Subgenre Sampler
Controversy: 192 Films to Buy & Rent
- Loudest Voice, The (TV Mini-series) (2019)
- Dir. Jeremy Podeswa, Kari Skogland, Stephen Frears
Feat. Russell Crowe, Sienna Miller, Annabelle Wallis…
- A seven–part series revealing the final years of media consultant Roger Ailes as he devises his most potent political weapon, Fox News, over…
- Elle (2016)
- Dir. Paul Verhoeven
Feat. Isabelle Huppert, Laurent Lafitte, Anne Consigny…
- Controversial, unflinching drama closely following the perspective of a woman who is repeatedly raped by the same masked intruder, but whose…
- Kate Plays Christine (2016)
- Dir. Robert Greene
Feat. Kate Lyn Sheil
- A fascinating documentary following an actress who is preparing to play the role of newscaster Christine Chubbuck, who famously committed suicide on…
- Tickled (2016)
- Dir. David Farrier, Dylan Reeve
- Utterly engrossing documentary from Kiwi journo David Farrier, who stumbles into the bizarre world of "competitive tickling" that leads him on an…
- Fifty Shades of Grey (2015)
- Dir. Sam Taylor-Johnson
Feat. Dakota Johnson, Jamie Dornan, Jennifer Ehle…
- Blockbuster adaptation of E.L James' erotic novel about a young literature student's life–changing encounter with the handsome, yet tormented,…
- Human Centipede 3, The (2015)
- Dir. Tom Six
- Hunting Ground, The (2015)
- Dir. Kirby Dick
- A scorching exposé of the startling prevalence of sexual assaults and institutional cover–ups at college campuses across America. Through raw…
- Straight Outta Compton (2015)
- Dir. F. Gary Gray
Feat. O’Shea Jackson, Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell…
- Invigorating drama charts the rise of rap legends N.W.A. as they emerge from the mean streets of Compton in Los Angeles, and their profound impact…
- American Sniper (2014)
- Dir. Clint Eastwood
Feat. Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, Kyle Gallner…
- Clint Eastwood helms this controversial biopic of the most decorated sniper in U.S. military history and his struggle to adjust to civilian life.
- Interview, The (2014)
- Dir. Evan Goldberg, Seth Rogen
Feat. Seth Rogen, James Franco, Lizzy Caplan…
- The highly controversial comedy that sparked a political crisis has a tabloid reporter recruited by the CIA to murder North Korean dictator Kim…
- Welcome to New York (2014)
- Dir. Abel Ferrara
Feat. Gerard Depardieu, Jacqueline Bisset
- Gerard Depardieu stars in Abel Ferrara's divisive drama based on the sexual misconduct allegations made against French diplomat Dominique…
- Wetlands (2013)
- Dir. David Wnendt
Feat. Carla Juri, Christoph Letkowski, Marlen Kruse
- Provocative comic tale of an eccentric girl who has strange attitudes towards hygiene and sexuality longs for the reunion of her divorced parents.
- ESPN: 30 for 30 (30 Films 30 years of sporting History) (2012-2015)
- Dir. Alex Gibney, Morgan Spurlock
- In 2009, ESPN commissioned an unprecedented series of documentary films that reveal the little–known stories behind some of the most dramatic,…
- Pieta (2012)
- Dir. Kim Ki-Duk
Feat. Min-soo Jo, Jung-Jin Lee
- Kim Ki–Duk directs this controversial Golden Lion winner, about a debt–collecting thug who is forced to confront his violent ways when a…
- How to Die in Oregon (2011)
- Dir. Peter Richardson
- Unflinching documentary about assisted suicide, centering around the Death with Dignity Act in the state of Oregon, which allows physicians to…
- Tall Man, The (2011)
- Dir. Tony Krawitz
- Compelling true crime documentary on a controversial chapter in Queensland’s history, where in 2004 a drunken Cameron Doomadgee was arrested for…
- Underbelly - Season 4 (TV Mini-series) (Land of the Long Green Cloud) (2011)
- Feat. Daniel Musgrove, Damien Avery, Grae Burton…
- World famous in New Zealand, drug trafficker Marty Johnstone – aka, Mr. Asia – steals the Underbelly spotlight in this locally made…
- I'm Still Here (2010)
- Dir. Casey Affleck
Feat. Joaquin Phoenix
- Excruciating, morbidly humourous account of Joaquin Phoenix’s shock ‘retirement’ from acting to pursue a music career in rap, and the attention…
- Tabloid (2010)
- Dir. Errol Morris
- Master documentarian Errol Morris tackles the extraordinarily bizarre story of Joyce McKinney, a former Miss Wyoming who was alleged to have abducted…
- Underbelly - Season 3 (TV Mini-series) (The Golden Mile) (2010)
- Feat. Mitch Bartlett, Natalie Bassingthwaighte, Emma Booth
- Sydney’s infamous Kings Cross, circa 1989, is the setting for this latest airing of Australia’s dirty laundry.
