Top 5 Controversial Movies

No Such Thing As Bad Press

Scarlett Johansson’s latest role as a transgender parlour owner in the upcoming remake of Rub & Tug hasn’t exactly gone down a treat, with many calling her out for taking a part that should have rightfully gone to a trans actor. The ongoing debate is likely to overshadow the entire film and mire it in controversy right up to its release. That being said, we doubt that it will reach the fever pitch of some of these flicks!

#5: “Cannibal Holocaust” (1980)

If you think the worst thing in this movie is cannibalism, you’re sorely mistaken. A documentary group goes missing in the Amazon – and when their footage turns up, questions emerge as to who the real savages are. With brutal gang-rapes, real animal cruelty, and other unimaginable brutality, this film’s realism caught the attention of audiences, and got the director arrested on obscenity charges and accused of murdering his cast.

#4: “The Birth of a Nation” (1915)

Propaganda tends towards controversy, and films like “Triumph of the Will” even more so. “The Birth of a Nation” is another such film, which glamorized the Ku Klux Klan and demonized African-Americans. When it was released, audiences rioted, and it was protested by the NAACP for its heroic portrayal of Klansmen, and its use of blackface. However, for better or worse, it’s considered a landmark in American cinema.

#3: “The Passion of the Christ” (2004)

Religion is taboo, and films about religion are heavily scrutinized. Though Mel Gibson’s was not the first Christ-based film to incite controversy; the firestorm he started was one of biblical proportions. Recounting the last 12-hours in the life of Jesus, Gibson’s film is brutal, visceral and gory, featuring a ten-minute-long flogging scene, among other acts of violence – even worse; many claim it’s biblically inaccurate and anti-Semitic.

#2: “The Exorcist” (1973)

This flick about a young girl possessed by the devil was so disturbing that theaters provided barf bags. We’ve all seen the head spinning, spider walking and projectile vomiting; but it’s the fact that such obscene language and acts are coming from a child that makes it so unsettling. Even worse, the religious implications and suggestions of subliminal messaging earned The Exorcist its reputation as “the scariest movie ever.”

#1: “A Clockwork Orange” (1971)

Along with movies like Straw Dogs and Bonnie and Clyde, this X-rated Stanley Kubrick flick is credited with making extreme on-screen violence more acceptable. The chronicle of a remorseless group of ne’er-do-wells that commits unspeakable acts for shits-and-giggles includes several graphic and protracted rape scenes among its many sins. Kubrick was so sickened by the blowback and copycat crimes; he withdrew the film from distribution in Britain indefinitely.

Be sure to check out the video below to see our picks for the Top 10 Controversial TV Moments.