Most extreme film

[Skaboy]

Many thanks to all of you who responded to my "Ultimate Collection" post. I have now purchased The Guinea Pig series, Men Behind the Sun, Cannibal Hollocaust, New York Ripper, Wu Shu / Run and Kill and Anthropophagus on ebay; all uncut.

As I've continued my research, The Guinea Pig series and Men Behind the Sun seem to be considered the most extreme or controversial titles available. And then I happened upon mention of August Underground and August Underground's Mordum. It would seem from what I've read that these are more extreme even than Guinea Pig and Men Behind the Sun: is this true? Are there films more extreme or controversial than the August Underground titles or is that as bed as it gets? Or are Guinea Pig and Men Behind the Sun more extreme than August Underground?

Many thanks again for your valuable input.

[doctor satan]

personally, i'd say men behind the sun was far worse than any of those films you mentioned. guinea pig has laughable effects which aren't in any way realistic. men behind the sun was based on real events & has been widely reported that it contained real footage of an autopsy. The footage of the animal cruelty like in many of the Italian cannibal gutmunchers was obviously real as well.

[Nyarlathotep]

Originally posted by Skaboy
Many thanks to all of you who responded to my "Ultimate Collection" post. I have now purchased The Guinea Pig series, Men Behind the Sun, Cannibal Hollocaust, New York Ripper, Wu Shu / Run and Kill and Anthropophagus on ebay; all uncut.

As I've continued my research, The Guinea Pig series and Men Behind the Sun seem to be considered the most extreme or controversial titles available. And then I happened upon mention of August Underground and August Underground's Mordum. It would seem from what I've read that these are more extreme even than Guinea Pig and Men Behind the Sun: is this true? Are there films more extreme or controversial than the August Underground titles or is that as bed as it gets? Or are Guinea Pig and Men Behind the Sun more extreme than August Underground?

Many thanks again for your valuable input.

how about the men behind the sun sequels?

laboratory of the devil
a narrow escape

(basically a re-hash of the original)

or
black sun: the nanking massacre

[gorefreak]

Couldn't the unrated version of "I Spit On Your Grave" be included for at least a top 5? That's a pretty raw movie. Not so much on gore effects as the fact that it's based on events that could actually take place.

[noctuary]

Just a couple to add to the list:

All Night Long
Nekromantik
Aftermath

[PR3SSUR3]

You'll realise there is not a simple sliding-scale of "extemity" in film, but it is a whole lot of fun trying to outdo your last viewing "pleasure" with the latest notorious discovery.

Films are affecting in different ways - one could find the graphic necropheliac elements of Nekromantik or Aftermath unwatchably disgusting, yet cruise through the casual torture of The Flower the Flesh & The Blood (the effects in which are not bad at all, simply dated now that the film is nearly 20 years old and there are so much more outrageous CAT 3 titles around).

What are you looking for? Are the raw knife-murders in The New York Ripper jarring enough for you - or are they somehow less "extreme" than the assorted disembowelings in Cannibal Holocaust? How about the real animal killings in that film, and how does it compare to the rabbit farm-footage in Nekromantik or Coppola's ox-slaughter in Apocalypse Now? Rats set on fire in your Men Behind the Sun?

Personally I find the whole of Nightmares in a Damaged Brain far more disturbing than most other movies - it's the tone a film makes when it sets up shop inside your head that is unnerving and leaves a lasting impression. The Blair Witch Project is also a very troubling film, but for different reasons.

So far as August Underground and Mordum are concerned, they are at once shocking on the surface... but cracks begin to show as the actors inevitably begin to try too hard as the movies go on, and the knowledge that the filmmakers are so blatantly trying to fool the viewer is ultimately patronising - in a WWF kinda way.

[RavageRitual]

Originally posted by gorefreak
Couldn't the unrated version of "I Spit On Your Grave" be included for at least a top 5? That's a pretty raw movie.

no

[urgeok]

yeah ..
I spit on your grave is like Anne of Green Gables compared to those other films mentioned ..


And Last House on the Left is worse than I spit on Your Grave as i see it ..

[The STE]

most extreme film? Easy
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B00008K7AL.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg

[Skaboy]

Originally posted by PR3SSUR3
You'll realise there is not a simple sliding-scale of "extemity" in film, but it is a whole lot of fun trying to outdo your last viewing "pleasure" with the latest notorious discovery.

