THE EXECUTION OF MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS (1895)
Article 4097 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 12-4-2012
Directed by Alfred Clark
Cast unknown
Country: USA
What it is: Historical reenactment

Mary, Queen of Scots, is executed.

No, it’s not a horror movie in the strict sense. However, if you keep in mind that this is the first movie to feature an on-screen decapitation, than it does serve at least as a touchstone of horror themes. It’s only 21 seconds long, and at first, I didn’t see the edit during the execution sequence, making me suspect that the trick was done with a person with a fake head. On reviewing it, I saw my mistake; the edit took place when I wasn’t expecting it.

Well, this made for a quick day of movie watching.