10 Outrageously Violent Films You Need To See

Nudity was rare on the early screen, but the love of violence is as old as film itself. At the beginning of the 19th Century, curious filmmakers began documenting all manner of violent activity, eager to see how it would look when projected on to walls. Grisly footage shot in operating theatres was popular with audiences, as were films involving attacks on animals, with one picture going so far as to force a horse over a cliff. In fact, the only film that provoked an unfavourable reaction during this period showed 2 lions attacking an elephant. The disapproving viewer was upset when natives danced around the elephant€™s corpse. The origins of the snuff movie can also be traced back to this period: real-life executions €“ including hangings and beheadings €“ were particularly popular, and since they were filmed in China or America, they had an element of mystique. Similarly popular was a newsreel showing 4 Frenchmen being guillotined €“ at least, it was until the French banned it in 1909. As fiction films began to be produced, filmmakers showed a similar lack of taste in their choice of material, hoping to still appeal to the €œhot and strong€ tastes of the masses. The Black Hand (1908) is an early example of the €œevery mother€™s nightmare€ narrative, where 2 ruffians break into a house, remove a toddler from its crib and, while the mother is kept at bay, murder the child in front of her. For better or worse, filmmakers have charted a similar course ever since. Here are 10 examples of movies that didn€™t know when to quit.