A list of top 50 most disturbing movies. I have only seen some of them and agree with the ones that I have seen that are on here. What do you guys on here think?

50. Naked (1994)
49. Bully (2001)
48. The Cook, the Thief, his Wife and her Lover (1989)
47. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
46. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
45. Crash (1996)
44. Scum (1979)
43. Boys Don’t Cry (1999)
42. Freaks (1932)
41. Spanking the Monkey (1994)
40. Romance (1999)
39. The Idiots (1998)
38. Frenzy (1972)
37. In the Company of Men (1997)
36. Requiem for a Dream (2000)
35. Bad Lieutenant (1992)
34. The Bridge (2008)
33. L.I.E (2001)
32. Ichi the Killer (2001)
31. Dancer in the Dark (2000)
30. Audition (1999)
29. Zero Day (2003)
28. The Human Centipede (2010)
27. The Last House on the Left (1972)
26. Man Bites Dog (1992)
25. Natural Born Killers (1994)
24. Breaking the Waves (1996)
23. Nil by Mouth (1997)
22. Sex: The Annabel Chong Story (1999)
21. Antichrist (2009)
20. The Holy Mountain (1973)
19. I Spit on your Grave (1978)
18. Mysterious Skin (2004)
17. Straw Dogs (1971)
16. Cannibal Holocaust (1980)
15. Aftermath (1994)
14. Eraserhead (1977)
13. Grotesque (2008)
12. Pink Flamingos (1972)
11. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)
10. Funny Games (1998)
9. Kids (1995)
8. August Undergrounds Mordum (2003)
7. Earthlings (2007)
6. El Topo (1970)
5. Irreversible (2002)
4. The Passion of the Christ (2004)
3. Happiness (1998)
2. The War Zone (1999)
1. Men Behind the Sun (1988)

http://www.listology.com/sonicmanipulation/story/top-50-most-disturbing-films-all-time

From the ones I've seen here - good list.

I would have included Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975).

47. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
46. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
45. Crash (1996)

43. Boys Don’t Cry (1999)
42. Freaks (1932)


38. Frenzy (1972)

27. The Last House on the Left (1972)

25. Natural Born Killers (1994)

19. I Spit on your Grave (1978)

4. The Passion of the Christ (2004)


http://www.listology.com/sonicmanipulation/story/top-50-most-disturbing-films-all-time


I've seen these films and agree that all are disturbing. I Spit On Your Grave is a truly awful movie. I remember after seeing it having to take a shower to somehow come clean. The rest are good though I find The Last House on the Left impossible to watch now though I still respect what Wes Craven was trying to say with the film.

I agree(from the ones I've seen), also I'd add- Scrapbook, Angst '83, Combat Shock, In A Glass Cage, Last Cannibal World, Island Of Death (aka Devils in Mykonos), Tenderness Of The Wolves.

And for Last House On The Left....I never found it that disturbing, I enjoy the film...but maybe because back before I saw it in my teens I kept hearing about, especially from my two older sisters who saw it on the big screen, so when I finally got to see it, I was like "This is it?", also the silly cop moments ruined the film a little bit for me- I love silliness, but not in horror films that's supposed to be disturbing.

I think the movie Innocence should be on this list. I just noticed that its not on there. And then Born Innocent, mostly for the plunger scene.

For documentaries:

Titicut Follies- a 1967 documentary about a Massachusetts institution for the criminally insane.

I also didn't think The Human Centipede was disturbing, sure it was icky and gross, but for me it didn't live up to its disturbing reputation. I did enjoy it though.

Freaks was disturbing back in the 30s, but kind of tame now.
I am surprised KISS OF DEATH (1947) and THE FIEND WHO WALKED THE WEST (1958) didnt make that list. For a long time they wouldnt show them on tv.

I also didn't think The Human Centipede was disturbing, sure it was icky and gross, but for me it didn't live up to its disturbing reputation. I did enjoy it though.

