The kind that’s loaded with gore, guts, and jump scares, leaving a lasting impression.
But could you handle the most controversial horror movie of all? This one’s on a whole other level.
We’re not discussing a film like Sydney Sweeney’s Immaculate, which might spark some debate due to its portrayal of satanic themes.
We’re delving into a horror flick that’s been banned in over 40 countries. Yeah, you heard that right.
It even got a film festival director in trouble, leading to his arrest.
The film causing all the commotion? A Serbian Film. And trust me, I’m not exaggerating.
The story centers around Milos, a retired Serbian porn star, who gets roped into starring in one final movie for a hefty sum. But soon enough, he finds himself trapped in a nightmarish snuff film, packed with such disturbing sexual content and murder that there are parts we can’t even bear to describe.
When director Srđan Spasojević was asked by Indiewire about the inspiration behind the film, he said: “We just wanted to express our deepest and honest feelings towards our region and also the world in general — a world that is sugar-coated in political correctness, but also very rotten under that façade”.
When it hit theaters in 2010, the film stirred up quite a controversy.
To even get it shown in any country, significant edits were necessary just to scrape by with a rating.
In the US, roughly a minute had to be cut to secure an NC-17 rating.
Across the pond in the UK, it underwent extensive cuts totaling three minutes and 48 seconds across 11 scenes just to hit screens.
One bold film festival director, Angel Sala, found himself charged with ’exhibiting child pornography’ in 2011 after a complaint from a Roman Catholic organization about a screening.
Though the charges were eventually dropped, Sala could have faced a year in jail if things had taken a different turn.
Among the 46+ countries that have banned the movie, major markets like Spain, Australia, and Malaysia have completely barred its screening.
Opinions on A Serbian Film are sharply divided. Some admire the director’s vision, while others outright condemn it as ‘disgusting’.
Film critic Mark Kermode weighed in: “The director says it’s allegorical… if it so, then the allegory just gets lost in the increasingly stupid splatter.”
“The most annoying thing about it is – torture porn is one thing, but pompous, pretentious torture porn is something else.”
If you’re still pondering, “Okay, I’m intrigued, maybe I’ll give it a watch,” then a top review on IMDB could help you make up your mind.
It states: “I heard about this movie on YouTube it was someone saying don’t watch it it’s made to disturb you but I didn’t listen and I feel like vomiting now please do not watch this just don’t I’m literally crying right now.”
Having read that, I’m inclined to heed their suggestion.
If you’re in the US and still keen to have a look, you can find A Serbian Film on Vudu.
But personally? I’d skip it. Really.
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