20 Films that Kick you in the Teeth!

Gasper noe's Controversial masterpiece has the hallmarks of a queezy fever dream from the nauseating camera work of the opening to the cinema clearing rape scene to the strobing outro. It's as breathtakingly ingenius as it is upsetting and lives long in the mind way after the final credits roll.

Beautifully shot & almost indefencable torture porn/art-house movie with a scattering of social commentary either hiding the fact it's exploitation or revelling in it. Lifting the bar about as far as you can go for what is socially acceptable to put on film. It's echoes of post-war serbian life should send a shiver down the steelest spines and one viewing is certainly all you need to realise that you didn't really need to see it in the first place. Brave film, superbly made but Utterly horrid.

Spielberg put away the cgi & rubber sharks to make what is clearly his best movie but not his most entertaining (For obvious reasons) Gritty, fearless & terrifying but overall maybe one of the most powerful movies ever made about things that only happened about 65-70 years ago (Think about it) Career best performances from Liam Neeson & Ralph Fiennes. This film is more about education than entertainment & Spielberg knew it all too well.

Nacho Cerda's short film (One of a series of Three) is Definately not for the squeamish or sensitive. Cerda's themes of life & death are explored all too clearly here but not without merit. This is not August Underground as Cerda has a masterful eye for framing & using the camera to capture the cold feeling & emptiness that ultimately is his sole intent. Endurance Cinema indeed.

You could pick a handful of Lars Von Trier films and stick them on a list like this but Antichrist wins it for me thanks to an over abundance of scenes that suck the life out of you whilst watching them. Easily the most depressing movie i have ever seen but also one of the most well shot. Not a great film by any stretch as it's weighed down by all it's subject matter but Von Trier knows his way round this kind of material and makes it a truly unforgiving expierience.

The cinematic equivalent of marmite, This French shocker is a game of two halves and it's difficult to judge which part of the movie is more horrific than the other, the all out blood & guts of the first 40 minutes or the slow drawn out almost bloodless last third. Whichever Martyrs always makes me think of Kubrick after i watch it, which can't be a bad thing.

It's probably hard to imagine what it would have been like in 1974 to see this film for the first time if you are a child of the 90's but back then it was a revelation (to some) & an act of satan to others. Still it's impossible not to watch this and still not be disturbed. Watered down thanks to halloween masks & an almost Elvis like legendary status (In Leatherface) If you can forget what came after then this film stands alone as the ultimate exercise in gruelling terror.

When you take a primetime TV show that has undercurrents of incest, rape, drugs, torture & all out Horror and release it from the shackles of it's after dinner viewing slot and, to top it all off have David Lynch as your Director this is what your left with. Visually stunning, uniquely Lynch & extremely hard to watch. Suddenly those Cherry Pie one liners seemed a long way away.

This seedy little tale of a wicked aunt, her sons & some children in the neighborhood kidnapping & torturing a young girl is a pretty grissly watch especially as it's primarily dealing with children and their inability to tell whats right from wrong, orchestrated by a manipulitive older guardian who quite onviously can. Loosely based on a true story but it's since come to light that lots of the elements in this version have been twisted but there is no doubt that what the film deals with is no doubt something that could and probably does happen in this jolly old world of ours.

This is one of those films that doesn't really live up to it's reputation or promise but regardless as a concept it is about as nasty as you can get in terms of Body horror. Has a texas chainsaw-like way of making you believe you've seen more than you have and Director Tom Six has obviously grown up on a diet of Exploitation & Grindhouse movies. If in any doubt about his 'shock' credentials then check out the follow up when it finally gets an uncut release.

Deodato's notorius nasty is still about as viscious as the genre gets and still leaves a nasty taste thanks to al the unessasary animal violence, sadly that kind of takes away from what is actually a very well made & ingenius concept that has now been killed completely thanks to Blair witch's box office. Still just an exploitation movie but one that is indeed very highly recommended viewing.

Not the scariest movie of all time as some will have you believe but it's another one of those films that if you transported yourself back to 1973 would have you wincing in disbelief. A strangely powerful film none the less with incredible performances from all involved. Friedkin's best film still makes many peoples top tens & though the Visuals have been lessened somewhat by parody upon parody, their aren't many films out there where a little girl says the c word and masturbates with a crucifix.

Lynch exorcised himself from the hideous big studio turkey 'Dune' by going back to recurring themes in his earlier work with this nasty little tale of small town family values masking a seedy & corruptive under belly. Marking the Big screens most memorable & out-right perverted loon in Dennis Hopper's Frank Booth, Blue Velvet is everything you now expect of David Lynch, Disturbing, deranged, beautiful & Horrific. Essential basically.

Not to everyone's opinion in relation to the word 'shocking' but if you stepped into this movie expecting a beautifully shot, family friendly, jennifer connelly sing-a-long fairy tale as the poster & marketing campaign had you believe then you were most definately in for a surprise. Del toro's unique ability to create other worlds is here apparent but there is also some incredible moments of savage violence. The films tone is downbeat & the atmosphere is dripping with the atrocities of wartorn Spain. It truly is a masterpiece of modern cinema but is not for the weak of heart.

Some films grow old gracefully, ISOYG is not one of them, although one of a plethora of Straw dogs-like rape revenge films, Meir Zarchi's video nasty is still top of the pile in terms of all out grimness and not surprisingly still remains cut & reframed in the UK. Zarchi's reasons for the drawn out rape sequence may sound genuine but it's souless & unflinching desire to show you just a little too much leaves a sour taste even after the slew of big budget, tear inducing, courtroom drama movies that were based around sexual violence (The Accused etc) Approach with caution or watch the remake which glosses over some of Zarchi's more deplorable shots.

John Hillcoats adaptation of Cormac McCarthys Post apocalypse novel is slow, cold & utterly depressing in every sense of the word. Not a great film that it obviously aspires to be, it still manages to get it's point across whilst ripping out your soul and sapping your sense of humour dry. As far as a kick in the teeth goes this is the best way to kill a good mood if you ever needed a reason.

Yes, a Disney film. Of course everybody's seen it and everybody knows why it kicks you in the teeth. As a childs introduction to the pain of loss, their are no films better and even the hopeful & cutesy ending can't mask what has come before. Will always leave a mark on every child who watches it.

Another animated film but this is most definately not 'Bambi' Richard Adam's Novel is adapted beautifully by director/screenwriter Martin Rosen. Either an Ode to The tyranny & Destructive nature of the human soul or a film about fluffy rabbits. This violent & despairing Animated feature is another film that as a child leaves a lasting scar. Also Paved the way for a thousand John Hurt voice-overs.

Amazing to see Bambi & Lars von Trier on the same list. Another exercise by the worlds most daring film maker to either depress you senseless or leave you glowing in admiration for his efforts. What this film does have is an incredible central performance from Emily Watson, easily the best English actress to not win an oscar. It's definately brave film making but weather or not you should like it depends purely on your mood whilst watching it.

A kick in the teeth to a generation of fans grown up on the franchise. Vile & offensive on every level. Lucas introduces us back to his world with a script so bad it's a wonder that kids were not asking for their money back & lynching their parents for giving them expectations of a god-like second coming that never materialised. Even the slightly better Revenge of the Sith cannot banish this from being the most shocking let-down of all time.