5 Horror Movies That Feature Terrifying School Scenes

If school is wrought with emotions for everyone involved, prom is that situation on steroids. When you factor in the raging teenage hormones, it is a wonder more proms don’t end in horror. 

There is a creativity in the cruelty of the prom scene at the end of Carrie. The few moments before the bucket of blood is spilled feel like an eternity. The camera bounces between the unknowing Carrie enjoying what probably feels like the best day of her life, to the unsuspecting crowd, to each conspirator, and to a good samaritan who gets thwarted by a teacher. 

As we get closer and closer to the drop, we linger on each a bit longer right down to one of the conspirators licking her lips, savoring the precious moments right before they ruin everyone’s lives.

This scene is particularly effective because it really lets Carrie bask in the moment. It lets it sink in before being ripped away from her. It also shows the lack of a second thought by the bullies. It also shows that most of the kids in her school were happy for her, making the aftermath that much more tragic. 

Finally, the way Brian De Palma shoots this scene really drives home how close it was to being stopped.

For all the upsetting imagery involving children in the movie Weapons, the most upsetting school scene doesn’t feature any children at all. There is a scene in which Aunt Gladys goes to speak to the principal in the place of Alex’s parents (the lone remaining child after the rest of his
class disappears. 

The impact of this scene lies in the details. We start out from the principal's POV, watching Gladys come up the hall through the foggy glass. As the receptionist lets Gladys into the office, her face says it all. She is clearly uneasy. 

The dialogue between Gladys and the principal is so well written because Gladys is trying her best to keep things light and funny. The principal quips that if they had met before, he would remember. Then Gladys slips up and reveals that all is
definitely not as it seems when her excuse for Alex’s parents not coming is that they are suffering from consumption.

When someone thinks of Hereditary, the first thing that comes to mind is usually the scene with the car and the telephone pole. However, there is another scene in the movie that was quite jarring as well. 

In one scene Peter, played by Alex Wolff, is sitting in class, the phrase “Punishment Brings Wisdom” is written on the board, and he looks like he’s hanging on by a thread. The film cuts to his mom finding his sister’s headless body then back to the classroom. 

Peter puts his hand up in a gesture reminiscent of an NBA player. His teacher gets visibly alarmed. All of his classmates turn to look at him. Peter’s face contorts and he slams his head down against the desk. 

The scene is so jarring and so memorable that it has sparked a debate online. Some say the demon Paimon forced Peter to do it. Others say Peter did it as a way to fight back against being possessed, in some desperate attempt to shake the demon from inside him. 

The cruel twist is that in order to weigh on this debate one must relive this gory and unsettling scene over and over again.

When certain actors show up in a movie, it’s an immediate red flag. They simply can’t be trusted. Robert Patrick is one of those actors. He communicates so much just through tone and body language. The faculty lounge scene where Elijah Wood and Jordana Brewster hide in the closet is no different. 

The Faculty begs the question: what if the teachers at your school really were out to get you? In this scene, two teachers who were already possessed by a malignant alien species infect the school nurse while two students cower in the closet. 

When they escape the room, they run into two more infected faculty members. The raw fear on their faces as they realize they have not found help is so powerful, as it conjures all the feelings of not being believed by adults as a child. This film takes an already potent force and makes it deadly

There’s a hopelessness and emptiness when you feel like you can’t trust your own mind. Sleep deprivation is a pretty surefire way to experience this feeling. 

This is where we find Nancy in one of the most harrowing school scenes ever committed to film. Who among us can’t relate to
fighting back sleep in school as a classmate or teacher begins droning on and on or reading from a boring book? 

Add to the mix that if she falls asleep there’s a good chance she gets killed by Freddy Krueger and it’s a pretty good recipe for psychosis. As she struggles to hold her eyelids up she sees her dead friend, covered in blood, in a clear plastic bag, calling her name and asking for help. 

It’s the perfect scene for a film that conditioned viewers to feel a sense of safety when it’s day time, but as the night bleeds into day it starts to feel like nobody is ever safe.

Feature Image: SlashFilm