Disturbing/Horrific but Intelligent Movies
Film can be a powerful weapon in the right hands or it can become a horrific mess in the wrong ones. That being said, I have seen THOUSANDS of movies in my 40+ years. There are far too many that were immediately forgettable. BUT... there are a small handful of films I will never forget, or cannot forget because the images or content made me change my mind about what should or should not be put on film.
This is my (Incomplete) list of movies that are definitely NOT for the average film viewer! these movies had one or more elements that really made me uncomfortable, but were NOT merely gore-filled or gross-outs just for the sake of being disgusting.
There are several movies that I deliberately left off the list such as the "Guinea Pig" series for various reasons. Usually because they simply didn't fit the criteria I used to make this list. More often because they were made to simply gross out the viewer.
These films are (for the most part) intelligent, well directed and well written with above average to extraordinary acting. They just happen to include extreme violence, depravity or very disturbing scenes or themes that will probably stick with the viewer long after the end credits.
If you have seen a film you think should belong with this group, please let me know.
This is my (Incomplete) list of movies that are definitely NOT for the average film viewer! these movies had one or more elements that really made me uncomfortable, but were NOT merely gore-filled or gross-outs just for the sake of being disgusting.
There are several movies that I deliberately left off the list such as the "Guinea Pig" series for various reasons. Usually because they simply didn't fit the criteria I used to make this list. More often because they were made to simply gross out the viewer.
These films are (for the most part) intelligent, well directed and well written with above average to extraordinary acting. They just happen to include extreme violence, depravity or very disturbing scenes or themes that will probably stick with the viewer long after the end credits.
If you have seen a film you think should belong with this group, please let me know.
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- DirectorAlexandre BustilloJulien MauryStarsAlysson ParadisJean-Baptiste TabourinClaude LuléFour months after the death of her husband, a woman on the brink of motherhood is tormented in her home by a strange woman who wants her unborn baby.A roller-coaster ride of psychosis, terror and EXTREME violence and one of the bloodiest films on this list! A woman, nine months pregnant and giving birth the very next day, has an unexpected, late night visitor. A very psychotic woman wants her baby ... right NOW and is prepared to do whatever it takes to get it! It took me three viewings to make it through the last 4 minutes
- DirectorPascal LaugierStarsMorjana AlaouiMylène JampanoïCatherine BéginA young woman's quest for revenge against the people who kidnapped and tormented her as a child leads her and a friend, who is also a victim of child abuse, on a terrifying journey into a living hell of depravity.Probably my favorite film on this list. The characters are believable and you really begin to feel for them. The violence is almost too realistic and the motivations of the "bad guys" almost seem legit if you think about it. Some people hated the ending, but it's perfect when you really think about it.
There is a U.S. remake of the film which pales in comparison. - DirectorMarina de VanStarsMarina de VanLaurent LucasLéa DruckerA woman grows increasingly fascinated with her body after suffering a disfiguring accident.Two words.....self-cannibalization.
- DirectorTakashi MiikeStarsRyo IshibashiEihi ShiinaTetsu SawakiA widower takes an offer to screen girls at a special audition, arranged for him by a friend to find him a new wife. The one he fancies is not who she appears to be after all.Another movie that's required viewing for anyone interested in really extreme film. A great film with a competent cast, it starts off a bit slow as a film director holds "auditions" for a new girlfriend. But, looks are often deceiving, just like in real life. Several sequences in this classic film have been imitated in other movies, but never with the same intensity.
- DirectorDon EdmondsStarsDyanne ThorneGregory KnophTony MumoloIlsa is an evil Nazi warden at a death camp that conducts "medical experiments." Ilsa's goal is to prove women can withstand more pain and suffering than men, and therefore should be allowed to fight on the front lines.If you actually have to ask about this film. stop reading about it and just watch the damn thing. Yes! it deserves the reputation it has!