Films are affecting in different ways - one could find the graphic necropheliac elements of Nekromantik or Aftermath unwatchably disgusting, yet cruise through the casual torture of The Flower the Flesh & The Blood (the effects in which are not bad at all, simply dated now that the film is nearly 20 years old and there are so much more outrageous CAT 3 titles around).

What are you looking for? Are the raw knife-murders in The New York Ripper jarring enough for you - or are they somehow less "extreme" than the assorted disembowelings in Cannibal Holocaust? How about the real animal killings in that film, and how does it compare to the rabbit farm-footage in Nekromantik or Coppola's ox-slaughter in Apocalypse Now? Rats set on fire in your Men Behind the Sun?

Personally I find the whole of Nightmares in a Damaged Brain far more disturbing than most other movies - it's the tone a film makes when it sets up shop inside your head that is unnerving and leaves a lasting impression. The Blair Witch Project is also a very troubling film, but for different reasons.

So far as August Underground and Mordum are concerned, they are at once shocking on the surface... but cracks begin to show as the actors inevitably begin to try too hard as the movies go on, and the knowledge that the filmmakers are so blatantly trying to fool the viewer is ultimately patronising - in a WWF kinda way.

PR3SSUR3,

I do of course realise that there is no sliding scale. I further realise that "extremity" is subjective: what one viewer may find disturbing, another won't.

I'm sure I'm the same as a lot of people and am not trying to be "tough" by watching the extremes of cinema. I am a gorehound and am also curious. In the UK, so much is censored and we're told what we can and can't do. I don't want to be dictated to; I want to watch whatever I like. I want to make informed decisions and formulate opinions post-viewing.

I certainly don't want to see any "snuff" and although I think Cannibal Holocaust is a very good film, the animal mutilation scenes disturb me. They disturb me because they are just wrong and that's not the kind of disturbance that I'm looking for. I'm looking for scenes in a film which disturb me because they're well constructed and don't rely on reality. A good example would be the fire extinguisher scene in Irreversible: believable, because it involved two men and no monsters; disturbing because it looked so real, without actually being real.

I'd be interested to learn more of the HK Cat3 titles to which you refer as being outrageous, if you wouldn't mind indulging me. I'll also seek out the other titles which you mention and which I've not yet acquired.

I'm awaiting the arrival of most of the titles which I originally referred to. Once I've viewed them I'll be able to formulate a similarly educated opinion to yours about them. My original enquiry was partly to help me decide which film to watch first. As I've said myself, the whole "extreme" thing is subjective and opinions vary but I wondered if there was a generally held concensus on any one film being the "worst".

I too found The Blair Witch Project unnerving, even with the knowledge that it wasn't "real". To date, the only film to have truly scared me is The Woman in Black. Given that I'm not easily frightened, I figure disturbed would be an alternative state for me to seek. I want to "feel" films; to be affected by them. Any film which connects at such a level has to be well-made and not just full of unpleasantness.

Thank you for your informed comments. I'll continue to harvest titles, track them down, watch them and draw a personal conclusion as to which title disturbs me the most.

[urgeok]

i dont need the challenge of see the obviously unsettling vision of people dying for real .. or 'movies' that exist for the sole purpose of making you thing that real people are dying - even if they arent.

i am exposed to enough of this shit on the news.


i can appreciate a film that affects me without those things ..

i remember not liking Magnolia.. but it was effective ..
It was a study in tension ..and i did feel tense for the entire length of the film .. and i didnt enjoy it.

I can see how Blair Witch would work on that level too ..

Saving Private Ryan was extremely intense watching people die in the ways that they probably did in real life many years ago .. terror and confusion ..

Shindlers List was terrifying - watching the Finnes character completely unable to control his inhumanity.

Thos things i can appreciate even if i find them disturbing ..

I'll never get my head around the motivation of film makers and their audiences when it comes to the 'faces' or 'guinea pig' type films.
I understand the notion of 'pushing the envelope' - but i really dont get the challenge angle.

I can acknowledge my bloodthirstiness for enjoying Clint blow away the deserving 1 dimentional scumbag ...
I can get a kick out of the cartoon violence in The Story of Ricky ...

i just dont need to sit through unrelenting scenes of violence and human depraivity without a plot, point, actors, etc ...
fine for others .. but i'd rather spend 90 minutes watching something that wont haunt me for years later .. in a very negative way.