Although centred on the…
- 9/11: Blueprint for Truth (The Te Papa Lecture) (2009)
- Dir. Colin Hodson
- Speaking at Te Papa Museum in Wellington, late 2009, American architect Richard Gage presents further evidence (or complete bullshit, depending on…
- Antichrist (2009)
- Dir. Lars Von Trier
Feat. Willem Dafoe, Charlotte Gainsbourg
- Delivering laughter and revulsion in equal measure, Lars von Trier’s hugely controversial psychosexual opus – about a grieving couple who retreat…
- Bruno (Brüno) (2009)
- Dir. Larry Charles
Feat. Sacha Baron Cohen, Gustaf Hammarsten
- Controversial mockümentary starring Baron Cohen as a gay Aüstrian fashion joürnalist who travels to the USA to become 'the biggest Aüstrian…
- Fat Belly: Chopper Unchopped (2009)
- Feat. Mark 'Chopper' Read
- Inspired by the popularity of gangland series UNDERBELLY, notorious Aussie criminal Mark 'Chopper' Read takes the opportunity to tell his own version…
- Human Centipede, The (2009)
- Dir. Tom Six
Feat. Dieter Laser, Ashley C. Williams, Ashlynn Yennie…
- The "mad scientist movie" taken to a perverse extreme with crab–faced Dieter Laser as the gonzo doc delighting in his latest experiment –…
- Underbelly - Season 2 (TV Mini-series) (A Tale of Two Cities: The Mr Asia Story) (2009)
- Feat. Roy Billing, Anna Hutchison, Matthew Newton…
- A prequel to the events of the original series, this is loosely based on the hard drug trade that hit New South Wales and Victoria between 1976 and…
- Who Killed Nancy? (2009)
- Dir. Alan G. Parker
- Under Sid Vicious' mother's posthumous request, rock author Alan Parker directs this intensive documentary in order to re–examine the supposed…
- 10 Conditions Of Love, The (2008)
- Dir. Jeff Daniels
- Controversial documentary slammed by the Chinese government focused on Rebiya Kadeer, a tireless campaigner for human rights who has been punished at…
- Gruen Transfer, The (TV Series) (2008)
- Feat. Wil Anderson
- Hosted by comedian Wil Anderson, this is a revealing and humorous look at the advertising industry with a selection of well qualified panellists.…
- Hope (2008)
- Dir. Steve Thomas
- Tragic account of people–smuggling gone wrong when a boatload of refugees arriving from Indonesia sinks on its way to Australia killing than…
- Jihad for Love, A (2008)
- Dir. Parvez Sharma
- Revealing documentary on homosexuality and the Islamic faith, filmed in secret over 5 and a half years under the Muslim government radar. Although…
- Religulous (2008)
- Dir. Larry Charles
Feat. Bill Maher
- 'Good' and 'Evil' are turned on their head (and in their graves) in this provocative docu–comedy following comedian and commentator Bill Maher…
- Roman Polanski: Wanted And Desired (2008)
- Dir. Marina Zenovich
- Comprehensive documentary examining the public scandal that led to the controversial departure of director Roman Polanski from the United States.…
- Underbelly - Season 1 (TV Mini-series) (2008)
- Feat. Vince Colosimo, Kevin Harrington
- Gritty, unflinching crime series dramatising the Melbourne gangland killings and seedy underworld, featuring Aussie actors who bear a striking…
- When Borat Came to Town (2008)
- Dir. Mercedes Stalenhoef
- Touching Underdog vs. The Man doco which looks at the aftermath of Sascha Baron Cohen's visit (and by proxy 20th Century Fox's) to the Romanian…
- Battle In Seattle (2007)
- Dir. Stuart Townsend
Feat. Martin Henderson, Michelle Rodriguez, Woody Harrelson…
- Seattle’s infamous 1999 World Trade Organisation protests are analysed in this fictional, yet vivid recreation of events, shot admirably from both…
- Beyond Our Ken (2007)
- Disquieting documentary exploring the inner workings of Australian spiritual group 'Kenya,' based on the principle of "energy conversion," accused of…
- Chicago 10 (2007)
- Dir. Brett Morgen
- Unique documentary that splices together archival footage and motion–capture animation to recreate the infamous trial of anti–war…
- Darling! The Pieter-Dirk Uys Story (2007)
- Dir. Julian Shaw
- Moving doco focused on the litigious cross–dressing South African satirist Pieter–Dirk Uys, whose life's work included stirring…
- Discussions with Richard Dawkins - The Four Horsemen (2007)
- Number one in a brand new series of searching discussions from the notorious Professor Richard Dawkins as he gathers together three of his fellow top…
- For the Bible Tells Me So (2007)
- Dir. Daniel G Karslake
- Heartfelt doco exploring the intersection between religion and homosexuality in the USA. Director Karslake takes an evenhanded approach to the…
- Girl Next Door, The (2007)
- Dir. Gregory Wilson
Feat. Blythe Auffarth, Daniel Manche, Blanche Baker…
- Sickly torture porn number details the misfortunes of two adolescent girls sent to live with their psychotic aunt after their parents pass…
- Great Global Warming Swindle, The (2007)
- Topical documentary proposing that global warming is a myth simply used for political gain. Provides a necessary counterbalance to the glut of scare…
- Katyn (2007)
- Dir. Andrzej Wajda
Feat. Maja Ostaszewska, Artur Żmijewski, Pawel Malaszynski
- Andrzej Wajda cements himself as Poland’s greatest director with this late–career triumph, a war story addressing the eradication of some…
- No End in Sight (2007)
- Dir. Charles Ferguson
- Devastating documentary that comprehensively examines the negligence and political mis–steps that led to the Iraq war.
