William Friedkin’s 10 Most Jaw-Dropping Movie Moments
2. Bug (2006)
Bug marked a real return to form for Friedkin, and proved that he is at his best when dealing with the deeper, darker areas of the human soul. The hugely underrated Ashley Judd gives an astonishing performance as a troubled small-town waitress whose life goes from bad to worse when she becomes involved with Michael Shannons disturbed ex-soldier. After the two of them get together in a rundown motel room, Shannon reveals that he believes the government has planted small bugs inside him as part of an experiment into biological warfare. The boundaries between reality and psychosis soon blur, as the audience is dragged deeper and deeper into the couples nightmare, including a truly literal moment of jaw-dropping, when Shannon decides to extract his own tooth without any anaesthetic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=378aBaE27uY Incredibly, Ashley Judd received a Razzie nomination for Worst Actress for this performance, which is ironic given that some critics considered her turn as Oscar-worthy. Perhaps the very definition of a divisive performance then: something no doubt Friedkin would love.
Since studying Film and Art History at University, I’ve been an actor, movie stand-in and journalist. I have contributed to a number of media websites, worked on national daily newspapers, written fiction of all kinds and worked as a gravedigger.
