Film shock tactics

johnny_ultimate

Don't want this to turn into another debate about 'horror p0rnz' now! But after watching Irreversiable recently, I must admit I was rather shocked at the two acts of violence in the film (anyone whos watched it will know the two I mean - pretty unforgettable) I was thinking about how films can shock an audience. Now while I don't think its a fantastic film (last act is a little too weak for that), I do think the violence was justified by the plot somewhat (a disturbing take on the revenge thriller), and how a normal existence can descend into such anarchy - the prologned graphic violence really hammers home the themes. Same with Caché - by showing a violent act in such horrific detail, it really packs a punch that has left everyone I know pretty much speechless for a good while afterwards.

Other films Ive seen have been shocking for reasons other than violence. Kids is one example of a film that is pretty shocking for its probing of the darker side of teenage life, even if it is a little excessive on occasion. Even Visitor Q was somewhat justified in its jovial disregard of pretty much every taboo Miike could think up. All these films break taboos to aid the narrative or film itself, and I think thats what makes them really shocking - that they add to the film as a result.

What do the rest of you think are the most shocking or disturbing in cinema? Anything which really leaves you suckerpunched or disturbed rather than merely offended by a films ridiculous excessiveness (e.g. Saw 4, a really foul and mean spirited slice of nonsense)?

Eirebear

johnny_ultimate wrote: »

Kids is one example of a film that is pretty shocking for its probing of the darker side of teenage life, even if it is a little excessive on occasion.

Thats the film i was thinking of as i started reading your post.
A truly horrible film, and i think the only reason it seems excessive is because the kids seem a little bit young to us.
Many of the situations remind me of people i knew when i was around 17-22.

Requiem for a Dream probably comes into this category, simply because it lulls the viewer into a false sense of security before taking a rapid downturn in mood.

fitz

Pan's Labyrinth did this brilliantly. The scene with the bottle was so shocking, that you spent the rest of the movie on the edge of your seat, tensed for another spontaneous explosion of brutality.

Shock tactics only work if they're in contrast to something else. A whole movie of those kind of scenes just desensitise the audience.

Galvasean

Irreversible is even more messed up when you watch it the second time.

That guy who gets smashed to bits with a fire extinguisher at the start... not the actual guy who raped her

~Rebel~

Funny Games is another one, but in a different way. There's not much violence actually shown in the film, its more the consistent slow tense ruthlessness of the perpetrators. Also, even though you dont see much, you know exactly whats happening so your imagination does the rest. The movie just presents pure, hopeless, foreboding, doom. (as well as taking a pop at the viewer for wanting to see this stuff).

Running Bing

~Rebel~ wrote: »

Funny Games is another one, but in a different way. There's not much violence actually shown in the film, its more the consistent slow tense ruthlessness of the perpetrators. Also, even though you dont see much, you know exactly whats happening so your imagination does the rest. The movie just presents pure, hopeless, foreboding, doom. (as well as taking a pop at the viewer for wanting to see this stuff).

Must say I didnt find Funny Games shocking or disturbing at all. I really liked it and found it very interesting but perhaps the fact I watched it expecting something awful I was over prepared.


Cannibal Holocaust and they call her one eye(a truly horrible film) would be pretty high up there for me.


Havent seen it yet but there is a new French film called inside that is suppoed to be very gruelling. Anyone seen that?

~Rebel~

Babybing wrote: »

Must say I didnt find Funny Games shocking or disturbing at all. I really liked it and found it very interesting but perhaps the fact I watched it expecting something awful I was over prepared.

i was quite the opposite, went to it knowing next to nothing about it. I'm in Austria at the moment and it was the only thing showing in English! Thoroughly enjoyed it though, it was more the pure foreboding where you knew there was just no hope whatsoever together with the almost jovial attitudes of the perpetrators that made it disturbing for me.

Karl Hungus

I like my violent films bold, blunt, and shocking. There was a rather similar discussion over here, and my thoughts on the subject were basically that violence should be shocking, that it feels somewhat wrong otherwise, perhaps silly.

Recently enough, I'd say that No Country For Old Men and Eastern Promises were fairly shocking. The violence was often fairly unexpected, and it came as quite a powerful jolt to the audience; I know seeing No Country in the cinema, it knocked quite a few jumps out of people there. I've always found Martin Scorcese's films to be quite shocking in their use of violence as well, for example the scene in Casino where

Nicky had to watch his brother being beaten to death with baseball bats was extremely graphic and shocking.

Great cinema is often shocking, it would seem.

Galvasean

I seem to remember a scene in The Cooler shocked me big time and I'm not easy to shock.

The bit where Baldwin punches the 'pregnant' woman in the stomach.

That was a real "Oh my God, did I just see that!?" moment.

m83

I remember watching Rudy with a pillow covering my eyes and a pair of socks in my ears. When he was told he was too small to play college football I just broke down in tears. Truly shocking stuff.

Diminutive Rudy Ruettiger's determination and devotion paid off in the end and he made it on to the team. They subsequently got relegated despite not dropping a single point all season.

mewso

I thought the scene in Michael Clayton where they

kill Arthur

was quite disturbing which obviously was the intention. Excellent movie.

Otis Driftwood

It takes alot to shock me at this stage but some moments that did manage it in the past include.

The turtle scene in Cannibal Holocaust
The child murder in the bathroom in Murder Set Pieces
The scene with the pregnant woman in Snuff 102
In Scum when the young lad (cant rem his name) slits his wrists