"Traces the…
- Obscene (2007)
- Dir. Daniel O'Connor, Neil Ortenberg
- The definitive film biography of Barney Rosset, the influential publisher of Grove Press and the Evergreen Review, this charts his tumultuous career…
- Rebirth of a Nation (2007)
- Dir. Paul D. Miller
- 'Remix' of D.W. Griffith's landmark original by dir. Miller – aka 'DJ Spooky' – turns cinema into a club track, deconstructed and put…
- Strange Culture (2007)
- Dir. Lynn Hershman-Leeson
Feat. Thomas Jay Ryan, Tilda Swinton, Peter Coyote
- Topical and important docu–drama focusing on the charges of bio–terrorism brought against acclaimed artist Steve Kurtz after his wife's…
- 9/11 Mysteries: Demolitions (2006)
- Dir. Sofia Shafquat
- Another inflammatory conspiracy documentary on the ‘truth’ behind 9/11, this time purporting that the Twin Towers were in fact leveled by secret…
- Abduction: The Megumi Yokota Story (2006)
- Dir. Patty Kim, Chris Sheridan
- This startling, blow–by–blow account of a notorious Japanese abduction reveals a staggering conspiracy at the heart of a…
- Book of Revelation, The (2006)
- Dir. Ana Kokkinos
Feat. Tom Long, Greta Scacchi
- Daring, if not entirely coherent gender–subversion recalls in flashback the ordeal of a talented male dancer (Long) who's abducted, tortured…
- Borat (Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan) (2006)
- Dir. Larry Charles
Feat. Sacha Baron Cohen
- A savage, often side–splitting, satire from balls–of–steel British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, who moves a minor character from his…
- Bridge, The (2006)
- Dir. Eric Steel
- Controversial, yet thoughtful documentary which captures – and in turn addresses – suicide through a series of fatal leaps from San…
- Da Vinci Code, The (2006)
- Dir. Ron Howard
Feat. Tom Hanks, Audrey Tautou, Ian McKellen…
- Adapted from Dan Brown's blockbusting novel, this rollicking, if over–weighty adventure has an American historian (Hanks) getting dragged into…
- Destricted (2006)
- Dir. Matthew Barney, Larry Clark, Sam Taylor-Johnson
- A challenging – though some may argue, laughable – exercise in reclaiming the pornographic film, this omnibus commissions seven artists to each…
- Dirty Sanchez: The Movie (2006)
- Dir. Jim Hickey
- Deplorable, downright heinous version of JACKASS sees four British louts subject themselves to a myriad of irresponsible stunts and…
- Dudesons Movie, The (2006)
- Dir. Jarno Laasala
- It's JACKASS, Scandinavian–style, with a group of equally insane extremists subjecting themselves a series of painful and humiliating…
- Ever Again (2006)
- Dir. Richard Trank
- Documentary on the re–emergence of anti–semitism paying particular attention to the politicization of Europe's Neo–Nazi movement…
- Jesus Camp (2006)
- Dir. Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady
- A disturbing guided tour of extremist 'Jesus Camps' in the US, run by politically–aligned Evangelical Christian groups intent on indoctrinating…
- Loose Change - Second Edition (2006)
- Dir. Dylan Avery
- Using an array of disconcerting "facts" and "expert" witnesses, this rapid–fire documentary purports to tell the 'truth' about the 9/11 attacks…
- Shortbus (2006)
- Dir. John Cameron Mitchell
Feat. Sook-Yin Lee, Lindsay Beamish, Paul Dawson…
- A raucous, freewheeling comedy of intercourse from gay auteur John Cameron Mitchell, audacious in its employment of explicit sex, unknown actors and…
- Taxidermia (2006)
- Dir. Gyorgy Palfi
Feat. Csaba Czene, Gergely Trócsányi
- Grostesque though exquisitely crafted oddity from the dir. of HUKKLE degenerates well beyond the threshold of bad taste in its history of three…
- Battle in Heaven (Batalla en el cielo) (2005)
- Dir. Carlos Reygadas
Feat. Marcos Hernández
- Heavyset follow–up to JAPON finds Mexican dir. Reygadas dealing in the spiritual and moral crises of two lost souls: one an underprivileged…
- F*ck (Fuck - A Documentary) (2005)
- Dir. Steve Anderson
- It’s a word we’ve all heard and many have said – more and more so it seems in this contemporary age – this doco takes a looks at the…
- Munich (2005)
- Dir. Steven Spielberg
Feat. Eric Bana, Daniel Craig, Mathieu Kassovitz…
- Compelling, if occasionally muddily–overearnest thriller based around the aftermath of the massacre of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich…
- Secret Life of Words, The (2005)
- Dir. Isabel Coixet
Feat. Sarah Polley, Tim Robbins, Julie Christie
- Intense character–driven drama set on an isolated oil rig that explores the relationship between a hearing–impaired factory worker…
- Viva Zapatero (2005)
- Dir. Sabina Guzzanti
- Confronting Italian documentary made by comedian Sabina Guzzanti in response to her satirical TV show being axed after her scathing imitation of…
- 9 Songs (Nine Songs) (2004)
- Dir. Michael Winterbottom
Feat. Margo Stilley, Kieran O'Brien
- A controversially explicit sex'n'rock'n' roll drama about two stray souls – an American student and a British bloke – who over a year…
- Old Boy (Oldboy) (2004)
- Dir. Park Chan-Wook
Feat. Min-sik Choi, Ji-tae Yoo
- Wowing audiences wherever it's played (including being nominated for the Palm D'Or at Cannes), this achingly intense thriller from Korea raises the…
- Power of Nightmares, The (2004)
- Dir. Adam Curtis
- Another provocative documentary from dir. Curtis, this time out he examines how political parties have created and used fears in order to maintain…
- Anatomy of Hell (Anatomie De L'enfer) (2003)
- Dir. Catherine Breillat
Feat. Amira Casar, Rocco Siffredi
- A queasily explicit sex drama about a suicidal woman who challenges (and pays) a promiscuous gay man to participate in an uneasy nightly ritual of…
- Biggie and Tupac (2002)
- Dir. Nick Broomfield
- Plucky British journalist and one–man controversy machine Nick Broomfield embarks on his most dangerous documentary enquiry yet – the…
- Bowling For Columbine (2002)
- Dir. Michael Moore
Feat. Michael Moore, Charlton Heston
- Essential viewing from the dir. of ROGER AND ME, constructing another entertaining and devastating critique of the contradictions of the US of A,…
- Horns and Halos (2002)
- Dir. Michael Galinsky, Suki Hawley
- A fascinating sidebar to the controversial American Presidency of George W. Bush, involving the struggle for author J.H. Hatfield to publish an…
- Jackass: The Movie (2002)
- Dir. Jeff Tremaine
Feat. Steve-O , Johnny Knoxville, Spike Jonze…
- Hugely successful movie version of the cult MTV show, whose fearless stars submit to various painful and perilous stunts.
