7 Upcoming Films Destined For Controversy

Nobody seems to get off on stirring controversy more than Lars von Trier. The Swedish enfant terrible relishes in the opportunity to provoke, to offend, and to horrify. With a filmography full of disturbingly challenging films and a personal history of controversial behavior and remarks, von Trier has been subject to stern criticism throughout his entire career, to the point of even being deemed "persona non grata" at the Cannes Film Festival for his Nazi-sympathetic comments during the Melancholia press conference.

Enter his new film, The House That Jack Built, a story following the charted course of a serial killer's (Matt Dillon) most influential murders throughout his "career." The film premiered at this year's Cannes Film Festival to a slew of negative reactions for its grotesque content, apparently including the graphic murder and mutilation of women, children, and animals. As with most of von Trier's films, many walk-outs were reported as the film's content grew more extreme.

Debuting around the same time as sexual harassment allegations against von Trier and his production company Zentropa, many have deemed The House That Jack Built to be disgusting, misogynistic filth from a man who has employed violence against women in his films for the sake of provocation. Lars von Trier has made great films before, but it can be argued that he's becoming lazy. Critics bemoaned the film's pretentious attempts at grounding the carnage in undercooked philosophy.

A release date hasn't yet been solidified, but expect even greater backlash once the film hits wider audiences.