27 Years Later, This Critical Horror Flop Still Has One Of The Best Opening Scenes Of All Time

A great opening scene sets the tone for the whole movie, and when Blade first aired, the horrific opening scene became iconic. The Blade franchise centers on the Marvel character, whose mother was bitten by a vampire while pregnant, resulting in Blade being born a half-vampire. The Blade movie trilogy follows his journey, blending horror and action, including some excellent fight choreography.

The best horror movie opening scenes hook you immediately, and Blade does exactly that. A man is on a date with a mysterious woman, who takes him to a rave. Soon, the sprinklers begin to pour blood as the partygoers turn out to be vampires. While the unfortunate man slips on the floor, he finds himself in front of Blade, who is spotless and armed.

Blade Has The Best Horror Opening Scene Of All Time

Wesley Snipes fighting Stephen Dorff in Blade

The horror genre has some of the best movie opening scenes of all time, but while many great horror movie openers just need to be terrifying, Blade had to introduce a culture, too. Vampires have been a popular horror movie subject for decades, and the genre can feel same-y, so Blade‘s introduction to the hidden vampire rave instantly showed something interesting about the way they live.

The scene has very little dialogue once the characters enter the rave, and yet the visual of the people dancing in the bloodbath is unforgettable. In just five minutes, it establishes a world, sets the slick and action-heavy tone for the movie, and introduces Blade as a character. Unfortunately, a harsh reality of watching Blade is that the first scene is better than the last.

Critics Panned Blade, But Viewers Disagreed

Critics and audiences do not always agree on whether a movie is good or not, and horror movies can be extremely polarizing. Critics panned Blade, giving it a 59% positive Rotten Tomatoes score. On the other hand, audiences loved the over-the-top action and rated Blade 78% positive. Critics also hated the next Blade movies, and audiences felt similarly.

While some horror movies have aged badly due to reasons like outdated depictions of groups, lazy stereotypes, and bad writing, Blade has not. Many scenes in the Blade trilogy hold up well today, and while the special effects now look considerably dated, this cements the original movie firmly in the 1990s, making it a fun and nostalgic watch even today.

27 Years Later, It Is Unlikely The Blood Rave Scene Will Ever Be Topped

While the much-anticipated Mahershala Ali Blade reboot appears to be stuck in development hell, one scene that it should not try to recreate is the original movie’s blood rave. When Blade was first screened in 1998, the iconic moment was an unexpected shock, and it would be impossible to replicate this now, especially after it appeared to be referenced in Wednesday‘s dance floor scene.

Blade‘s opening scene is a time capsule to the 1990s. The characters are wearing cyberpunk style with sunglasses, shiny fabric, and platform boots, while the song used is the techno “Confusion,” by New Order. Rave culture was a 1990s staple, so even recreating the moment in a modern club would feel out of place, leaving Blade‘s opening scene as an unbeatable moment in horror.