Bound by a sense of…
- Spun (2002)
- Dir. Jonas Akerlund
Feat. Jason Schwartzman, Brittany Murphy, John Leguizamo…
- A cinematically exhilarating depiction of existence among a group of methamphetamine (P) addicts in Los Angeles, that is sure to divide audiences as…
- Bank, The (2001)
- Dir. Robert Connolly
Feat. David Wenham, Anthony LaPaglia
- When computer geek David Wenham presents a system that can predict stockmarket fluctuations to avaricious banking chief Anthony LaPaglia, the scene…
- Big Brother (TV Series) (2001-2003)
- 'Unseen, Uncut, Unreel' – A three part compilation of selected 'highlights' from the Australian version of the ultimate Reality TV…
- Bound for Pleasure (2001)
- Dir. David Blyth
- Non–sensational delve into the Auckland B&D scene from horror dir. Blyth (DEATH WARMED UP), that throws up some bizarre scenes of mistresses,…
- Dog Days (2001)
- Dir. Ulrich Seidl
Feat. Maria Hofstatter, Alfred Mrva, Erich Finsches…
- A wilfully transgressive Euro–drama examining middle–class dysfunction and despair in a Viennese suburb over a few days in a summer heat…
- Ichi the Killer (2001)
- Dir. Takashi Miike
Feat. Tadanobu Asano, Nao Omori, Shinya Tsukamoto
- Dir. Takashi Miike earned his notoriety with this wincingly violent revenge thriller in which a bent ex–cop (played by "Tetsuo" director,…
- Jackass (TV Series) (2001)
- Feat. Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O , Bam Margera…
- Compilation of the 'best' moments from MTV's cult TV–series in which a group of warped individuals inflict pranks, painful,…
- L.I.E. (2001)
- Dir. Michael Cuesta
Feat. Brian Cox, Paul Dano, Billy Kay…
- Unsettling coming of age drama with Paul Dano as a troubled and lonely young man who after the death of his mother befriends paedophile Brian…
- Raw Deal: A Question of Consent (2001)
- Dir. Billy Corben
- Testing the boundaries of what is permissable in documentary, this tries the case of several frat–boys in Florida who were accused of gang…
- Storytelling (2001)
- Dir. Todd Solondz
Feat. John Goodman, Selma Blair, Franke Potente…
- Continuing to plumb the depths of controversy, the dir. of HAPPINESS tells more stories of the depressed and cruel inhabitants of American suburbia,…
- Visitor Q (Bizita Q) (2001)
- Dir. Takashi Miike
Feat. Kenichi Endo, Shungiku Uchida, Kazushi Watanabe…
- Miike Takashi's most controversial film – which in this case is really saying something – finally coming to video (?).
A legendarily…
- American Psycho (2000)
- Dir. Mary Harron
Feat. Christian Bale, Willem Dafoe, Jared Leto…
- Mercifully sanitised adaptation of Brett Easton Ellis' controversial novel, that wallowed in the depraved mind/antics of a homicidal Wall Street…
- Cunnamulla (2000)
- Dir. Dennis O'Rourke
- The provocative director of GOOD WOMAN OF BANGKOK turns his lense onto the Australian community of the title, a rag–tag small–town in…
- Intimacy (2000)
- Dir. Patrice Chereau
Feat. Mark Rylance, Kerry Fox, Timothy Spall…
- Mark Rylance and Kerry Fox bare their flesh as well as their souls as a separated father–of–two and a married mother who meet weekly for…
- Our Lady of the Assassins (la Virgen de los Sicarios) (2000)
- Dir. Barbet Schroeder
Feat. Anderson Ballesteros, Juan David Restrepo
- A middle aged author returns to his native Colombian village to find that it has been overrun by violence and corruption. After his young male lover…
- Audition (1999)
- Dir. Takashi Miike
Feat. Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina
- An almost–masterpiece of the macabre that sets up and sustains itself brilliantly with a restrained pace and jewel of a premise, then careens…
- Romance (1999)
- Dir. Catherine Breillat
Feat. Caroline Ducey, Sagamore Stevenin
- A schoolteacher's boyfriend loses sexual interest in her, so she embarks on a series of unlikely sexual encounters in search of intimacy and…
- Sex - The Annabel Chong Story (1999)
- Dir. Gough Lewis
- A sensational yet even–handed insight into the performer (and sicko subculture) behind a famously transgressive sexual act – Ms. Chong’s…
- 8mm (1998)
- Dir. Joel Schumacher
Feat. Nicolas Cage, Joaquin Phoenix, James Gandolfini…
- First Hollywood effort at generating thrills from the dubious (and probably mythical) subculture of 'snuff movies', where actors are deliberately…
- American History X (1998)
- Dir. Tony Kaye
Feat. Edward Norton, Edward Furlong, Stacy Keach…
- Potent dissertation on generational anger among the skinhead community of Los Angeles' Venice Beach, that though flawed by brushes with cliche, is a…
- Happiness (1998)
- Dir. Todd Solondz
Feat. Lara Flynn Boyle, Dylan Baker, Philip Seymour Hoffman…
- Controversial is the byword for this disturbing trawl through the sad–case lives of various American suburbanites and their families (Lara…
- I Stand Alone (Seul Contre Tous) (1998)
- Dir. Gaspar Noe
Feat. Philippe Nahon, Blandine Lenoir, Frankie Pain…
- Staunch attempt to shake up the “bourgeois” values in French cinema, first–time director Gaspar Noe fleshes out his short film about a…
- Idiots, The (1998)
- Dir. Lars Von Trier
Feat. Bodil Jorgensen, Jens Albinus, Anne Louise Hassing…
- One of the fruits of Dogma 95, this sensationally conceived outing from von Trier will satisfy those with a penchant for the experimental, and…
