Top 10 Movie Scenes That Are Incredibly Hard to Watch

Top 10 Movie Scenes That Are Incredibly Hard to Watch

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There are certain lines most films won’t cross, but these ones happily sprinted past them. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 Movie Scenes That Are Incredibly Hard to Watch. For this list, we’re taking a look at movie moments that pushed the envelope to extreme lengths in terms of violence, sexuality, and/or pure disgust. The more controversial the better; so be prepared for some mature content ahead.

“Audition” (1999) Truly horrifying and in keeping the film’s nihilistic tone, this disturbing scene is arguably the movie’s most revolting sequence. Protagonist Aoyama’s sadistic girlfriend Asami is shown early on to be keeping a sack in her apartment. It’s only toward the end of the film that the sack’s occupant is revealed to be a man who’s missing his feet, his tongue, one ear and several fingers. To make sure her houseguest doesn’t go hungry, Asami – always the gracious host – fills a dog bowl with her own vomit and feeds it to her horribly mutilated captive, who laps it up vigorously.

“The Evil Dead” (1981) Considered by many to be the ultimate “cabin-in-the woods” movie, Sam Raimi’s cult classic horror film is definitely not short on scares or gore. However, the film’s most infamous scene goes beyond traditional splatter into genuinely unsettling terror. Nervous about the ominous cabin from the very beginning, Ash’s sister Cheryl flees into the woods. Unfortunately, her decision backfires in ghoulish fashion when evil, demon-possessed trees attack her. After binding her from head to foot and tearing through her clothes, the malevolent branches force Cheryl’s legs apart and, well, you can guess the rest. This scene was so horrific, Raimi admitted years later that he regretted including it in the final cut.

“The Exorcist” (1973) Nearly half a century after its release, “The Exorcist” is still one of the most powerful horror movies ever made. While the film is loaded with frightening imagery, no scene goes quite as far as this one. When Chris MacNeil enters her daughter’s room, she witnesses all kinds of evil forces at work, the most disturbing of which is 12-year-old Regan masturbating with a crucifix – or maybe stabbing’s the right word. When her mother tries to stop her, Regan forces her mother to do the unspeakable before striking her and uttering the film’s most haunting words. Intense, gory, and blasphemous to the core, this scene from William Friedkin’s masterpiece is as traumatizing today as it was in 1973.

#7: Eating Dog Poop

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“Pink Flamingos” (1972) When films delve into the outright disgusting, we like to think it’s for a larger artistic purpose… but this is not one of those films. Infamous for a vast array of taboo breaking content that ranges from cannibalism and castration, to incest, “Pink Flamingos” also boasts one of the most nauseating scenes in cinematic history, thanks to its depiction of coprophagia. After a small dog does its business on a sidewalk, protagonist Babs Johnson, played by famous drag queen Divine, enthusiastically picks up the turd and eats it before winking at the camera. She then gags and spits it out, proving that the turd in question is not a special effect. Grab your barf bags before watching this cult classic, folks.

#6: The Blood Bath

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“Hostel: Part II” (2007) This film trilogy pretty much kick-started the “torture porn” genre, so none of it’s exactly a walk in the park. The original follows a group of tourists who become playthings for sadistic torturers, and the sequel dials the gore up to 11, giving us this difficult-to-watch scene. One of our three main heroines is dangling upside down, while another woman slices at her back with a scythe, joyfully bathing as the blood pours onto her nude body. Finally, she puts the girl out of her misery with a quick throat slice. Creepy? Yes. Unexplainable? Yup. Hard to watch? You bet.

“Deliverance” (1972) Never before has a grown man imitating a pig been so terrifying. In this classic adaptation of James Dickey’s novel, four city boys go on a canoe trip in northern Georgia, and end up having just about the worst weekend ever. Upon coming across some perverted hillbillies, the film takes its darkest turn when Ned Beatty’s character Bobby is told to strip as his tied-up friend Ed, played by Jon Voight, watches helplessly. What ensues is notoriously uncomfortable to watch, as Bobby is raped by one of the mountain men in a scene that subsequently became every camper’s worst nightmare.

#4: A Slice of Life

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“Antichrist” (2009) Danish filmmaker Lars von Trier has directed a number of “unique” films over the years, but he took his art to a horrific place with the experimental film “Antichrist.” It’s not exactly a first-date movie, however the plot does revolve around a couple, played by Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg. After the accidental death of their young son, the severely depressed duo retreats to the woods, and by “Chapter 4,” the wife has not only smashed her husband’s testicles and drilled a hole in his leg, but has also buried him alive. Unable to escape her mental anguish, the woman known only as “She” turns to physical self-mutilation to satisfy herself in a most unorthodox way.

#3: The Rape

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“Irréversible” (2002) This scene goes on for far too long. In this psychological horror film directed by Gaspar Noé, the non-linear plot revolves around the brutal beating and rape of a woman named Alex. Playing out in real-time as one continuous 10-minute shot, the disturbing crime continues for what seems like hours as the pimp assaulting Alex hurls obscenity after obscenity at her, before bludgeoning her into unconsciousness. Unforgettable due to its sheer realism, this scene from “Irréversible” is all the more horrifying because of its unflinching depiction of the heinous nature of sexual assault, as well as the pain it inflicts.

#2: Eat S**t

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“Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom” (1975) There’s a lot that goes too far in “Salò” – like, A LOT – but you’d be hard-pressed to find a scene that induces more nausea than this one. In the immensely controversial film from director Pier Paolo Pasolini, four mega-rich Italians with seemingly no scruples kidnap 18 teens and force them to live through various forms of humiliating and appalling torture – all for their own amusement. The scene in question sees the fascist libertines force their well-dressed victims to literally eat plates of human feces. Predictably, the teenagers are revolted, but nonetheless partake in their captors’ sick fantasies to avoid their merciless wrath. Do yourself a favor and avoid the snacks if you watch this one.

“A Serbian Film” (2010) This entire film goes to places most filmmakers would never dare venture. In this extreme horror film directed by Srđan Spasojević, a veteran adult film star named Miloš is offered the chance to cement his financial future if he performs in one more film. The ghastly catch is that he must star in a series of increasingly inappropriate scenes featuring children, rape, murder and more. The most grotesque scene is undoubtedly the moment where the twisted porn director shows Miloš footage of a newborn baby being raped. Naturally disgusted beyond words, Miloš refuses to take part in the obscene production and quits. Unfortunately for him, however, the horror has just begun.