Extreme Cinema
The films listed below are (in)famous for arousing controversy on their initial release, be it for explicit scenes of violence, sex or extreme political beliefs . The best films in this collection use their notorious elements not merely to shock, but to provoke ('Salo' uses its disturbing sequences, borrowed from Sade, as a comment on Fascism, whilst the sickening rape scene in 'The Accused' rightly refused to soften the depiction of this despicable crime). The following films can still cause impassioned debate, in some cases decades after they were made...
See also the category 'Asia Extreme'.
Right: One of the most shocking debuts 'Man Bites Dog'.
Body Melt (1993)
5/10
Director: Philip Brophy
Starring: Gerard Kennedy, Andrew Daddo, Ian Smith, Lisa McCune
A gore-filled Aussie B-movie, directed by Philip Brophy and based on his own short stories, in which a small Melbourne community is being used as guin... Read more
The Passion of the Christ ( Blu-ray ) (2004)
7.2/10
Director: Mel Gibson
Starring: Jim Caviezel, Maia Morgenstern, Monica Bellucci, Sergio Rubini
Likened to a snuff movie by some critics for its sustained brutality, director Mel Gibson's impassioned religious biopic chronicles the last 12 hours... Read more
Thanatomorphose (2012)
4.7/10
Director: Eric Falardeau
Starring: Kayden Rose, David Tousignant, Emile Beaudry, Karine Picard
A Cronenbergian smorgasbord of rancid flesh and sexual gratification, Thanatomporphose (Hellenic word meaning the visible signs of an organism's decom... Read more
Romance (1999)
5.3/10
Director: Catherine Breillat
Starring: Caroline Ducey, Sagamore Stevenin
A bold, provocative portrait of a young French woman's journey to gain control of her life. When told she is loved by her boyfriend, but that he has l... Read more
Kids (1995)
7/10
Director: Larry Clark
Starring: Leo Fitzpatrick, Justin Pierce, Chloe Sevigny
Famed photographer Larry Clark makes his directorial debut with this sensational story of teenage life in Manhattan. Ignoring the challenge posed by A... Read more
The Human Centipede (First Sequence) (Blu-ray) (2009)
4.4/10
Director: Tom Six
Starring: Akihiro Kitamura, Dieter Laser, Andreas Leupold, Ashley C Williams, Ashlynn Yenn...
Advertised as being 100% medically accurate, this outrageous horror film finds two stranded American tourists and a Japanese businessman held captive... Read more
Crash (1996)
6.4/10
Director: David Cronenberg
Starring: James Spader, Holly Hunter, Elias Koteas, Rosanna Arquette, Deborah Kara Unger
James Spader, Holly Hunter and Rosanna Arquette are a motley assortment of car crash survivors seeking more and more perverse thrills to communicate,... Read more
Black Sun: The Nanking Massacre (1995)
7.5/10
Director: T F Mou
Portrays the ordeals of the members of a poor Chinese family as they try to survive the Japanese occupation of their city. This is an uncompromising p... Read more
Mandy (Blu-Ray) (2018)
6.7/10
Director: Panos Cosmatos
Starring: Bill Duke, Linus Roache, Nicolas Cage, Andrea Riseborough, Richard Brake, Ned De...
In the Pacific Northwest in 1983, outsiders Red Miller and Mandy Bloom lead a loving and peaceful existence. When their pine-scented haven is savagely... Read more