The only thing that I really found disturbing about it was the fact that someone would think to do something like taht to people. But you're right, its most disgusting than anything. The way that it all happened was kind of stupid. The two girls just walk right into his house as if just handing themselves over. I know it was raining, but I honestly would have kept walking and looked for a store or something to wait in rather than that creeper's house.

Believe it or not, the only movie on that list I have seen in full is Frenzy. While I'm sure back in '72 it was quite disturbing, especially since it was directed by Hitchcock, it doesn't hold up today in the way of shock. I actually found it quite boring in some scenes.

I agree with James that Salo definitely needs to be on that list. I would include House on the Edge of the Park, if not for that loopy twist ending. The Brown Bunny also got a lot of people riled up back when it was released but the consensus seems to be that the movie is just plain bad and boring instead of disturbing.

Anybody ever hear of the film Feed from 2005?

That's pretty disturbing too.

The only thing that I really found disturbing about it was the fact that someone would think to do something like taht to people. But you're right, its most disgusting than anything. The way that it all happened was kind of stupid. The two girls just walk right into his house as if just handing themselves over. I know it was raining, but I honestly would have kept walking and looked for a store or something to wait in rather than that creeper's house.

Hahaha some horror films cheat a little just to get their characters into the situation.

Clean, Shaven '93 is another one. About a schizophrenic trying to get back with his daughter.

Hahaha some horror films cheat a little just to get their characters into the situation.

Lol, yeah I know. I've seen a lot of stupid things done in horror films. It just kinda irritates me when they do it.

The Woodsman, Hounddog, and L.I.E. (Long Island Expressway.) All have to do with child molestation. puke:

Here's a few I forgot to mention. Bastard Out of Carolina, Faces of Death, and Spanking The Monkey which was about a boy who was attracted to his own mother. Very creepy movie.

This movie called The Locusts. Some people might not think so, but i'm an animal lover and this guy in the movie has some bulls for friends and this creepy lady had them turned into steers, (if you know what i mean), and well it just disturbed me so much i keep it in the horror section. blah

A list of top 50 most disturbing movies. I have only seen some of them and agree with the ones that I have seen that are on here. What do you guys on here think?

50. Naked (1994)
49. Bully (2001)
48. The Cook, the Thief, his Wife and her Lover (1989)
47. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
46. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
45. Crash (1996)
44. Scum (1979)
43. Boys Don’t Cry (1999)
42. Freaks (1932)
41. Spanking the Monkey (1994)
40. Romance (1999)
39. The Idiots (1998)
38. Frenzy (1972)
37. In the Company of Men (1997)
36. Requiem for a Dream (2000)
35. Bad Lieutenant (1992)
34. The Bridge (2008)
33. L.I.E (2001)
32. Ichi the Killer (2001)
31. Dancer in the Dark (2000)
30. Audition (1999)
29. Zero Day (2003)
28. The Human Centipede (2010)
27. The Last House on the Left (1972)
26. Man Bites Dog (1992)
25. Natural Born Killers (1994)
24. Breaking the Waves (1996)
23. Nil by Mouth (1997)
22. Sex: The Annabel Chong Story (1999)
21. Antichrist (2009)
20. The Holy Mountain (1973)
19. I Spit on your Grave (1978)
18. Mysterious Skin (2004)
17. Straw Dogs (1971)
16. Cannibal Holocaust (1980)
15. Aftermath (1994)
14. Eraserhead (1977)
13. Grotesque (2008)
12. Pink Flamingos (1972)
11. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)
10. Funny Games (1998)
9. Kids (1995)
8. August Undergrounds Mordum (2003)
7. Earthlings (2007)
6. El Topo (1970)
5. Irreversible (2002)
4. The Passion of the Christ (2004)
3. Happiness (1998)
2. The War Zone (1999)
1. Men Behind the Sun (1988)

http://www.listology.com/sonicmanipulation/story/top-50-most-disturbing-films-all-time

I agree with you on Bully, Clockwork Orange, Boy's Don't Cry, In The Company of Men, and Natural Born Killers. Another couple disturbing movies American History X, and Monster.

Jörg Buttgereit's The Death King(Der Todesking), and Schramm.