- Another 9 1/2 Weeks (Love in Paris) (1997)
- Dir. Anne Goursaud
Feat. Mickey Rourke, Angie Everhart, Steven Berkoff…
- Depending on your sensibilities this Parisian set sequel either represents a career nadir for Rourke or some kind of gonzo triumph. Either way…
- Lolita (1997)
- Dir. Adrian Lyne
Feat. Jeremy Irons, Dominique Swain, Melanie Griffiths…
- Nabakov's novel, still raising eyebrows, is here lavished with a meticulous production and all the artistry the director of 9 ½ WEEKS could rustle…
- Private Parts (1997)
- Dir. Betty Thomas
Feat. Howard Stern, Mary McCormack, Paul Giamatti…
- Partly fictionalised biopic of New York 'Shock Jock' Howard Stern, played by the man himself. For those who don't know, Stern's abrasive yet…
- Sick (1997)
- Dir. Kirby Dick
- Stunning, compassionate feature biography of the life of Bob Flanagan, whose 'super–masochism' and extreme performance art was born of his…
- Waco - Rules of Engagement (1997)
- Dir. William Gazecki
- The disastrous FBI siege of the Branch Davidian Sect compound at Waco, Texas in 1993 is pulled to pieces in this acclaimed documentary, revealing a…
- Crash (1996)
- Dir. David Cronenberg
Feat. James Spader, Holly Hunter, Deborah Kara Unger…
- Auteur David Cronenberg's latest vision is an anti–fable about accident victims James Spader and Holly Hunter, who become sexually obsessed…
- Mind Bender (1996)
- Dir. Ken Russell
Feat. Terence Stamp, Ishai Golan
- Ken Russell recreates the exploits of controversial spoon–bender and parapsychologist Uri Geller, but seems puzzlingly reluctant to provoke.…
- Executions (1995)
- Despite the exploitative title and subject, this in fact draws attention to the inhumanity of the death penalty and makes a case for its worldwide…
- Heidi Fleiss: Hollywood Madam (1995)
- Dir. Nick Broomfield
- Another sensational art–tabloid gem from professional muck–raker Nick Broomfield, who here lies down with various dogs of the film and…
- Kids (1995)
- Dir. Larry Clark
Feat. Leo Fitzpatrick, Sarah Henderson, Justin Pierce…
- Cult photographer Larry Clark's debut, 24hrs of New York streetkid life, attracted immediate controversy. The unblinking depictions of sex, drugs and…
- Strange Days (1995)
- Dir. Kathryn Bigelow
Feat. Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis
- Ralph Fiennes runs into all sorts of bother as a low–rent dealer of subversive pleasures encoded on diskettes.
An ambitious,…
- Boy Meets Girl (1994)
- Dir. Ray Brady
Feat. Tim Poole, Danielle Sanderson, Margot Steinberg
- For many years banned in the UK on video at least, this abrasive, low–budget drama plays out the wilfully unpleasant scenario of a man who gets…
- Crumb (1994)
- Dir. Terry Zwigoff
- Remarkable portrait of controversial cartoonist and non–conformist Robert Crumb. Documented over six years, his friend Terry Zwigoff manages to…
- Natural Born Killers (1994)
- Dir. Oliver Stone
Feat. Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis
- Oliver Stone turns a Tarantino script into a mean–spirited satire that points fingers at the decline of America without any measure of…
- Priest (1994)
- Dir. Antonia Bird
Feat. Linus Roache
- Provocative working–class drama about a gay priest wrestling with multiple dilemmas – his sexuality, a new parish and his exclusive…
- Bandit Queen (1993)
- Dir. Shekhar Kapur
Feat. Seema Biswas
- Far and away from the innocuous fluff that dominates India's film industry, comes this bold, controversial true story of Phoolan Devi, a notorious…
- Beavis and Butthead (TV Series) (1993-1997)
- Dir. Mike Judge
- Once rejected by our television networks on moral grounds, this might've been your only chance to catch America's favourite miscreants in animated…
- Wonderful, Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl, The (1993)
- Dir. Ray Muller
- Regarded both as great filmmaker and Nazi Party propagandist, Leni Reifenstahl, the maker of TRIUMPH OF THE WILL and OLYMPIAD, will always be a…
- Basic Instinct (1992)
- Dir. Paul Verhoeven
Feat. Sharon Stone, Michael Douglas
- Sharon Stone leapt into fame, fortune and notoriety with her raunchy portrayal of the sultry crime novelist who may or may not be living out her…
- Dirty Weekend (1992)
- Dir. Michael Winner
Feat. Lia Williams
- 'Death Wish' director Winner tweaks a familiar–sounding plot: here a stressed–out Lia Williams weekends in Brighton, to both relax and…
- Lover, The (1992)
- Dir. Jean-Jacques Annaud
Feat. Jane March, Tony Leung (Kar-fai)
- Exotic adaptation of Marguerite Duras' autobiographical novel charting an illicit affair between a 15–year–old French school–girl…
- Man Bites Dog (1992)
- Dir. Remy Belvaux, Andre Bonzel, Benoit Poelvoorde
Feat. Benoit Poelvoorde
- Disturbing black comedy unravels itself as a media satire but its barbaric humour won't tickle everyone's funnybone. Staged as a documentary, a film…
- Manufacturing Consent (1992)
- Dir. Achbar, Peter Wintonick
Feat. Noam Chomsky
- Important film presents the theories of Noam Chomsky on the media and its mainstream bias which may have a far–reaching political agenda. What…
- Robotrix (1991)
- Dir. Luk Kim Ming
Feat. Amy Yip
- A scientist's discovery that the mind of a dying person can be transferred to a robot leads to perversion.
