Most Disturbing & Intense Films
by dog_lover_twelve | created - 02 Jan 2013 | updated - 11 Aug 2013 | PublicKind of like my other list but more comprehensive. Keep in mind that although I am eighteen I live with my Mom and Dad and they won't let me watch "The Human Centipede" or anything like that, probably because of my anxiety problems. Nevertheless, feel free to recommend movies!
- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. Requiem for a Dream (2000)
R | 102 min | Drama
The drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island people are shattered when their addictions run deep..
Director: Darren Aronofsky | Stars: Ellen Burstyn, Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly, Marlon Wayans
Votes: 898,525 | Gross: $3.64M
2. Der freie Wille (2006)
Unrated | 163 min | Crime, Drama
A man is released from a mental institution after serving 9 years for multiple rape.
Director: Matthias Glasner | Stars: Jürgen Vogel, Sabine Timoteo, André Hennicke, Manfred Zapatka
Votes: 3,303
3. The Living and the Dead (2006)
Not Rated | 83 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A descent into Hell is triggered when "Ex-Lord" Donald Brocklebank finds that he must leave Longleigh House for London to find a way to pay for the medical treatments for his wife Nancy. ... See full summary »
Director: Simon Rumley | Stars: Leo Bill, Roger Lloyd Pack, Kate Fahy, Sarah Ball
Votes: 2,457
Again, not a 'hardcore' film but definitely makes you feel uncomfortable and sad for all the people in the situation. Brings you face to face with extreme mental problems and the realities of a life-threatening illness. Good acting all around.
4. Buddy Boy (1999)
R | 105 min | Drama, Thriller
An introvert relieves the tedium of caring for his invalid mother by spying on his neighbor.
Director: Mark Hanlon | Stars: Aidan Gillen, Emmanuelle Seigner, Susan Tyrrell, Mark Boone Junior
Votes: 1,140 | Gross: $0.01M
This puzzling film about a stuttering Roman Catholic voyeur (Aidan Gillen) and his mental disintegration is not as disturbing as some of the movies on this list, but it definitely takes you out of your comfort zone, and forces you to empathize with an unattractive and discomforting character. Aidan Gillen really pulls of this role and it is hard to believe he began series 1 of "Queer as Folk" playing promiscuous gay sex object Stuart Alan Jones the same year.
5. Hunger (2008)
Not Rated | 96 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Irish republican Bobby Sands leads the inmates of a Northern Irish prison in a hunger strike.
Director: Steve McQueen | Stars: Michael Fassbender, Liam Cunningham, Stuart Graham, Laine Megaw
Votes: 73,540 | Gross: $0.15M
Michael Fassbender starves himself down to a human skeleton in this highly realistic portrayal of the Irish Republican hunger strike. "Some Mother's Son" with Aidan Gillen is a good but less disturbing movie on the subject.
6. Red White & Blue (2010)
Not Rated | 103 min | Drama, Thriller
A woman attracts the attention of a psychopathic former Army interrogator and an emotionally fragile young man caring for his depressed mother.
Director: Simon Rumley | Stars: Amanda Fuller, Marc Senter, Jon Michael Davis, Nick Holden
Votes: 6,147
7. Caché (2005)
R | 117 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A married couple is terrorized by a series of surveillance videotapes left on their front porch.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Daniel Auteuil, Juliette Binoche, Maurice Bénichou, Annie Girardot
Votes: 85,203 | Gross: $3.63M
Disturbing because of unexpected scene (whose nature I won't reveal) and a actual animal killing dream sequence. Also prepare to be frustrated by the character of Georges who ruins another person's life as a nasty little kid and refuses to face up to his actions as an equally nasty little man. my introduction to Haneke.
8. Breaking the Waves (1996)
R | 159 min | Drama
Oilman Jan is paralyzed in an accident. His wife, who prayed for his return, feels guilty; even more, when Jan urges her to have sex with another.
Director: Lars von Trier | Stars: Emily Watson, Stellan Skarsgård, Katrin Cartlidge, Jean-Marc Barr
Votes: 71,546 | Gross: $4.04M
9. Audition (1999)
R | 115 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A widower takes an offer to screen girls at a special audition, arranged for him by a friend to find him a new wife. The one he fancies is not who she appears to be after all.
