1. Cannibal Holocaust (Deodato, 1980)
One of the most controversial films of all time, Cannibal Holocaust remains as shocking today as it was in 1980. Inspired by news coverage of Italian terrorism in the 1970s, Cannibal Holocaust instantly created controversy when it was released. In fact, the film only played for ten days in Italy before it was removed from theatres and seized by authorities. The film has continually been censored and banned due to its graphic depictions of cannibalism, sexual assault and, regrettably, real life animal killings. The killing of live animals was an unfortunate symptom of the Italian cannibal cycle, usually ordered by producers to make them more marketable to eastern markets. By combining staged violence with real life animal torture and killing, the film blurs the line between fantasy and reality. The film's plot sees network television executives recovering and watching footage that was shot in the Amazon jungle by a group of young documentary filmmakers before they were lost. The executives watch as the crew turn from voyeurs to instigators, instigating violence in the tribe's village before incurring their wrath. The crew are then very violently murdered for their indiscretions. The most troubling scenes include the forced abortion and killing of a tribeswoman, a rape scene, a castration and the impaling of a woman on a wooden pole not to mention the significant amounts of animal torture and killing. The film was so realistic that the film's director, Ruggero Deodato, was forced to stand trial and prove that he hadn't actually killed any members of the film's cast. Cannibal Holocaust served as inspiration for the enormously successful The Blair Witch Project and a slew of other cannibal and found footage films. It is a groundbreaking, shocking and challenging film and its reputation is deserved.