Controversial sci–fi/exploitation…
- Silence of the Lambs, The (1991)
- Dir. Jonathan Demme
Feat. Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn…
- Celebrated adaptation of Thomas Harris' novel follows the hunt of a gruesome serial killer by a rookie cop (Jodie Foster), 'aided' by an incarcerated…
- Wild at Heart (1990)
- Dir. David Lynch
Feat. Nicolas Cage, Laura Dern, Diane Ladd…
- Disturbing, provocative and always stylish, the director parodies himself and many other great film–makers in this mother of all road movies.…
- Do the Right Thing (1989)
- Dir. Spike Lee
Feat. Danny Aiello, Spike Lee, Ossie Davis…
- Spike Lee's tour–de–force of racial friction and personal politics, forged his status as the most important black director in history.…
- Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down (Atame!) (1989)
- Dir. Pedro Almodovar
Feat. Antonio Banderas, Victoria Abril
- A mental patient kidnaps his sexy B–movie idol in the hope that she will fall in love with him. Teasingly politically unsound, Almodovar…
- Wired (1989)
- Dir. Larry Peerce
Feat. John Belushi
- Stylised, controversial biopic of ailed cult funnyman John Belushi. Not sanctioned by the Belushi estate but the warts–and–all depiction…
- Ghosts of the Civil Dead (1988)
- Dir. John Hillcoat
Feat. Nick Cave
- Despite the uncompromising, raw depiction of brutal prison life, this film is a non–exploitative essay that ultimately indicts the future of…
- Last Temptation of Christ, The (1988)
- Dir. Martin Scorsese
Feat. Willem Dafoe, Harvey Keitel, Barbara Hershey…
- Brave, earnest film controversial for its assumption that Christ suffered from mortal doubt when chosen to carry God's message. Willem Dafoe plays…
- Brimstone and Treacle (1987)
- Dir. Barry Davis
Feat. Michael Kitchen, Denholm Elliott
- Recorded for the BBC in 1976 but not broadcast until 1987, this pointed Dennis Potter stageplay of an unwelcome houseguest who believes he's the…
- Echoes In The Darkness (TV Mini-series) (1987)
- Dir. Glenn Jordan
Feat. Peter Coyote, Stockard Channing, Robert Loggia…
- The true life murder of Pennsylvanian woman Susan Reinert and her two children in the 1970s gets a successful treatment in this taut…
- Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1987)
- Dir. John McNaughton
Feat. Michael Rooker, Tom Towles
- Theatrically banned, this uncut version ranks as one of the more unsettling works ever committed to film. In short, a low–budget masterpiece…
- 9 1/2 Weeks (1986)
- Dir. Adrian Lyne
Feat. Mickey Rourke, Kim Basinger
- See Mickey Rourke and Kim Basinger at the peak of their self–obsessed careers in this sleazy but not unenjoyable romp through the dark side of…
- Betty Blue (1986)
- Dir. Jean-Jacques Beineix
Feat. Beatrice Dalle, Jean-Hugues Anglade
- Beatrice Dalle stars as the ultra crazy and ultra sexy Betty in this lusty, over–the–top drama as only the French aspire to create.…
- Falklands Collection, The (The Falklands Play, Tumbledown) (1986)
- Dir. Michael Samuels
Feat. Patricia Hodge, Colin Firth
- A collection of two BBC dramas focused around the controversial Falklands Campaign of 1982 during Margaret Thatcher's reign.
The Falklands Play:…
- Hail Mary (1985)
- Dir. Jean-Luc Godard
Feat. Myriem Roussel, Thierry Rode, Juliette Binoche
- Controversial and ultimately reverent update on the story of the immaculate conception, with Mary as a gas station attendant and Joseph as her cab…
- Hooligan (1985)
- Dir. Ian Stuttard
- Notorious documentary acts as both a study of football hooliganism and as a concise history of the group who became most synonymous with mindless…
- Crimes of Passion (1984)
- Dir. Ken Russell
Feat. Kathleen Turner, Anthony Perkins
- An outrageous, kinky psycho–drama in which Kathleen Turner portrays a high–class hooker, shadowed by crackpot priest Anthony Perkins…
- Liquid Sky (1983)
- Dir. Slava Tsukuman
Feat. Anne Carlisle, Paula E. Sheppard
- A geniune punk artefact about an over–sexed woman who unwittingly hosts an alien parasite that kills off her lovers at the point of orgasm. Its…
- Class of 1984 (1982)
- Dir. Mark Lester
Feat. Perry King
- A new school–teacher (Perry King) finds himself intimidated by members of his unruly class – to the point where he must exact brutal…
- New York Ripper (1982)
- Dir. Lucio Fulci
Feat. Jack Hedley, Daniela Doria
- A sadistic tale from Italian dir. Fulci (THE BEYOND) which concerns a killer roaming New York City and murdering women while babbling like 'Donald…
- Angel of Vengeance (Ms.45) (1981)
- Dir. Abel Ferrara
Feat. Zoë Tamerlis, Jack Thibeau
- Surreal drama about a deaf–mute who seeks revenge after two sexual assaults. Taut and disturbing, with minimal dialogue, it has the distinction…
- Cannibal Holocaust (1980)
- Dir. Ruggero Deodato
- Enormously controversial apex of the Italian 'cannibal' horror subgenre, concerning an anthropologist who journeys to the Amazon to locate a…
- Cruising (1980)
- Dir. William Friedkin
Feat. Al Pacino, Paul Sorvino, Karen Allen
- Controversial, grimy thriller places cop Al Pacino undercover in New York's gay community in an effort to ensnare a serial killer, but the job begins…
- Dressed to Kill (1980)
- Dir. Brian De Palma
Feat. Angie Dickinson, Michael Caine, Nancy Allen
- A slick video nasty involving a murderer, a prostitute, a psychiatrist, a bored housewife and her resourceful son. In reworking PSYCHO, De Palma…
- Maniac (1980)
- Dir. William Lustig
Feat. Joe Spinell, Caroline Munro
- Notoriousy grisly 1980s "video nasty", featuring Tom Savini effects (inc a very famous head explosion and several scalpings) amid an otherwise…
- Scum (1980)
- Dir. Alan Clarke
Feat. Ray Winstone, Phil Daniels
- Life in a British borstal painted in unflinchingly realistic hues. Clark's deeply affecting indictment of the penal system plays out barbaric rituals…
- Angel Mine (1979)
- Dir. David Blyth
Feat. Derek Ward, Jennifer Redford, Myra De Groot
- A punk, Bunuel–esque social satire in which a married couple escape their material lives through anarchic fantasies, staged as dream–like…
- Driller Killer (1979)
- Dir. Abel Ferrara
Feat. Abel Ferrara
- Somewhat notorious as a 'video nasty' of the 80s video boom, this debut from bad boy auteur Abel Ferrara was perhaps misunderstood (like The Texas…
- Life of Brian (Monty Python's Life of Brian) (1979)
- Dir. Terry Jones
Feat. John Cleese, Eric Idle, Michael Palin
- This parody of the life and times of Jesus Christ is the funniest and most successful of the Monty Python features. A cult favourite.