Director: Takashi Miike | Stars: Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina, Tetsu Sawaki, Jun Kunimura
Votes: 89,204
10. Calvaire (2004)
Not Rated | 88 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
Marc, a traveling entertainer, is on his way home for Christmas when his van breaks down in the middle of a jerkwater town with some strange inhabitants.
Director: Fabrice du Welz | Stars: Laurent Lucas, Brigitte Lahaie, Gigi Coursigny, Jean-Luc Couchard
Votes: 13,787 | Gross: $0.00M
Two words- Pig Rape.
11. Next Door (2005)
Unrated | 75 min | Mystery, Thriller
John has just been left by his girlfriend Ingrid. That day he allows himself to be seduced into a mystical and scary world, where it is impossible to separate truth from the lies
Directors: Pål Sletaune, Tony Spataro | Stars: Kristoffer Joner, Cecilie A. Mosli, Julia Schacht, Anna Bache-Wiig
Votes: 10,617
12. Mum & Dad (2008)
Not Rated | 84 min | Horror, Thriller
Lena, a young Polish immigrant working as a cleaner at an airport, is invited to the family home of a co-worker, which turns sinister quickly as the family intend to 'adopt' her.
Director: Steven Sheil | Stars: Perry Benson, Dido Miles, Olga Fedori, Ainsley Howard
Votes: 6,468
13. Dead Man's Shoes (2004)
Not Rated | 90 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A disaffected soldier returns to his hometown to get even with the thugs who brutalized his mentally-challenged brother years ago.
Director: Shane Meadows | Stars: Paddy Considine, Gary Stretch, Toby Kebbell, Stuart Wolfenden
Votes: 58,354 | Gross: $0.01M
14. Dancer in the Dark (2000)
R | 140 min | Crime, Drama, Musical
An Eastern European US immigrant with a love for musicals has to cope with the gradual loss of her vision.
Director: Lars von Trier | Stars: Björk, Catherine Deneuve, David Morse, Peter Stormare
Votes: 116,782 | Gross: $4.18M
15. Little Deaths (2011)
Not Rated | 94 min | Horror
Composed of three disturbingly sensual and terrifying short narratives, unified by the twin themes of sex and death.
Directors: Sean Hogan, Andrew Parkinson, Simon Rumley | Stars: Luke de Lacey, Holly Lucas, Siubhan Harrison, James Oliver Wheatley
Votes: 3,346
The short films in this are not very good except for Simon Rumley's "Bitch" but "Bitch" is so ingeniously twisted that it makes the list. A couple engage in BDSM-themed role play and fool around in dog masks until something changes between them, and the male begins to plot up a particularly sadistic revenge.
16. Bronson (2008)
R | 92 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A young man who was sentenced to seven years in prison for robbing a post office ends up spending three decades in solitary confinement. During this time, his own personality is supplanted by his alter-ego, Charles Bronson.
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn | Stars: Tom Hardy, Kelly Adams, Luing Andrews, Katy Barker
Votes: 140,850 | Gross: $0.10M
17. Tyrannosaur (2011)
Not Rated | 92 min | Drama
Joseph, a man plagued by violence and a rage that is driving him to self-destruction, earns a chance of redemption that appears in the form of Hannah, a Christian charity shop worker.
Director: Paddy Considine | Stars: Peter Mullan, Archie Lal, Jag Sanghera, Mike Fearnley
Votes: 33,762 | Gross: $0.02M
18. The Butcher Boy (1997)
R | 110 min | Comedy, Drama
The antisocial son of an alcoholic father and a bipolar mother grows up in 1960s Ireland.
Director: Neil Jordan | Stars: Stephen Rea, Fiona Shaw, Eamonn Owens, Alan Boyle
Votes: 11,465 | Gross: $1.82M
19. Shame (2011)
NC-17 | 101 min | Drama
A sex addict's carefully cultivated private life falls apart after his sister arrives for an indefinite stay.
Director: Steve McQueen | Stars: Michael Fassbender, Carey Mulligan, James Badge Dale, Lucy Walters
Votes: 206,196 | Gross: $4.00M
20. Trainspotting (1996)
R | 93 min | Drama
Renton, deeply immersed in the Edinburgh drug scene, tries to clean up and get out despite the allure of drugs and the influence of friends.
Director: Danny Boyle | Stars: Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Kevin McKidd
Votes: 725,492 | Gross: $16.50M
21. Santa Sangre (1989)
NC-17 | 123 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
A former circus artist escapes from a mental hospital to rejoin his armless mother - the leader of a strange religious cult - and is forced to enact brutal murders in her name as he becomes "her arms".
