The 10 Most Offensive Movies Ever Made (& Their Rotten Tomatoes Rating)

A lot of things can offend people in a film: Grotesque violence, an abundance of sex, and crass comedy, to name just a few. While numerous films each year receive some degree of controversy, a few have stood the test of time, becoming known almost more for their offensive nature than their stories themselves.

The 10 movies listed below pushed the boundaries of artistic expression, with some praising them as unappreciated acts of free speech, and others claiming that they were the death of film. Here are the 10 most offensive movies ever made, along with their Rotten Tomatoes score.

10 Postal (2007) – 9%

Postal was doomed from the start. It was made by everyone’s most-hated filmmaker, Uwe Boll, and is centered around 9/11 and terrorism. The movie is loosely based on the game of the same name and follows the “The Postal Dude” as he discovers that Al-Qaeda terrorists have swarmed his little Arizona town and are about to try and take over America.

The movie is filled with sexism, a scene that mocks the destruction of the World Trade Center, as well as the murders of children and physically handicapped people. The Associated Press’ review of the films read, “How does Uwe Boll keep getting work? Seriously, this is not a rhetorical question – someone, somewhere surely must know the answer.”

9 Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1990) – 87%

Despite getting a theatrical release in 1990, the film, based on two real-life serial killers, was actually made in 1986. However, because of its violence, the filmmakers were locked in a heated debate with the MPAA, who refused to release the movie unless it had an X rating. Due to that, finding distribution was nearly impossible.

However, the fight also gained publicity and notoriety for the film. Siskel and Ebert even called the film riveting and brilliant and challenged the MPAA, demanding a need for a new rating that was between R and X for films like this. The outcome of this heated debate was the NC-17 rating, created later that year.

8 Salo (1975) – 75%

In Salo, a group of affluent libertines kidnaps 18 teenagers. They’re then treated like animals, used for sexual pleasure, and many are murdered.

The film’s director, Pier Paolo Pasolini, claimed the movie was intended to highlight the corruption and abuse of power that’s rampant in our world. However, due to the extreme graphic scenes and since the film used minors, it received intense criticism and was banned in numerous countries around the world. Even more shocking, Pasolini was murdered under suspicious circumstances just weeks before the film’s release.

7 Movie 43 (2013) – 5%

Not only is Movie 43 considered offensive, but it’s also considered tasteless and terrible. The movie is comprised of various sketches designed to be funny, but ultimately, fall flat. From a new MP3 player in the shape of a full-sized naked woman and Hugh Jackman having testicles on his neck to Halle Berry injecting hot sauce up her …

How this film came to be and how it attracted so many A-List actors is mindblowing. The New York Daily News review read, “As a film critic, I’ve seen nearly 4,000 movies over the last 15 years. Right now, I can’t think of one worse than Movie 43.”

6 I Spit On Your Grave (1978) – 53%

Upon release, Roger Ebert’s review read, “A vile bag of garbage named I Spit on Your Grave is playing in theaters this week. It is a movie so sick, reprehensible and contemptible that I can hardly believe it’s playing in respectable theaters, but it is. Attending it was one of the most depressing experiences of my life.”

The film in question centers around a young woman who is brutally raped numerous times by a group of men. She later enacts revenge (and further sexual acts) with her rapists, eventually killing them. The film’s title was originally Day of the Woman and was intended to be a movie about female empowerment.

5 The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) – 80%

The religious community was livid when The Last Temptation of Christ was released. The film depicts Jesus avoiding crucifixion with the help of an angel and eventually marrying multiple times, having many children, and living to an old age. Towards the end of his life, Judas reveals that the angel who freed Jesus from crucifixion was actually the devil, who had tempted him.

Christians protested the film, the film’s director, Martin Scorsese, received death threats, and a radical Christian group bombed a theater in Paris for screening the movie, injuring 14 people.

4 The Human Centipede (2010) – 50%

The title pretty much sums up the movie – a deranged surgeon wants to sew people together to create a human centipede. Audiences were mortified, some having to leave theaters from feeling nauseous. The film was released unrated and was highly controversial.

RollingStone said the movie is, “Heaven for devotees of four-star torture porn, and zero-star hell for everyone else,” while Roger Ebert stated, “I am required to award stars to movies I review. This time, I refuse to do it.”

3 Cannibal Holocaust (1980) – 65%

Cannibal Holocaust is quite easily one of the most despicable movies ever made. It focuses on a group of filmmakers in South America who set out to document a native “cannibalistic” tribe. However, the crew needs sensational footage, so they abuse the tribespeople to cause panic, hoping for warfare. The movie is loaded with sexual abuse, murder, and abhorrent racism.

The film was even put under investigation after its premiere because many believed the murder scenes were real. Unfortunately, other scenes, involving the murder of animals, were real. However, the film also tackles big issues about race and power and has since gone down as an important part of film history.

2 Hounddog (2007) – 15%

Hounddog shocked and appalled audiences at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival. In the movie, Dakota Fanning, then just 13 years old, had to act out an intense rape scene that scars her character and leads her down a path of depression and illness.

The movie became known as “The Dakota Fanning Rape Movie” and it struggled to find distribution after receiving widespread notoriety. Besides the infamous scene, the film was poorly received in general, with the San Fransisco Chronicle saying, “The whole distasteful mess is sunk up to its neck in a brew of Southern Gothic atmosphere and hocus-pocus sentimentality.”

1 A Serbian Film (2011) – 47%

A Serbian Film is about a porn star who is somehow lured into a snuff film. Throughout the movie, he does insanely horrible things and, despite having numerous opportunities to escape, makes tons of awful decisions that keep him locked in the situation.

The film’s director claims that the movie is about censorship and fascism. Most critics and audiences, however, disagree, with the Guardian calling it a “Migraine-inducing … porn-horror nightmare.”

About The Author

Keith Langston
(155 Articles Published)

Keith Langston is a writer for ScreenRant, as well as Travel Channel and Passport Magazine. He holds a deep passion for film, travel, and adventure. He fully believes that ‘The Faculty’ is the greatest movie ever made.

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