- I Spit On Your Grave (Day of the Woman, aka I Hate Your Guts) (1978)
- Dir. Meir Zarchi
Feat. Camille Keaton, Eron Tabor, Richard Pace…
- Legendary 1970s video nasty in which a feminist writer (Keaton) holidaying in the countryside is menaced and repeatedly raped by four locals, whom…
- Midnight Express (1978)
- Dir. Alan Parker
Feat. Brad Davis, Randy Quaid
- Brad Davis stars in this riveting fact–based story as a young American facing a 30–year sentence in a brutal Turkish prison for a minor…
- Desperate Living (1977)
- Dir. John Waters
Feat. Liz Renay, Mink Stole, Edith Massey
- The third in John Waters' unholy trilogy again succeeds in his aim to simultaneously shock and incite hysterics. No Divine this time, but Liz Renay,…
- Fight For Your Life (1977)
- Dir. Robert A. Endelson
Feat. William Sanderson, Robert Judd
- A racist hillbilly and two sadistic jail–breakers terrorize a black minister and his family, who eventually fight back and take bloody…
- Last House on Dead End Street (1977)
- Dir. Roger Michael Watkins
Feat. Roger Michael Watkins
- Both notorious and obscure, this 1970s shocker concerns a drug–dealer who upon being released from jail enters the shady world of porno…
- In the Realm of the Senses (Ai No Corrida) (1976)
- Dir. Nagisa Oshima
Feat. Tatsuya Fuji, Eiko Matsuda
- Hailed as an erotic masterpiece in some quarters and condemned as mere sexually explicit exploitation in others, Oshima’s indisputably elegant…
- Maitresse (1976)
- Dir. Barbet Schroeder
Feat. Gerard Depardieu, Bulle Ogier
- An eye–watering, willfully transgressive tale of a petty crook (Depardieu) who enters into a seemingly conventional romance with a…
- Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea, The (1976)
- Dir. Lewis John Carlino
Feat. Kris Kristofferson, Sarah Miles
- A sadistic young boy with an unusually strong attachment to his mother greatly resents her new suitor. Intriguing adaptation of Yukio Mishima novel…
- Snuff (1976)
- Dir. Michael Findlay, Roberta Findlay
Feat. Ana Carro, Roberta Findlay
- 'Notorious' thriller set amid a world of South American drug–smuggling sleazebags, which supposedly climaxes with an actual filmed murder.…
- Beast, The (La Bete) (1975)
- Dir. Walerian Borowczyk
Feat. Lucy Broadhurst
- This unsexy, frequently hilarious art–porn parable from the easily aroused dir. of IMMORAL TALES consists of a hairy sasquatch in heat chasing…
- Salo (1975)
- Dir. Pier Paolo Pasolini
Feat. Paolo Bonacelli, Giogio Cataldi, Umberto Paolo Quintavalle…
- More extreme in content than anything else in our library, an embittered Pasolini spares the viewer nothing in his faithful adaptation of The Marquis…
- Immoral Tales (1974)
- Dir. Walerian Borowczyk
Feat. Charlotte Alexandra, Florence Bellamy, Lorenzo Beriniz
- Four 'historical' chapters make up this softcore but nonetheless controversial portmenteau film.
Contains such spectacular low–lights as…
- Lenny (1974)
- Dir. Bob Fosse
Feat. Dustin Hoffman
- Dustin Hoffman exposes the self–destructive life of Lenny Bruce in this stark, explicit biopic of the maverick stand–up comic whose…
- Night Porter, The (1974)
- Dir. Liliana Cavani
Feat. Dirk Bogarde, Charlotte Rampling
- Bizarre yet sensual melodrama about an ex–gestapo officer who resumes a sado–masochistic affair with his Jewish former–prisoner.…
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The (1974)
- Dir. Tobe Hooper
Feat. Marilyn Burns, Allen Danziger, Paul A. Partain
- Unbearable tension builds when a group of teens are preyed upon by a notoriously psychotic family in the squalid atmosphere of the Deep South. The…
- Exorcist, The (1973)
- Dir. William Friedkin
Feat. Linda Blair, Max von Sydow, Ellen Burstyn
- Landmark, influential horror film tells its tale of a child diagnosed with a case of demon–possession in explicit detail. A penetrating sense…
- Themroc (1973)
- Dir. Claude Faraldo
Feat. Michel Piccoli
- Satirical in a most primitive, bestial way, this astonishing fable sees frustrated factory–worker Michel Piccoli cease to speak one morning,…
- Last House on the Left, The (1972)
- Dir. Wes Craven
Feat. Sandra Cassel, Lucy Grantham, David Hess
- Formerly banned in NZ and in many countries around the world, this disturbing film lives up to its notoriety with its documentary–like realism…
- Last Tango in Paris (1972)
- Dir. Bernardo Bertolucci
Feat. Marlon Brando, Maria Schneider
- A breakthrough film of the 70s, this account of a chance encounter, then torrid affair between Maria Schneider and Marlon Brando, is artfully glossy,…
- Clockwork Orange, A (1971)
- Dir. Stanley Kubrick
Feat. Malcolm McDowell, Patrick Magee, Michael Bates…
- From Anthony Burgess' novel, Stanley Kubrick flexes his genius with this electrifying satire about an ultra–violent gang of 'droogs' whose…
- Devils, The (1971)
- Dir. Ken Russell
Feat. Oliver Reed, Vanessa Redgrave
- Ken Russell's subversive foray into Catholic guilt is as bold and disturbing as it is brilliant. Amidst the witch trials of medieval France, Oliver…
- Pink Flamingos (1971)
- Dir. John Waters
Feat. Divine, Mink Stole, Edith Massey…
- John Waters' creative pinnacle (or nadir!) remains the ultimate statement in bad taste – a pure, unadulterated exercise in shock value!…
- Straw Dogs (1971)
- Dir. Sam Peckinpah
Feat. Dustin Hoffman, Susan George
- With dir. Sam Peckinpah in top form, this powerful study of male territorial instincts pushed out the boundaries of movie violence in the…
- W.R. Mysteries of the Organism (1971)
- Dir. Dusan Makavejev
- Documentary footage, late sixties counter–culture and fictional elements are freely mixed to explore the ideas of radical sexologist, Wilhelm…
- Gimme Shelter (1970)
- Dir. David Maysles, Albert Maysles, Charlotte Zwerin
Feat. Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Ron Wood…
- The Rolling Stones captured at the summit of their popularity and musical form in 1970, on the tour that led to disaster at Altamont.