Ah heck, I'm gonna mention it- Forced Entry '73. X-Rated adult-horror flick about a crazy Vietnam vet who hunts and kills women. Makes I Spit On Your Grave and Last House On The Left look like Disney flicks. The only film that made me feel like scrubbing my eyeballs with SOS pads after watching it.


It was remade into a mainstream movie in 1975 starring Tanya Roberts.

I saw, The Shining, in the theater when it came out. It haunted me for weeks.

I saw, Schindler's List, twice in three days. Took me forever to shake it. Even today, it bothers me.

Just thinking about, Seven, shakes me up.

Recently, The Lovely Bones, just wiped me out.

There are so many more, but these are the top four that disturbed me.

I saw, The Shining, in the theater when it came out. It haunted me for weeks.

I saw, Schindler's List, twice in three days. Took me forever to shake it. Even today, it bothers me.

Just thinking about, Seven, shakes me up.

Recently, The Lovely Bones, just wiped me out.

There are so many more, but these are the top four that disturbed me.

Seven should definitely be on there. I think Schindler's List is on there, if not it should be.

The only one you listed that I haven't seen is Lovely Bones. What is that one about?

The 1976 British thriller Killer's Moon, where a bunch of creeps run loose and terrorize people, specifically teenage girls. The movie has become infamous for a girl telling another girl after she's been sexually assaulted, and I'm paraphrasing it, that she was "only raped" and not to dwell on it.

Don't Answer the Phone!---a horror movie about a psycho who rapes and kills women and then confesses his crimes to a radio show host. Would seem tame by today's standards, but when I saw this movie back in the early 80's, it was extremely disturbing. It left such a bad taste in my mouth I wouldn't watch it a second time.

The 1976 British thriller Killer's Moon, where a bunch of creeps run loose and terrorize people, specifically teenage girls. The movie has become infamous for a girl telling another girl after she's been sexually assaulted, and I'm paraphrasing it, that she was "only raped" and not to dwell on it.

Don't Answer the Phone!---a horror movie about a psycho who rapes and kills women and then confesses his crimes to a radio show host. Would seem tame by today's standards, but when I saw this movie back in the early 80's, it was extremely disturbing. It left such a bad taste in my mouth I wouldn't watch it a second time.

I have both of these on DVD....both have the same kind of sleazy feel as films like Don't Go In The House, and Maniac '80. The late Nicholas Worth gives a creepy performance in Don't Answer The Phone.

Born For Hell '76 (aka Naked Massacre) Inspired by real life murderer Richard Speck, a Vietnam vet terrorizes a house full of student nurses.

A film that disturbed me when I first saw it(I was like 14 or 15) was Bloodsucking Freaks '76 (aka The Incredible Torture Show).

One of the biggest letdowns, a film that was notorious for it's content, a film that was supposedly investigated by authorities because it was believed to have actual footage of a woman being murdered on film was Snuff '76...now this is back before you could jump on the Internet and find out all the info you need. Plus at the time I had been hearing about it as a kid the film was hard to come by....when I finally tracked down a copy, wow what a joke...except for the "murder scene" the movie is just boring filler, and when you get to the scene the effects were so badly done it's hard to believe it was investigated(supposedly the film was even shown to a pathologist when copies of the film were seized) ...I give the filmmakers and distributors credit for brilliant promotion though.


Another film that also became notorious by reputation was Last House On Dead End Street '77. Some of the reasons for this was everyone involved in the film used pseudonyms, so rumors started going around that there were actual death scenes depicted in the movie. The fact that the film was shot in '72 but not released until '77 also helped add to the film's reputation. The movie is about a man released from prison decides to make snuff movies, I like it, it's got that dirty grimy low budget realism that make some of the low-rent 70's horror/exploitation flicks so appealing to me....but I just didn't find it as disturbing as I had heard about all the years up until I finally watched it.

There is supposedly an uncut version that runs at 175 min(under its original title The Cuckoo Clocks of Hell)...the "cut" version runs at 78 min. I'm not sure what version played in the theaters back in the 70's.

