20 Most Controversial Movies Since 2000

13. Hounddog

Deborah Kampmeier writes, directs and produces Hounddog, a coming-of-age drama starring Dakota Fanning as a troubled young girl called Lewellen living in 1950s Alabama who finds comfort in the music of Elvis Presley as darker forces lurk around her. It's a familiar tale told in mediocre fashion, and iif there's a cliche to be found you can be sure that Kampmeier has unearthed it and presented it on screen.

Fanning is perhaps the film's only saving grace, and her performance is the one thing which prevents Hounddog from descending into an almighty mess. Utilizing such a young actress for what many fairly perceived as an unnecessarily exploitative rape scene was far less forgivable than the copious cliches, and the film was roundly panned on its release on account of this scene. It proved to be the final nail in the coffin, while at the Sundance Festival its legacy became reduced to the title "The Dakota Fanning Rape Movie"