Top 10 Most Brutal Scenes In R-Rated Movies

#10: Tongue Cutting

“Oldboy” (2003)

“Oldboy” is a movie all about desperation. After spending fifteen years imprisoned in a hotel room, businessman Oh Dae-su will go to any lengths possible to locate his daughter and find out who’s responsible for his captivity, not to mention his release. Upon learning some horrifying news he dare not speak, Dae-su hacks his tongue completely off. As soon as the bloodied Dae-su reaches for a pair of scissors and sticks his tongue out, it’s clear there’s no going back. While we don’t see the moment of impact, the sound effects and Choi Min-sik’s brilliant portrayal of anguish are more than enough to fill in the gaps.

#9: Soap Beating

“Full Metal Jacket” (1987)

“Full Metal Jacket’s” depiction of military life is brutal enough to give anyone second thoughts about enlisting. This is especially true during the basic training scenes, where the new recruits are subject to the tyrannical rule of Gunnery Sergeant Hartman. When rule violations by Private Leonard Lawrence - cruelly nicknamed “Gomer Pyle” - get the rest of the recruits in trouble, they treat him to a blanket party. This involves wrapping bars of soap in towels and holding Lawrence down while they strike him. Lawrence is literally given a rude awakening, being beaten and gagged, with his muffled screams and thrashing movements showing just how traumatized he is. And anyone who’s seen “Full Metal Jacket” knows that the trauma doesn’t end there.

#8: Sloth

“Seven” (1995)

David Fincher’s “Seven” quickly establishes a bleak and brutal world that only gets dimmer as the film goes on. While investigating a string of gruesome murders based on the seven deadly sins, detectives William Somerset and David Mills see things not suitable for human eyes. At the crime scene for the victim meant to represent sloth, the detectives and SWAT team encounter a man who has been emaciated beyond recognition. He appears dead, the keyword being “appears.” The man suddenly coughs and starts writhing in agony, terrifying everyone in the scene and the audience. Reportedly, the actors playing the SWAT officers didn’t know the character was still alive, so their shocked reactions are genuine.

#7: “Squeal Like a Pig”

“Deliverance” (1972)

The tranquility of nature butts heads with the cruelty of humankind in John Boorman’s “Deliverance.” And few scenes are as hard to watch as this one. When Ed and Bobby, one pair of Atlanta businessmen on a canoe trip down a Georgia river, encounter a couple of mountain men, it turns into a scene of unimaginable brutality. The normally relaxing sounds of nature are anything but when juxtaposed with such a horrifying act. And the acting from Jon Voight and Ned Beatty makes it all the more painfully real. Here’s a scene that will make you want to simultaneously close your eyes and cover your ears.

#6: Execution Scene

“The Green Mile” (1999)

While the heart wrenchingly wrongful execution at the end of the film is what most of us think about when we think of “The Green Mile,” it’s a botched one about midway through that really horrifies us beyond belief. When the bitter and spiteful corrections officer Percy is set to oversee the mild-mannered Del’s execution, he deliberately neglects to dampen the sponge that’s meant to conduct the electricity to Del’s head. As a result, Del’s entire body is ravaged beyond belief, making for a drawn-out and needlessly painful death. As if we needed another reason to hate Percy, this scene is shocking in more ways than one.

#5: Arm Amputation

“127 Hours” (2010)

It’s one thing to hear about someone cutting off their arm. It’s another thing to see it recreated. In this incredible true survival story, hiker Aron Ralston, played by James Franco, spends five full days with his arm pinned to a boulder at the bottom of a canyon. Realizing there’s no one coming to rescue him, Aron knows the only way out is with a multi-purpose tool, and that it won’t be an easy operation. Director Danny Boyle knows how to focus on the moment in a way that makes us feel like we’re stuck right down there with Aron. If there’s one lesson to take away from this film, it’s to always tell someone where you’re going hiking.

#4: Face Smashing

“Pan’s Labyrinth” (2006)

Guillermo del Toro’s “Pan's Labyrinth” is like if “Alice in Wonderland” was less about whimsy and more about horror, both real and fantastical. And there are few movie monsters who are quite as terrifying as Captain Vidal. Played by Sergi López, Vidal is the epitome of psychopathic, going to any lengths he deems necessary to suss out rebels. One supposed rebel is captured and has his face mercilessly beaten in by Vidal, who performs this with chilling detachment. And Vidal’s desire for bloodshed doesn’t stop there. Watching López’s masterful work in this scene, it’s clear that Vidal isn’t someone to be reasoned with, but someone to avoid at any cost.

#3: Mandingo Fight

“Django Unchained” (2012)

Some movies try to downplay the horrors of the American slave trade, but not Quentin Tarantino’s “Django Unchained.” Recently freed Django and bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz find themselves in the gentlemen’s club of brutal slavemaster Calvin Candie. Here, they see slaves being forced to engage in “Mandingo” fights, where only the winner leaves alive. Tarantino keeps us somewhat distanced from the brutality at first, but the bloodshed and desperation eventually become too great to ignore. We’re not sure what’s more shocking here: the violence, or that anyone could be so cruel as to ever let this happen.

#2: Hand or Foot?

“City of God” (2002)

“City of God,” an unflinching portrait of violence and crime in Brazil, routinely makes you forget you’re watching a movie. After vicious crime boss Li’l Zé hears his name mentioned, he holds two terrified youngsters at gunpoint, asking if they’d rather be shot in the hand or foot. He then forces a member of his gang, “Steak with Fries,” to choose one to execute. The cinematography, including the shaky camera, makes this moment and many others disturbingly immersive. And the actors are heartbreakingly effective in portraying a situation no one should have to endure.

#1: Curb Stomp

“American History X” (1998)

When we think about scenes that are literally painful to watch, this is the first one that comes to mind. After his brother, Danny, informs him of a black man trying to break into his truck, neo-Nazi Derek retrieves a gun and starts firing. But it takes more than bullets for Derek to express his unrelenting hatred for those he sees as different. When one of the men is left wounded on the sidewalk, Derek pulls him to the curb and demands he put his mouth on it before delivering a devastating final blow. The very sound of the teeth scraping the surface is enough to make us clutch our mouths in horror. And once you’ve viewed this scene, it stays with you forever.