The review for A Serbian Film has gotten a lot of feedback from readers. Many have requested a list of other disturbing films. Of course, making such a list might seem pointless. After all, if you have seen A Serbian Film, there is really nothing as disturbing as that. If you are on a quest to see the "most disturbing film," you've already reached the end of the journey.
Nonetheless, let us assume you want to some disturbing films with some value aside from whether or not they are the "most disturbing ever," since even I can admit that watching movies for that reason alone is kind of crass.
So, after much consideration, I hereby present the following list of the "Most Disturbing Films." Now everyone's idea of "disturbing" is different, and a few criteria have been used here. These fit into the "disturbing violence" category, and are not disturbing for other reasons. For example, the film Kids is disturbing, for reasons other than overt violent content, but a film like that will not appear on this list. Also, the movie must be "good" in addition to being disturbing. There are all too many movies that are just "gross" but they aren't any good, so who cares?
9. CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST
Our first entry in this list is borderline trash. On the surface, it's a rather exploitative and distasteful horror film. On a deeper level... well, it's pretty much the same. Yet it does create a genuine sense of horror that is missing from more polished works. The faux documentary style is very effective and creates a compelling narrative structure.
This film has been banned in numerous countries. One of the reasons is that real animals were killed on film. Not being a believer in animal rights at all, I am not hugely concerned by the fact that they killed animals on film and then ate them. Although it is certainly gross when they cut apart the turtle and eat it.
Instead, the main boost to the disturb-o-meter is that there are many scenes of legendary graphic horror -- there is a disturbing abortion ritual, a rape committed with some crude implement, the victim of a gruesome impalement, and the chaotic climax where bloodthirsty cannibals converge on the film crew. There is also interesting fact that the "civilized" people are painted as the real monsters for the bulk of the film. They run around razing, raping, and killing with apparent glee. That is more disturbing in some ways than cannibals simply eating people.
8. CUTTING MOMENTS
This shocking short film is a nightmarish parody of suburban life. It's not entirely clear to me what the meaning of this film is, but it scarred me deeply nonetheless. It depicts a dysfunctional family where the mother seems distraught by a lack of family communication and profound lack of affection from her husband. It is not explicitly stated, but it is implied that the husband has a sick interest in his son. Somehow, this evolves into a situation where the wife feels the only way to provoke her husband's lust is to mutilate herself, which, strangely, seems to work. It culminates in graphic mutilation during sex, leaving you with a shocking image you won't soon forget. If this movie doesn't make you cringe, you are way too jaded.
7. I STAND ALONE
Gaspar Noe is an outlaw director. His films provoke powerful responses, both positive and negative. Of the two films of his that appear on this list, I Stand Alone is the inferior of the two. Arguably, however, it is higher on the disturb-o-meter. Maybe. The amount of violence in this film is pretty low. However, the acts of violence themselves are extreme. The protagonist beats his pregnant girlfriend, punching her repeatedly in the abdomen while declaring, "Your baby's hamburger meat now!" He later envisions a sick violent fantasy in which he murders his disabled daughter to "protect her" or some such nonsense. All this is bad enough, but the reason this is really offensive is just because the main character is quite possibly the most awful person I have ever seen on film. He hates everything -- his life, his job, his girlfriend, and really all the people around him. He blames everyone else for his misery, but he lacks the maturity to recognize that he is responsible for his own failures. The film is largely narrated by this guy, who you have to follow along with the supremely spiteful But wait! Even this man, so consumed with loathing for self and others, manages to show love and tenderness at the end -- albeit not in a way that people should be showing their love. So might we venture to say that this film has a 'happy' ending? Well, that might be too much of a stretch...
6. ANTICHRIST
Much has been said about the graphic sex and violence in Antichrist. It is certainly disturbing in a profound way (especially for a dude) when a man's testicles are smashed with a block of wood, and has a hole drilled through his leg. Likewise, it is extra nasty when a woman jerks off her tortured husband and makes him ejaculate blood.But the disturbing-factor with Antichrist goes much deeper than graphic depictions of physical abuse. The "therapy" that the husband provides to his wife before things turn violent but there is the "therapy" the husband provides to his wife, which seems to be a form of subtle emotional abuse. Although they have lost their son to a tragic accident, he seems to imply she is wrong to be traumatized. In the twisted Bizarro world of Antichrist, the one spouse torments the other with rationalizations and psychobabble rather than provide emotional support for the death of a child.
5. MEN BEHIND THE SUN
Supposedly based on the true story of a Japanese prison camp in China during World War II, this film depicts shocking medical experiments. In terms of nasty graphic gruesomeness, this film is hard to beat. There is what appears to be actual autopsy footage, an especially gross scene involving a pressure chamber, and the classic "cat scene" in which hundreds of swarming rats attack a cat. This film is actually pretty decent overall, as it is also an important reminder of the true evil that manifests during war and conquest.
4. SALO, OR THE 120 DAYS OF SODOM
If ever there was a film to make one feel miserable about humanity, this is it! A bunch of fascist assholes round up a group of teens and take them to a castle for several days of diabolic torture and rape. This film is actually not all that graphic and explicitly violent compared to other films on this list. There is mutilation, murder, forced coprophagia, and sexual assaults, but the depictions are not as bad as you might imagine... Still, few movies are more upsetting than Salo. I think this is because it depicts villains so utterly drunk with power that nothing is beyond the pale to them.
3. IRREVERSIBLE
Not only is this movie disturbing, it is amazingly powerful on an emotional level. It is a "rape & revenge" movie told in reverse, so it starts with the revenge and then moves through the events that led up to it. But the "revenge" is not satisfying, and the rape is even more awful when you get to the last scene in the film (the first scene in the story). For a more comprehensive review, see here.
2. HENRY - PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER
This is the best serial killer movie you will ever see. It does not have a lot of graphic violence, although the home invasion scene is truly harrowing. Instead, it is disturbing because it just seems so... realistic? I mean, I don't know any real serial killers, but Henry seems like the real deal. Yes, you could watch the August Underground series for the most gruesome and "shocking" serial killer movies, but those are just disgusting trash. They aren't disturbing in any serious way. Henry is subtly and profoundly disturbing, from the simple way he coldly stalks strangers as potential victims to how he plans to avoid capture to his actual carrying out of murder. The shoe-string budget actually gives more credence to the whole realistic atmosphere.
1. A SERBIAN FILM
See my review. What more can be said? You would never think that a horror film with such depravity could be good at all. But it is a great film in its own way, and there is nothing more intensely shocking and disturbing.
X. SAILOR MOON R - THE MOVIE
After watching all these messed up movies, you will need something that makes you feel good about life. Something that shows the power of kindness and friendship. Plus you will need epic anime battles to make it awesome. So watch this movie. BUT FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE, don't watch the American version. It's for whiny little losers. JAPANESE ORIGINAL ONLY.
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