Director: Alejandro Jodorowsky | Stars: Axel Jodorowsky, Blanca Guerra, Guy Stockwell, Thelma Tixou
Votes: 23,318
22. Mean Creek (2004)
R | 90 min | Crime, Drama
When a teen is bullied, his brother and friends lure the bully into the woods to seek revenge.
Director: Jacob Estes | Stars: Rory Culkin, Ryan Kelley, Scott Mechlowicz, Trevor Morgan
Votes: 33,359 | Gross: $0.60M
23. Julien Donkey-Boy (1999)
R | 94 min | Comedy, Drama
A portrait of the effects of schizophrenia on family life is the central focus.
Director: Harmony Korine | Stars: Ewen Bremner, Brian Fisk, Chloë Sevigny, Werner Herzog
Votes: 7,745 | Gross: $0.08M
24. Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007)
R | 117 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
When two brothers organize the robbery of their parents' jewelry store the job goes horribly wrong, triggering a series of events that sends them, their father and one brother's wife barreling towards a shattering climax.
Director: Sidney Lumet | Stars: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Albert Finney, Marisa Tomei
Votes: 111,636 | Gross: $7.08M
25. Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995)
R | 88 min | Comedy, Drama
An awkward seventh-grader struggles to cope with inattentive parents, snobbish class-mates, a smart older brother, an attractive younger sister and her own insecurities in suburban New Jersey.
Director: Todd Solondz | Stars: Heather Matarazzo, Christina Brucato, Victoria Davis, Christina Vidal
Votes: 37,157 | Gross: $4.77M
26. Ratcatcher (1999)
Not Rated | 94 min | Drama
A naïve young lad navigates the dirty squalid streets of 1973 Glasgow and the poor youth around him.
Director: Lynne Ramsay | Stars: Tommy Flanagan, Mandy Matthews, William Eadie, Michelle Stewart
Votes: 11,772 | Gross: $0.22M
William Eadie gives a heart-breaking performance in this unrelentingly bleak drama set during a Glasgow garbage strike. Filth, squalor, and suicide are all present, and barely a sliver of sunshine can get past all that ugliness and misery... so yeah, it definitely deserves a spot here.
27. Perfect Blue (1997)
R | 81 min | Animation, Crime, Drama
A pop singer gives up her career to become an actress, but she slowly goes insane when she starts being stalked by an obsessed fan and what seems to be a ghost of her past.
Director: Satoshi Kon | Stars: Junko Iwao, Rica Matsumoto, Shinpachi Tsuji, Masaaki Ôkura
Votes: 95,386 | Gross: $0.78M
I basically had no idea what what going on through this entire movie, which made it kind of hard for me to enjoy... and this from a lover of weird/confusing movies. Still undeniably disturbing at times.
28. American History X (1998)
R | 119 min | Crime, Drama
Living a life marked by violence, neo-Nazi Derek finally goes to prison after killing two black youths. Upon his release, Derek vows to change; he hopes to prevent his brother, Danny, who idolizes Derek, from following in his footsteps.
Director: Tony Kaye | Stars: Edward Norton, Edward Furlong, Beverly D'Angelo, Jennifer Lien
Votes: 1,185,950 | Gross: $6.72M
Oh, that scene, that scene (y'all know the scene I'm talking about if you've seen the movie.) Somewhat mainstream, but still pretty frickin' frackin' disturbing. And yes, Edward Norton rocks.
29. Eraserhead (1977)
Not Rated | 89 min | Fantasy, Horror
Henry Spencer tries to survive his industrial environment, his angry girlfriend, and the unbearable screams of his newly born mutant child.
