10 – Lolita
- Anyone slightly familiar with the source material knows why an adaptation of the already controversial novel would be problematic even for audiences today let alone 1962.
- The film was pressured by the Catholic Legion of Decency into not going full paedophile which is probably for the best with the film going for subtlety.
- That said the Catholic Legion of Decency sounds like some sort of comic book superhero team with The Pope as its superman. The Catholic Legion of Decency stopping paedophiles everywhere…oh wait let’s not do that.
9 – Kids
- Written by then 18 year old Harmonie Korine most recently known for directing Spring Breakers, Kids is a film that was going to get trouble from the start.
- Set during a day in the life of slightly underage New York teenagers, Kids tackles underage sex, 12 year olds taking drugs and AIDS which at the time was at its height.
- While the film blurs the line between supposedly real experiences and ones dreamt up for shock factor and many have accused the film of having no artistic merit. That’s just silly of course the film has artistic merit you just have a problem with someone giving HIV to a 13 year old…
8 – Freaks
- This infamous film caused a stir back in its day for featuring real carnival freaks which was just far too outrageous for 1932.
- 1942 then? No. 1952? Nope not until the 60’s was the film unbanned in the UK and that was an already cut version from what they originally wanted to release.
- The film is pretty disturbing but nothing that should have been kept under wraps for 30 years and nothing that wasn’t already available to see at your local travelling carnival. Well apart from the tar and feathering stuff.
7 – The Last Temptation of Christ
- Featuring the scariest looking Jesus in cinema, Scorsese’s passion project copped a fair share of backlash from the church.
- Many Church groups protested the film due to it showing Willem Defoe as Jesus…oh and something about showing him having sex being totally blasphemous. So blasphemous that a group of French fundamentalist group firebombed a Paris cinema showing the film.
- Clearly the group didn’t ask “What would Jesus do?” in that situation, I’m no theologist but Christ don’t firebomb.
6 – Monty Python’s Life of Brian
- And now for something completely different. More church groups getting angry over a blasphemous movie.
- Life of Brian takes a very critical look on group think and the problems with mob mentality when it comes to religion. The film never portrays Jesus negatively, using Brian as an accidental messiah to look at fanaticism.
- Cleese and Palin were dragged into defending the film in a TV debate with a priest but hey at least they didn’t firebomb any cinemas.