The movie begins with a young woman being attacked by an invisible assailant. A cord is caught around her throat and drags her back to the staircase; there, a force pushes her over the banister. As she dies, she drops a black envelope.
A year passes, and a group of old friends, Sid, Kira, and Harris, reunite at a cemetery where a mutual friend was interred earlier in the day. Sid later proposes that they return to the Crescent View Cemetery to say one last goodbye together. Although the others initially refuse, they show up later as Sid is at the graveside. Once there, they begin drinking and Kira and Harris, who are married, make out.
Sid discovered a black envelope hidden behind flowers on the grave and decides to read it aloud. It contains a poem that instructs those present to be joyful and dance upon the graves. Drunk, they obey the instructions and each dance over a separate burial spot.
The next day, mysterious things begin to occur. Harris and his wife Allison
hear the piano playing, only to find it empty. Allison is also attacked by a woman in a blood covered gown who shouts, “He said he loved me!” Kira, meanwhile, has begun to call their house constantly. Worried and angry over the possibility that Kira may be trying to begin a relationship with her husband, Allison rushes over to Kira’s house with Harris. When there is no answer at the door, the two enter and find the house destroyed. Kira is also found covered with blood and is taken to the hospital. There, it is revealed that she is covered in bite marks and has been raped.
Sid contacts Vincent Cochet and Frances Culpepper, paranormal investigators, and introduces them to the others. All agree that they believe they are being haunted and mention the “gravedancing” to Vincent. The investigators tell them that by dancing upon the graves, they became cursed by the occupants and will be killed during the next full moon.
Frances also informs them that the section they were in was designated for those society didn’t want, such as rapists, murderers, and the mentally ill. Meanwhile, Kira is still in the hospital when a ghost attacks both her and a female nurse. The nurse is severely injured, and Kira leaves the hospital to aid the others in their search for who’s graves they danced upon.
Frances finally discovers the identities of the dead who inhabited the graves. She tells the group about each person.
Harris danced on the grave of E
mma Westbrook, a piano teacher who was having an affair with a married man. When he ended their relationship, she went to his house and killed his wife and him. When police arrived, they found her covered in blood and playing the piano. Sid danced on the grave of Dennis, a young pyromaniac. He accidentally set his house on fire, killing his parents and two older sisters. Most of the town didn’t believe that it was an accident. Finally, Kira danced on the grave of Judge William Langer, who was honored and respected until after his death. At that point, it was revealed that he locked women in cages, masked, raped, and then killed them.
Frances suggests that they rebury the bodies in an attempt to stop the attacks. They are not certain if this will prevent them from dying on the next full moon, but it is the only thing they can think of. They head to the cemetery with sacks and dig up the bodies. During this, Kira becomes trapped in her coffin, Sid’s grave catches fire, and Harris’s corpse attacks him. Despite this, they manage to retrieve the bones and run when Allison cries that the caretaker is coming.
They return to the house and rebury the bodies. Believing it is over, each returns. However, that night, the ghost of Emma reappears and shatters the window at Harris and Allison’s house. They escape and encounter Sid and Kira, who had also been attacked. They return to the house with Vincent and Frances, then notice that a fence has moved closer to the house.
After a wall catches fire and is extinguished, revealing the message, “Lay you
at rest,” Kira is attacked and separated from the rest of the group. Through equipment that had previously been set up, the others found her floating, with a piece of glass hovering at her throat. Kira sees the ghost of William Langer, who has his finger at her throat; as he slides his finger across her throat, the glass slices her neck, and she dies. The others take her body and attempt to leave the house, but the fence has wrapped completely around the walls, from the ground to the roof, and the doors will not open.
Frances admits to the others that she is responsible; she had placed the real bones in a chest instead of allowing them to be reburied, as she had wanted proof of paranormal activity. Harris destroys her equipment in a rage and grabs the skull of the ghost who is after him. When they go to look for a flashlight, they discover that Kira’s body is gone.
Kira is found at a piano, playing the same song that Emma did. Harris attempts to get her attention, but she ignores him until she is called Emma; at that point, she turns around and attacks them. They manage to flee to the next room, which Dennis sets on fire. Frances returns to the piano room, concluding that the ghost is gone. An axe flies from the ceiling and kills her, and Kira’s body is seen laughing. Allison retrieves the keys from Frances’s pants and leaves the room.
As they search for a way out, Sid becomes trapped in a little boy’s room. He uses the night vision setting on a camera and sees Dennis behind him. The boy then sets the room on fire, killing Sid.
Meanwhile, Vincent is thrown back from the force of an explosion, and Harris finds a window that the fence has not yet reached. He is lowering Allison out onto the roof when she screams that Kira is behind him, holding an axe. He lets go of her and turns to fight, injuring his leg.
As Harris attempts to escape from both the spreading fire and Kira, Allison crashes through the house in a ca
r and Harris gets in with her. As they leave, the house becomes blue mist and takes on the shape of a face. The face then develops a hand, which reaches for Harris. They run to a grave that Frances had previously made, and Harris attempts to throw the skull of his ghost into the hole, but having been caught by the hand, misses. Allison is blown backwards and her attempts to get up and help Harris are unsuccessful, as the hand buries Harris in the ground. Vincent appears, alive but badly burned, and throws the skull into the ground. The spirit is pulled back to the blue mist and disappears. Allison and Vincent run to rescue Harris.
Finally, Harris and Allison are seen walking through the cemetery, paying their last respects. Allison sees someone with a shovel, but is reassured by Harris, who says it’s just the caretaker. The caretaker is the same one who startled them when they were digging up the bodies. He places a black envelope on a random tombstone, instructing those in mourning to dance on the graves and celebrate life.