One of the oldest films on these types of lists, mainly because it's STILL that depraved. - DirectorGerald KarglStarsErwin LederRobert Hunger-BühlerSilvia RyderA troubled man gets released from prison and starts taking out his sadistic fantasies on an unsuspecting family living in a secluded house.This was one of those movies where I thought; "It can't get more F...ed up!" and then it does.
- DirectorJohn McNaughtonStarsMichael RookerTracy ArnoldTom TowlesArriving in Chicago, Henry moves in with ex-con acquaintance Otis and starts schooling him in the ways of the serial killer.Subtle... Quiet... No fancy camera tricks or special effects. These could just as well be people you see every day, yet in this film, you get a rare invitation into their minds. Micheal Rooker is BRILLIANT!
- DirectorNikos NikolaidisStarsMeredyth HeroldPanos ThanassoulisMichele ValleyA man searching for his long-lost lover is kidnapped by her killers, an insane, mother-daughter duo, and they force him to commit various sexual atrocities with them.Sexual depravity, extreme violence, some lame dialouge and a really poor choice of titles. Yep, it's worth it.
- DirectorShozin FukuiStarsHaji SuzukiOnn-chanKôji ÔtsuboPinocchio 964, a lobotomised cyborg sex slave, is abandoned by his owners due to his inability to maintain an erection, while the corporate entity plans to kill him.Just read the IMDB description and you'll know what you're in for. Try to watch it a few hours after you eat.
- DirectorMichael HanekeStarsSusanne LotharUlrich MüheArno FrischTwo violent young men take a mother, father, and son hostage in their vacation cabin and force them to play sadistic "games" with one another for their own amusement.Far superior to the American re-make. Pointless and frighteningly casual violence takes center stage and in this case, the director forces you, the audience to participate!
- DirectorGaspar NoéStarsPhilippe NahonBlandine LenoirFrankie PainA horse butcher's life and mind begin to break down as he lashes out against various factions of society while attempting to reconnect with his estranged daughter.One of the first real "French Extreme" movies on this list. Highly recommended viewing but not if you are easily depressed or freaked out!
- DirectorVirginie DespentesCoralie Trinh ThiStarsRaffaëla AndersonKaren LancaumeCéline BeugnotTwo young women, marginalised by society, go on a destructive tour of sex and violence. Breaking norms and killing men - and shattering the complacency of polite cinema audiences.Highly underrated, and suffered from that fact that it stars "real-life" pornography stars. A brutal, realistic "road-film" about 2 women who are fed up and no longer give a damn about anything except themselves. People who raved about "Thelma and Louise" should watch this film!....
- DirectorGaspar NoéStarsMonica BellucciVincent CasselAlbert DupontelEvents over the course of one traumatic night in Paris unfold in reverse-chronological order as the beautiful Alex is brutally raped and beaten by a stranger in an underpass tunnel.You've heard about the infamouse rape scene..and yes, it's just as disturbing as you've heard. But, watch it for the brilliant reverse time flow from consequences to action and the most ripped off "death by fire extinguisher" scene ever filmed
- DirectorAlexandre AjaStarsCécile de FranceMaïwennPhilippe NahonBest friends Marie and Alexia decide to spend a quiet weekend at Alexia's parents' secluded farmhouse. But on the night of their arrival, the girls' idyllic getaway turns into an endless night of horror.Forget about logic with this movie. Instead watch it for some excellent performances and more than a few brutally violent sequences.
- DirectorFabrice du WelzStarsLaurent LucasBrigitte LahaieGigi CoursignyMarc, a traveling entertainer, is on his way home for Christmas when his van breaks down in the middle of a jerkwater town with some strange inhabitants.Bizarre, well acted and just plain disturbing. The performances are subtle and actually feel genuine which makes the whole thing so much more freaky. I've watched this one a couple of times and it gets creepier every time! This is one movie I felt like I needed a shower after watching it. Yeah, it's that messed up.
- DirectorBrett LeonardStarsAlex O'LoughlinPatrick ThompsonGabby MillgateA cybercrime investigator tracks a man suspected of force-feeding women to death.Another vision of "reality television" gone seriously wrong. I didn't know that this type of fetish existed and now that I know, I am NOT better for it.
