The Top 10 Most Disturbing Movies
5. Man Behind the Sun
Halfway through this list of disturbing movies, and you ain’t seen nothing yet. Most people know that the Nazi’s did some really twisted and horrifying things to their prisoners during World War II. Apparently, the Japanese were just as sadistic and terrible in the experiments they performed. Man Behind the Sun captures those experiments performed on POW’s as the Japanese tried to come up with new and improved methods of killing. What makes Man Behind the Sun so horrifying is China didn’t have a special effects industry when it was made in the late 1980s. So, director Tun Fei Mou used real cadavers he got from a “connection.” It was hard to watch before that little tidbit of info, but with that in mind, Man Behind the Sun becomes almost impossible to get through.
4. August Underground
My “consultant” for this list of disturbing movies stated that August Underground is what he imagines a real snuff film looks like. Apparently the Canadians thought so too since director Fred Vogul was detained at customs for “transporting obscene material when they found copies of the film in his luggage. He was released, but not before spending 10 hours in custody. The film follows two serial killers on a rampage and is recorded in found footage style (lending to the snuff film aesthetic). Of course, simply murdering their victims would be no fun at all, so they come up with the most twisted methods of dehumanizing and torturing them first. Vogul says he made the film out of frustration with the serial killer genre for not showing “what was really going on.” Apparently people loved it enough to warrant two sequels, so my faith in humanity is gone.
3. Cannibal Holocaust
When it comes to cannibalism movies, Cannibal Holocaust is perhaps the most notorious of the bunch. That’s because it has quite a controversial history. Ten days after it premiered, director Ruggero Deodato was charged by the Italian Government with obscenity and later the murder of some of the actors. He had to actually get the actors from the film to physically show up in court to prove they hadn’t been murdered in the movie in order for Deodato to be cleared of charges. That should give you some idea of how convincing the gore is in this film. While none of the actors were actually killed, several animals were for the sake of the movie, and Deodato later stated that he regretted ever making Cannibal Holocaust. It’s widely considered one of the goriest films ever made and has a cult-like following who loves it. Most people agree though, seeing it once is probably one time too many.
2. Salò AKA The 120 Days of Sodom
What is it with Italians and disturbing movies? Even now, this film is still banned in some countries. People have even been arrested for showing it. Set during the fascist regime in Italy during World War II, the film follows a group of young men and women rounded up to be playthings for four elitist libertines to be subjected to 120 days of sex and torture. Now some people claim that this flick is supposed to be a commentary on the oppressive nature of social elitism and hailed for its artistic merits by a few directors who came to its defense. However, it’s also considered one of the sickest films ever made by film scholars. What makes this film so disturbing is that people defend it as an art-house film. In other words, it’s full of gore and borders on being hardcore pornography, but apparently “that’s art.” Though, apparently Roger Ebert owned the film for years on laserdisc but was unable to ever bring himself to actually watch it.
1. A Serbian Film
A Serbian Film is probably one of the most irredeemable movies ever made. Most reviews read more like a warning that watching this film will taint your soul forever. At the very least it’s considered pointlessly shocking torture porn disguised as social commentary. Director Srđan Spasojević claimed it was supposed to be a metaphor for the molestation his people experience at the hands of his government, but that feels like a hell of a stretch considering the content of this movie. The film follows a semi-retired porn star who is tricked into making an arthouse movie that’s actually a series of rape-filled snuff films. Now I’m always down for some social commentary in movies, but A Serbian Film feels more like someone made a bet that they could make the most disturbing film of all time and pass it off as being political. In all seriousness, do not watch this movie.
Honorable Mention: A Clockwork Orange
There’s no denying that A Clockwork Orange isn’t one of the more disturbing films ever made. However, it was nominated for several Academy Awards, so it can’t be that bad. Then again, after the films listed above nothing seems “that bad.” Still, the movie is known for its ultra-violence and sexual assault, which is why it’s getting a shout out.
Normally at the end of these top 10 lists, I like to ask you if there are any movies you think should have earned a spot. Given the subject matter and the pure nightmare fuel that appeared on this list, I honestly don’t know if there are more disturbing movies out there. For those of you who haven’t seen the films listed above, count your blessings because there are some things that can never be unseen.