A year passes, and a group of old friends, Sid, Kira, and Harris, reunite at a cemetery where a mutual friend was interred earlier in the day. Sid later proposes that they return to the Crescent View Cemetery to say one last goodbye together. Although the others initially refuse, they show up later as Sid is at the graveside. Once there, they begin drinking and Kira and Harris, who are married, make out.
Sid discovered a black envelope hidden behind flowers on the grave and decides to read it aloud. It contains a poem that instructs those present to be joyful and dance upon the graves. Drunk, they obey the instructions and each dance over a separate burial spot.
The next day, mysterious things begin to occur. Harris and his wife Allison
hear the piano playing, only to find it empty. Allison is also attacked by a woman in a blood covered gown who shouts, “He said he loved me!” Kira, meanwhile, has begun to call their house constantly. Worried and angry over the possibility that Kira may be trying to begin a relationship with her husband, Allison rushes over to Kira’s house with Harris. When there is no answer at the door, the two enter and find the house destroyed. Kira is also found covered with blood and is taken to the hospital. There, it is revealed that she is covered in bite marks and has been raped.Sid contacts Vincent Cochet and Frances Culpepper, paranormal investigators, and introduces them to the others. All agree that they believe they are being haunted and mention the “gravedancing” to Vincent. The investigators tell them that by dancing upon the graves, they became cursed by the occupants and will be killed during the next full moon.
Frances also informs them that the section they were in was designated for those society didn’t want, such as rapists, murderers, and the mentally ill. Meanwhile, Kira is still in the hospital when a ghost attacks both her and a female nurse. The nurse is severely injured, and Kira leaves the hospital to aid the others in their search for who’s graves they danced upon.
Frances finally discovers the identities of the dead who inhabited the graves. She tells the group about each person.
Harris danced on the grave of E
mma Westbrook, a piano teacher who was having an affair with a married man. When he ended their relationship, she went to his house and killed his wife and him. When police arrived, they found her covered in blood and playing the piano. Sid danced on the grave of Dennis, a young pyromaniac. He accidentally set his house on fire, killing his parents and two older sisters. Most of the town didn’t believe that it was an accident. Finally, Kira danced on the grave of Judge William Langer, who was honored and respected until after his death. At that point, it was revealed that he locked women in cages, masked, raped, and then killed them.Frances suggests that they rebury the bodies in an attempt to stop the attacks. They are not certain if this will prevent them from dying on the next full moon, but it is the only thing they can think of. They head to the cemetery with sacks and dig up the bodies. During this, Kira becomes trapped in her coffin, Sid’s grave catches fire, and Harris’s corpse attacks him. Despite this, they manage to retrieve the bones and run when Allison cries that the caretaker is coming.
They return to the house and rebury the bodies. Believing it is over, each returns. However, that night, the ghost of Emma reappears and shatters the window at Harris and Allison’s house. They escape and encounter Sid and Kira, who had also been attacked. They return to the house with Vincent and Frances, then notice that a fence has moved closer to the house.
After a wall catches fire and is extinguished, revealing the message, “Lay you
at rest,” Kira is attacked and separated from the rest of the group. Through equipment that had previously been set up, the others found her floating, with a piece of glass hovering at her throat. Kira sees the ghost of William Langer, who has his finger at her throat; as he slides his finger across her throat, the glass slices her neck, and she dies. The others take her body and attempt to leave the house, but the fence has wrapped completely around the walls, from the ground to the roof, and the doors will not open.Frances admits to the others that she is responsible; she had placed the real bones in a chest instead of allowing them to be reburied, as she had wanted proof of paranormal activity. Harris destroys her equipment in a rage and grabs the skull of the ghost who is after him. When they go to look for a flashlight, they discover that Kira’s body is gone.
Kira is found at a piano, playing the same song that Emma did. Harris attempts to get her attention, but she ignores him until she is called Emma; at that point, she turns around and attacks them. They manage to flee to the next room, which Dennis sets on fire. Frances returns to the piano room, concluding that the ghost is gone. An axe flies from the ceiling and kills her, and Kira’s body is seen laughing. Allison retrieves the keys from Frances’s pants and leaves the room.
As they search for a way out, Sid becomes trapped in a little boy’s room. He uses the night vision setting on a camera and sees Dennis behind him. The boy then sets the room on fire, killing Sid.
Meanwhile, Vincent is thrown back from the force of an explosion, and Harris finds a window that the fence has not yet reached. He is lowering Allison out onto the roof when she screams that Kira is behind him, holding an axe. He lets go of her and turns to fight, injuring his leg.
As Harris attempts to escape from both the spreading fire and Kira, Allison crashes through the house in a ca
r and Harris gets in with her. As they leave, the house becomes blue mist and takes on the shape of a face. The face then develops a hand, which reaches for Harris. They run to a grave that Frances had previously made, and Harris attempts to throw the skull of his ghost into the hole, but having been caught by the hand, misses. Allison is blown backwards and her attempts to get up and help Harris are unsuccessful, as the hand buries Harris in the ground. Vincent appears, alive but badly burned, and throws the skull into the ground. The spirit is pulled back to the blue mist and disappears. Allison and Vincent run to rescue Harris.Finally, Harris and Allison are seen walking through the cemetery, paying their last respects. Allison sees someone with a shovel, but is reassured by Harris, who says it’s just the caretaker. The caretaker is the same one who startled them when they were digging up the bodies. He places a black envelope on a random tombstone, instructing those in mourning to dance on the graves and celebrate life.