The Maysles…
- Sorrow and the Pity, The (1969)
- Dir. Marcel Ophuls
- A Classic. Investigating life and death in the Occupied France city of Clermont–Ferrand during WWII, chiefly through interviews, this provides…
- Dennis Potter at London Weekend Television (1968-1979)
- Feat. Ian Holm, John Neville
- Containing three of Dennis Potter's single plays for television, including "Shaggy Dog" which was thought to be lost until recently, these diverse…
- Vixen (1968)
- Dir. Russ Meyer
Feat. Erica Gavin, Harrison Page
- An A–grade exploitation picture, with Uncle Russ at his most playful, creative and virile. His purely kitsch instinct and virtuoso editing…
- Ulysses (1967)
- Dir. Joseph Strick
Feat. Barbara Jefford, Milo O'Shea, Maurice Roeves…
- A brave stab at filming James Joyce's sprawling novel, but it's better known for the stir it caused over its seminal use of the f–word and…
- Leather Boys, The (1964)
- Dir. Sidney J. Furie
Feat. Rita Tushingham, Colin Campbell, Dudley Sutton
- Gritty study of an impulsive young woman's incompatible marriage to motorcycle–loving mechanic, and his subsequent 'close' relationship with a…
- Lolita (1962)
- Dir. Stanley Kubrick
Feat. James Mason, Peter Sellers, Shelley Winters…
- A middle–aged man falls in love with a 14–year–old girl, so marries her mother to be near her. Fascinating black comedy of sexual…
- Beat Girl (1960)
- Dir. Edmond T. Greville
Feat. Gillian Hills, Adam Faith, Christopher Lee…
- Providing a rare peek into the British 'beat scene', this groovy juvenile delinquency drama proves there was teenage wildlife before the Beatles, and…
- Never On Sunday (1960)
- Dir. Jules Dassin
Feat. Jules Dassin, Melina Mercouri
- Director Jules Dassin (think a bug–eyed Tony Randall) plays a disillusioned American philosopher searching for answers in the birthplace of…
- Salt of the Earth (1954)
- Dir. Herbert J. Biberman
Feat. Rosaura Revueltas, Will Geer
- An incendiary tale of racial prejudice, big business greed and feminist uprising that pushed plenty of buttons in the fifties, making it first of its…
- Wild One, The (1954)
- Dir. Laslo Benedek
Feat. Marlon Brando
- Marlon Brando leathers up for a bit of rebellion Hollywood–style, leading a gang of bikies to terrorise a small town. Controversial for their…
- Kenneth Anger's Magick Lantern Cycle Vol. 3 (1949-1965)
- Dir. Kenneth Anger
- Three more shorts from Mssr. Anger, including "Kustom Kar Kommando" (1965), "Puce Moments" (1949), and his most famous and controversial work,…
- Outlaw, The (1943)
- Dir. Howard Hughes, Howard Hawks
Feat. Jack Buetel, Jane Russell, Thomas Mitchell…
- Off–beat retelling of the legend of Billy the Kid with Jane Russell's cleavage outraging the censors of the day. Now a tame curiosity.
- Triumph of the Will (1935)
- Dir. Leni Riefenstahl
- The famous official document of the Nazi rally at Nuremberg, 1934, shot in stunning geometric compositions. This manages to stagger the senses, while…
- Ecstasy (1933)
- Dir. Gustav Machety
Feat. Hedy Lamarr
- Hedy Lamarr came to world attention in this 1932 film, playing a sexually–frustrated bride who goes on a fifteen minute nude romp in an alpine…
- Scarface (1932)
- Dir. Howard Hawks
Feat. Paul Muni, Ann Dvorak, Karen Morley
- The most potent ganster flick of the '30s caused great controversy over its violent content when first released, still makes an impact today.…
- Madchen in Uniform (1931)
- Dir. Leontine Sagan
Feat. Hertha Thiele, Dorothea Wieck
- Influential early German sound–film notorious (and censored) for the sensual lesbian overtones that colour its tale of Hertha Thiele's…
- Nanook of the North (1922)
- Dir. Robert Flaherty
- Landmark early documentary that was also dir. Flaherty's debut, depicting life for a plucky Eskimo family who use all their ingenuity to survive in…