O Porco Dançarino

The Dancing Pig (1907)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

"Wow" is the first word that popped into my mind as soon as I saw the pig. If you're a fan of these old movies you know that most of the costumes of animals were incredibly fake looking but that's certainly not the case here. Apparently this was a very popular act on stage and it was filmed several times but this is the first one I've ever seen. Basically a woman takes a seat at a table and a large pig comes out and soon various sketches are done. There's one giant reason to check out this film and it's the pig costume, which is just incredible looking. I'm will flat out say it's the most realistic costume I've seen from this period and I'd argue that it's better looking than most of the costumes for decades to come. The entire thing just has a bizarre feel to it but wait until you get to the close up at the end of the film. Just check out the tongue and the teeth! This thing certainly could have been used for a terrific horror movie.

This early 20th century silent short from France was the first item on disc 2 of the "Saved from the Flames" DVD collection. It has someone in a giant pig costume being humiliated by a beautiful girl dancer he has a crush on as she strips his clothes and makes him dance both naked (so to speak) and with a dress on. Oddly, this is when the pig enjoys himself to the point of sticking his tongue out and moving his eyes! I found this pretty amusing if not hilarious and, at 4 minutes, just about the right length. I do wonder if this was meant for children especially with the stripping and the female dancer moving her skirt up and down like the famous Can-Can. Still, The Dancing Pig (the English title on the disc) is worth a look.

This film was included in the three DVD set "Saved From the Flames"--a collection of mostly ephemeral movies that have managed to avoid turning to powder, catching fire or melting--something that usually happened with the nitrate film stock used up through the 1950s.

According to the notes for this film, the Dancing Pig routine was common on stage and it was filmed for several different companies--in this case Pathé-Frères. I have not seen any of the other versions, but was amazed at this short film--mostly because the pig costume was amazing to see. While it didn't look like a real pig (after all, pigs aren't over six feet high nor do they wear clothes and dance like people), it didn't look like a cheap old costume. Heck, it was better than what I'd expect a lot of companies today! Seriously.

The film consists of the pig performing alone and with a pretty woman. There really isn't much plot, but it's a pretty cool film--one that should STILL grab your attention today.

The internet site "Know Your Meme" named the close-up of the anthropologic pig in the 1907 French short "The Dancing Pig" as one of the first memes of the 20th century. The GIF shows the last 20 seconds of the movie as the pig rolls his eyes, flaps his ears, wags his tongue and shows sharp teeth. The short begins with a man dressed as a pig trying to pick up a woman, who eventually disrobes the pig. They then dance up a storm on the set. This routine has been cited as a reenactment of a vaudeville act. At the end, the movie cuts to a closeup of the pig's face, with creepy actions from the pig. The movie was forgotten for decades until someone created the meme, sparking numerous nightmares for many viewers.

The Dancing Pig is four minutes of pure nightmare fuel from the early days of cinema, the film featuring an oversized anthropomorphic porker dancing with a pretty woman. The pig, resplendent in top hat and dinner jacket, starts off by trying to woo the young lady; unsuccessful, he goes for a quick grope instead, so the woman strips him. The pair then dance together for a while, the pig stopping momentarily to pop on a frock. The pig starts to waggle its tongue and roll its eyes but that doesn't scare the woman like it would me - she just carries on a-prancing.

The film ends with a close of the pig's face which will haunt your dreams, the creepy swine flapping its ears while rolling its eyes upwards and lolling its tongue around a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.

9/10. I just love strange old films like this (apparently, the dancing pig was a popular music hall routine back in the day. Nowadays, it just seems really freaky).