- DirectorGyörgy PálfiStarsCsaba CzeneIstván GyuriczaGina MorenoThree generations of men, including a pervert that constantly seeks for new kinds of satisfaction, an obese speed eater and a passionate embalmer.The movie ended. The credits rolled and I was still wondering "What the F... did I just watch?"
- DirectorKoen MortierStarsDries VanhegenNorman BaertGunter LamootThree handicapped losers who form a band ask famous writer Dries to be their drummer. He joins the band and starts manipulating them.Some people just find this film "disgusting", but it's well written, directed and acted therefore worth a shot! It's highly disturbing and sometimes repellent but worth watching if your like "extreme" film.
- DirectorGregory WilsonStarsWilliam AthertonBlythe AuffarthBlanche BakerFollows the unspeakable torture and abuses committed on a teenage girl in the care of her aunt and the boys who witness and fail to report the crime.The book is disturbing enough. Then to learn that this is based on a TRUE story,...well, that lowers your opinion of humanity a few more points. This movie does a brilliant job at showing the viewer just what might be happening right next door as well as the laissez-faire attitude our children might have about right and wrong.
- DirectorYoshihiro NishimuraStarsEihi ShiinaItsuji ItaoYukihide BennyIn future Tokyo, a young woman in the privatized police force tracks down her father's killer while battling against mutant rebels known as engineers.Everyone knows that the japanese have a tendency and a flair for taking things to an extreme, but this... Well, this movie is what happens when you take the extreme to the extreme. It's almost silly, if it wern't so repellant.
- DirectorLars von TrierStarsWillem DafoeCharlotte GainsbourgStorm Acheche SahlstrømA grieving couple retreat to their cabin in the woods, hoping to repair their broken hearts and troubled marriage, but nature takes its course and things go from bad to worse.Infamous for one particular scene. Willem Defoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg are incredible in this highly depressing, yet fascinating film. A more frightening descent into madness and despair you won't find.
- DirectorSrdjan SpasojevicStarsSrdjan 'Zika' TodorovicSergej TrifunovicJelena GavrilovicAn aging porn star agrees to participate in an "art film" in order to make a clean break from the business, only to discover that he has been drafted into making a pedophilia and necrophilia themed snuff film.HIGHLY controversial when released and deserving it's reputation, this film is probably one of the most controversial movies of the past decade! The film has brilliant acting and some of the most depraved and repulsive scenes you can imagine. There are scenes in this movie that no U.S. director would ever have the balls to write! This is yet another film that doesn't just step over the line but LEAPS over it!
- DirectorSimon RumleyStarsAmanda FullerMarc SenterJon Michael DavisA woman attracts the attention of a psychopathic former Army interrogator and an emotionally fragile young man caring for his depressed mother.A bit slow moving at first, but a great story supported by excellent acting and ending with a seriously demented revenge sequence. Marc Senter is well on his way to becoming an tour de force in acting!
- DirectorBen WheatleyStarsNeil MaskellMyAnna BuringHarry SimpsonNearly a year after a botched job, a hitman takes a new assignment with the promise of a big payoff for three killings. What starts off as an easy task soon unravels, sending the killer into the heart of darkness.Violence, violence and more violence. The hit-man with a conscious has been done before, but this time it takes the idea in a whole new direction. There is no way ANY U.S. film company could re-make this movie properly. Excellent acting, directing and an intelligent script? What more can you ask for?
- DirectorE. Elias MerhigeStarsBrian SalzbergDonna DempseyStephen Charles BarryPresented in a surreal, gory and entirely visual manner, Begotten tells of the death of religion, the abuse of nature by Man and a nihilistic outlook on what life ultimately is.I dont think anyone can really "explain" this film. It's supposed to show the creation of man and the destruction of nature. Or something like that. The process of how the director created the film is very interesting All I know is that the images in it stick with you for a loooong time afterward.