A film that disturbed me when I first saw it(I was like 14 or 15) was Bloodsucking Freaks '76 (aka The Incredible Torture Show).

I've seen a lot of the movies on this list... These are the sort of movies my sister and I actively sought out to watch during the '80s lol... How disturbing a (fictional) movie is depends on who's watching it... One person's 'disturbing' is another person's 'amusing' (in a fictitious film sense, of course... it's not reality)... Bloodsucking Freaks is a movie we rented during the '80s, and I remember I did find it very disturbing at the time, but we also laughed a lot watching it... I also remember telling school friends about it, and cracking up when I was recalling certain (disturbing) scenes :| ... It was so great having no restrictions whatsoever on what we could rent during the '80s, and parents who paid no attention at all to what we rented/watched lol...

Seven should definitely be on there. I think Schindler's List is on there, if not it should be.

The only one you listed that I haven't seen is Lovely Bones. What is that one about?
I have to be careful about Spoilers, so I'll just post this. I thought it was such a deeply sad movie. I loved the music, the atmosphere of the movie. Very edgy film. Let me know if you watch it. I don't always read these threads. Thanks.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0380510/

I've seen a lot of the movies on this list... These are the sort of movies my sister and I actively sought out to watch during the '80s lol... How disturbing a (fictional) movie is depends on who's watching it... One person's 'disturbing' is another person's 'amusing' (in a fictitious film sense, of course... it's not reality)... Bloodsucking Freaks is a movie we rented during the '80s, and I remember I did find it very disturbing at the time, but we also laughed a lot watching it... I also remember telling school friends about it, and cracking up when I was recalling certain (disturbing) scenes :| ... It was so great having no restrictions whatsoever on what we could rent during the '80s, and parents who paid no attention at all to what we rented/watched lol...


Yep, it was the same way for me watching Bloodsucking Freaks for the first time. There are a few movies that can be both amusing and disturbing simultaneously- besides Bloodsucking Freaks, there's the early John Waters films, and Mother's Day '80.

I've seen these films and agree that all are disturbing. I Spit On Your Grave is a truly awful movie. I remember after seeing it having to take a shower to somehow come clean. The rest are good though I find The Last House on the Left impossible to watch now though I still respect what Wes Craven was trying to say with the film.

Have you seen the remakes for both of those films?

To me, both of the remakes did not have the same level of intensity and grittiness as the originals.



In the new I Spit on Your Grave the rape sequences, to me, are not as brutal and as intense as the original. It might be intense to people who did not see the original or who don't normally watch these type of films, but to me it wasn't.

Her torture/murder methods of revenge against her rapists were more brutal in the remake. In the original she uses seduction to get close to her attackers but the remake has none of that.





The Last House remake was a little different than the original, as in one of the girls survives the attack and makes it back home.

Have you seen the remakes for both of those films?

To me, both of the remakes did not have the same level of intensity and grittiness as the originals.



In the new I Spit on Your Grave the rape sequences, to me, are not as brutal and as intense as the original. It might be intense to people who did not see the original or who don't normally watch these type of films, but to me it wasn't.

Her torture/murder methods of revenge against her rapists were more brutal in the remake. In the original she uses seduction to get close to her attackers but the remake has none of that.





The Last House remake was a little different than the original, as in one of the girls survives the attack and makes it back home.


Both were good remakes, but I still prefer the originals. The only complaint I have from the original I Spit On Your Grave is during her revenge sequence: When the guy grabs on to the outboard motor, that's like grabbing onto to the chainsaw's blade when Leatherface is coming at you:lol:
I still don't get the complaints on the acting on the original I Spit, I never saw anything wrong with it.


Another effective rape/revenge flick is Sweden's Thriller: A Cruel Picture from 1974.

And though no where as brutal as I Spit or Thriller, there is Death Weekend '76 with Brenda Vaccaro and Don Stroud.

Night Train Murders '75, In my opinion the best Last House On The Left rip-off(personally I like it more than Last House). Two men, and a woman terrorize 2 teen girls on a train.

And typical of 70's European horror it was re released and re released under several titles, including Last House II, and The New House On The Left.