Director: David Lynch | Stars: Jack Nance, Charlotte Stewart, Allen Joseph, Jeanne Bates
Votes: 127,418 | Gross: $7.00M
30. The Young Poisoner's Handbook (1995)
R | 99 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
This film is based on a true story about a British teenager who allegedly poisoned family, friends, and co-workers. Graham is highly intelligent, but completely amoral. He becomes ... See full summary »
Director: Benjamin Ross | Stars: Hugh O'Conor, Antony Sher, Tobias Arnold, Ruth Sheen
Votes: 3,818 | Gross: $0.75M
31. Long Pigs (2007)
Not Rated | 82 min | Horror
A documentary by two desperate young filmmakers who stumble upon the ultimate subject, a 33 year old cannibalistic serial killer named Anthony McAllister, who has agreed to let them ... See full summary »
Directors: Nathan Hynes, Chris Power | Stars: Anthony Alviano, Al Bernstein, Jean-Marc Fontaine, Phyllis Cooper
Votes: 759
Low budget but good docu-horror, with better gore effects than you might expect. Anthony Alivano effectively plays the main killer, who takes an immoral film crew along with him while he plays hockey, visits his senile mother and kills and eats hookers. Mmm, hooker stew! The scene that sticks with me is the one where he guts and mutilates the body on fast-motion to classical music. Weird stuff.
32. Kill List (2011)
Not Rated | 95 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Nearly a year after a botched job, a hitman takes a new assignment with the promise of a big payoff for three killings. What starts off as an easy task soon unravels, sending the killer into the heart of darkness.
Director: Ben Wheatley | Stars: Neil Maskell, MyAnna Buring, Harry Simpson, Michael Smiley
Votes: 45,323 | Gross: $0.03M
33. Three... Extremes (2004)
R | 125 min | Horror
An Asian cross-cultural trilogy of horror films from accomplished indie directors.
Directors: Fruit Chan, Park Chan-wook, Takashi Miike | Stars: Bai Ling, Lee Byung-hun, Kyoko Hasegawa, Pauline Lau
Votes: 20,863 | Gross: $0.08M
34. Funny Games (1997)
Not Rated | 108 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Two violent young men take a mother, father, and son hostage in their vacation cabin and force them to play sadistic "games" with one another for their own amusement.
Director: Michael Haneke | Stars: Susanne Lothar, Ulrich Mühe, Arno Frisch, Frank Giering
Votes: 84,042
35. Killer Joe (2011)
R | 102 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
When a debt puts a young man's life in danger, he turns to putting a hit out on his evil mother in order to collect the insurance.
Director: William Friedkin | Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Juno Temple, Thomas Haden Church
Votes: 83,316 | Gross: $1.99M
36. Compliance (2012)
R | 90 min | Crime, Drama, History
A normal Friday service at a fast food restaurant becomes interrupted by a police officer who claims an employee stole from a customer, but something more sinister is going on.
Director: Craig Zobel | Stars: Ann Dowd, Dreama Walker, Pat Healy, Bill Camp
Votes: 37,285 | Gross: $0.32M
37. Butterfly Kiss (1995)
Not Rated | 88 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Eunice is walking along the highways of northern England from one filling station to another. She is searching for Judith, the woman, she says to be in love with. It's bad luck for the ... See full summary »
Director: Michael Winterbottom | Stars: Amanda Plummer, Kathy Jamieson, Saskia Reeves, Des McAleer
Votes: 2,073
38. The Snowtown Murders (2011)
Not Rated | 119 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Based on true events, 16 year-old Jamie falls in with his mother's new boyfriend and his crowd of self-appointed neighborhood watchmen, a relationship that leads to a spree of torture and murder.
Director: Justin Kurzel | Stars: Lucas Pittaway, Daniel Henshall, Louise Harris, Bob Adriaens
Votes: 20,609 | Gross: $0.01M
39. The Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence) (2011)
Not Rated | 91 min | Horror
Inspired by the fictional Dr. Heiter, disturbed loner Martin dreams of creating a 12-person centipede and sets out to realize his sick fantasy.
Director: Tom Six | Stars: Laurence R. Harvey, Ashlynn Yennie, Maddi Black, Kandace Caine
Votes: 42,945 | Gross: $0.12M
40. The Woman (I) (2011)
R | 101 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
When a successful country lawyer captures and attempts to "civilize" the last remaining member of a violent clan that has roamed the Northeast coast for decades, he puts the lives of his family in jeopardy.
Director: Lucky McKee | Stars: Pollyanna McIntosh, Brandon Gerald Fuller, Lauren Ashley Carter, Chris Krzykowski
Votes: 25,842
41. Antichrist (2009)
Not Rated | 108 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
A grieving couple retreat to their cabin in the woods, hoping to repair their broken hearts and troubled marriage, but nature takes its course and things go from bad to worse.
Director: Lars von Trier | Stars: Willem Dafoe, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Storm Acheche Sahlstrøm
Votes: 136,494 | Gross: $0.40M
Tell Your Friends