbed with a corkscrew by Jason. While Jimmy's death was unfortunate, he will always be remembered for his heroic dancing that managed to even seduce a woman.
1. Night of the Demons (Kevin S. Tenney, 1988)
Just beating Glover for the top spot however is a dance scene from this 80's cult classic, Night of the Demons. After being possessed at a Halloween party via her friend Suzanne (Linnea Quigley), Angela (Amelia Kinkade) begins to break into a surreal dance number by the fireplace, while the chilling sound of Peter Murphy's voice plays on the radio. She truly moves like a possessed woman, and the flashing lights make things feel all the more ominous, enough to even freak out bad boy Sal (Billy Gallo), forcing him to leave. It's strange, it's surreal, and it's weirdly unsettling, it's the perfect example of how horror films and dance numbers can truly intertwine in a way that works.
So what's your favourite horror film dance scene? There's plenty more where they came from I'm sure, so let me know if you've got any in particular. Anyway, here's to a great 2018, I'll be sure to have more subsequent posts in the months that follow so, until then!
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