Yep, it was the same way for me watching Bloodsucking Freaks for the first time. There are a few movies that can be both amusing and disturbing simultaneously- besides Bloodsucking Freaks, there's the early John Waters films, and Mother's Day '80.

true, especially older films (not so much ones made now)... It's hard to take a film like Bloodsucking Freaks seriously, unless you're as disturbed as the film's protagonists quite clearly are lol... Unless films like that have a (macabre) sense of humour, I don't really want to watch them, because they're just too nasty for me otherwise... A lot of (sick) '80s films have a macabre sense of humour, so they're actually funny to watch (assuming you like that sort of humour)... Contemporary (sick) films like Hostel and Saw I just don't want to watch, because what I've seen of them (mainly through trailers and brief clips) doesn't strike me as funny at all, just nasty... no thanks... Maybe if I was the age I was when I first saw Bloodsucking Freaks I might be more open to watching them, but I don't open my mind now to as much rubbish as I did then... what a waste of mental resources lol... Real life documentaries like The Killing of America, and real life itself, is far more disturbing to me than a fictitious movie could ever be...

Contemporary (sick) films like Hostel and Saw I just don't want to watch, because what I've seen of them (mainly through trailers and brief clips) doesn't strike me as funny at all, just nasty... no thanks...

I always tell people who don't watch the SAW flicks to at least give the first one a chance. In my opinion SAW is very good as a stand-alone movie.

I don't know how much you already know about the franchise but it is best not to know anything about it before going in, or all of the spoilers out there on the web would ruin it.



The sequels on the other hand are not as good as the original, they are only worth watching if you are a major fan.

I've yet to see the final one and I recently bought it on DVD so I plan on having a SAW marathon with all seven movies soon. Most of them I haven't seen since back when they first came out.

I value your opinion of movies, so I may eventually see at least the first Saw movie... I like to trust my instincts about things, and they're telling me to AVOID it, so I need that to change first before I am willing to do that...

true, especially older films (not so much ones made now)... It's hard to take a film like Bloodsucking Freaks seriously, unless you're as disturbed as the film's protagonists quite clearly are lol... Unless films like that have a (macabre) sense of humour, I don't really want to watch them, because they're just too nasty for me otherwise... A lot of (sick) '80s films have a macabre sense of humour, so they're actually funny to watch (assuming you like that sort of humour)... Contemporary (sick) films like Hostel and Saw I just don't want to watch, because what I've seen of them (mainly through trailers and brief clips) doesn't strike me as funny at all, just nasty... no thanks... Maybe if I was the age I was when I first saw Bloodsucking Freaks I might be more open to watching them, but I don't open my mind now to as much rubbish as I did then... what a waste of mental resources lol... Real life documentaries like The Killing of America, and real life itself, is far more disturbing to me than a fictitious movie could ever be...


I enjoyed the Hostel movies, both are full of very dark humor(that's Eli Roth's style). Personally I found both Hostel movies to be far less graphic than Bloodsucking Freaks(and other films of that nature from the 70's and 80's)

Coincidentally, Eli Roth is a huge fan of Bloodsucking Freaks, and provides the audio-commentary for its DVD release.

I enjoyed the Hostel movies, both are full of very dark humor(that's Eli Roth's style). Personally I found both Hostel movies to be far less graphic than Bloodsucking Freaks(and other films of that nature from the 70's and 80's)

Coincidentally, Eli Roth is a huge fan of Bloodsucking Freaks, and provides the audio-commentary for its DVD release.

I actually asked my sister if she remembers Bloodsucking Freaks - and she has it on DVD! ... I haven't seen it since the '80s, but I can just borrow her DVD if I want to watch it again... but I think I've just mentally moved on away too much from gory horror movies, to go out of my way to watch a lot of them now... I may on the odd occasion, as I still like watching them, but I really have to be in the mood for it, and it has to be something I really want to see... Hostel just doesn't inspire me to see it at all, and I probably never will...

I grew up during the '70s and '80s (my favourite decades, particularly the latter), which weren't as politically correct as this decade is, so watching a movie like Bloodsucking Freaks doesn't phase me at all (maybe it should as a Catholic, but let's not go there :| ...), but I'm also less inclined to pay attention to gory horror movies made now, because I'm not as interested in watching them as I was back then...

I liked the first Saw. I think it would have been better as a standalone movie. The endless sequels and the convoluted plots weren't necessary but that's what happens when the first is successful and you can milk the cash cow for all its worth.

Since we seem to be on a horror trend since that's where a lot of disturbing movies come from, you can't leave out the films of David Cronenberg, especially Shivers, Rabid, The Brood, Videodrome, The Fly and Scanners. I haven't seen his later movies in full but the ones I mentioned really stay with you after you see them.

Have you seen the remakes for both of those films?

To me, both of the remakes did not have the same level of intensity and grittiness as the originals.



In the new I Spit on Your Grave the rape sequences, to me, are not as brutal and as intense as the original. It might be intense to people who did not see the original or who don't normally watch these type of films, but to me it wasn't.

Her torture/murder methods of revenge against her rapists were more brutal in the remake. In the original she uses seduction to get close to her attackers but the remake has none of that.





The Last House remake was a little different than the original, as in one of the girls survives the attack and makes it back home.


I haven't, though I have considered seeing the remake of Last House. I know that Craven and Sean Cunningham (the producer of the original) were the producers of the film. I have a great deal of respect for the first film, however, after you've seen it a few times you really don't need to see it again. I thought the performance of Sandra Cassell was really good in the original movie. Though she never really made it in movies and became a grade school teacher. I liked her as Mari though.

I liked the first Saw. I think it would have been better as a standalone movie. The endless sequels and the convoluted plots weren't necessary but that's what happens when the first is successful and you can milk the cash cow for all its worth.

Since we seem to be on a horror trend since that's where a lot of disturbing movies come from, you can't leave out the films of David Cronenberg, especially Shivers, Rabid, The Brood, Videodrome, The Fly and Scanners. I haven't seen his later movies in full but the ones I mentioned really stay with you after you see them.


I liked the first three Saw flims. This is actually saying a lot since I don't often like current horror films.

I haven't, though I have considered seeing the remake of Last House. I know that Craven and Sean Cunningham (the producer of the original) were the producers of the film. I have a great deal of respect for the first film, however, after you've seen it a few times you really don't need to see it again. I thought the performance of Sandra Cassell was really good in the original movie. Though she never really made it in movies and became a grade school teacher. I liked her as Mari though.

The director of the original I Spit on Your Grave, Meir Zarchi, was also EP of the 2010 remake.

The director of the original I Spit on Your Grave, Meir Zarchi, was also EP of the 2010 remake.

Meir Zarchi did only one other film after I Spit, Don't Mess With My Sister, they tried to market it as a male gets revenge follow-up, it's not. It's more of a boring family drama.

Then there's the awful awful I Spit On Your Grave 2 aka Savage Vengeance...Camille Keaton must have been truly desperate to star in it, even used an alias, and supposedly refuses to talk about it if fans bring it up...can't say that I blame her.

This is one that I forgot to mention, I saw it back when it first came out: The Magdalene Sisters (2002)


The film is about "sinful" Irish-Catholic girls sent to live and work in the Magdalene Asylums back in the 1960s.

They were sent there because they had children out of wedlock, had learning disabilities that nobody wanted to deal with, or simply because they were pretty so the nuns assumed that they were "being naughty" with the boys.


The movie is very well done but very disturbing as well, especially because it is true.

People who were actually sent to the Magdalene Asylums were interviewed saying that the abuse and mistreatment they received from the nuns was way worse in real life than what the film depicted.

Goodbye Uncle Tom '71 aka Addio zio Tom

Italian faux-documentary about 2 film makers who travel back in time to the 1800's American South during the slave trade.

The subject matter alone is disturbing, but what's even more disturbing was how it was filmed, cruel doesn't even begin to describe it.


Gualtiero Jacopetti and Franco Prosperi who wrote, directed, and play the filmmakers created the "shockumentary" with films like Mondo Cane.