Oldboy
MA15+
South Korea, 2003
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Language: Korean
Director: Chan-wook Park
Starring: Min-Sik Choi, Hye-jeong Kang, Ji-tae Yu
What's it about?
The extreme violence within Park Chan-wook's revenge classic Oldboy, caused a sensation at Cannes, where it was awarded Grand Prize by Quentin Tarantino's jury. The story of a kidnap victim's tortuous 15-year wait to discover who has framed for the murder of his wife, is no easy watch (at least one octopus was definitely harmed in the making of this film).
[link title="Oldboy Review" url="node/2808"]
RELATED: The Playlist discusses the films of "Director Park"
Source: SBS Movies
Snowtown
MA15+
Australia, 2011
Genre: Thriller
Language: English
Director: Justin Kurzel
Starring: Daniel Henshall, Lucas Pittaway
What's it about?
Justin Kurzel's directorial debut was marred by controversy for telling the true story of the “Bodies in Barrels Murders”, which occurred in Snowtown, a tiny town north of Adelaide, and were committed by Australia's most notorious serial killer John Bunting. The victims' families and members of the Snowtown community protested against the film being made, and Nine Network entertainment reporter Richard Wilkins famously refused to rate it. He described the film as "the most disgusting, horrific, depraved and degrading film I have ever seen". .
[link title="Snowtown chills to the bone" url="node/2466"]
[link title="Snowtown review: A gloomy portrait of misappropriated vulnerability" url="node/5384"]
RELATED: Daniel Henshall reflects on 'Snowtown' and the role that made him famous
Source: SBS Movies
The Night Porter
MA15+
Italy, 1974
Genre: Drama
Language: English
Director: Liliana Cavani
Starring: Dirk Bogarde, Charlotte Rampling, Philippe Leroy
What's it about?
One of the most controversial films of the 1970s, The Night Porter stars Charlotte Rampling as a Holocaust survivor who discovers that the Nazi officer who tortured her (Dirk Bogarde) is now working as a night porter in a Viennese hotel. Thirteen years after the end of the war, the couple resumes their sadomasochistic relationship. While director Liliana Cavani was accused of exploiting the Holocaust – American critic Roger Ebert called it "despicable" – her supporters applauded her bold exploration of the relationship between authority and submission, humiliation and desire.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
MA15+
USA, 1974
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Language: English
Director: Tobe Hooper
Starring: Allen Danziger, Paul A. Partain, William Vail
What's it about?
Originally banned in 1974, Tobe Hooper's low-fi slasher is considered a game changer in the horror genre. The mask-wearing maniac Leatherface also spawned numerous faceless killers, such as Halloween's Michael Myers or Friday the 13th's Jason, to only cite a few. The cult classic follows five young students, who during a visit to their grandfather's house in the country, are hunted and terrorised by a chainsaw-wielding killer and his family of grave-robbing cannibals.
[link title="Why 'The Texas Chain Saw Massacre' is the best horror movie ever made" url="node/17788"]
RELATED: Watching 'The Texas Chain Saw Massacre' for the first time
Source: SBS Movies
The Woodsman
MA15+
USA, 2004
Genre: Drama
Language: English
Director: Nicole Kassell
Starring: Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick, Mos Def, David Alan Grier
What's it about?
A convicted paedophile returns to his hometown after 12 years in prison, in an attempt to start a new life. But when he befriends a young girl at at park, he has to face his old demons... It was always going to be a tough sell to elicit empathy for such a complex lead character, but Kevin Bacon manages to convey a complex range of emotions, from guilt, to desire and to fear of re-offending, in one of the best performances of his career. A disturbing movie about redemption, which asks the question: Can people ever change?
[link title="Why You Should Watch: The Woodsman" url="node/34350"]
Death of a President
M
UK, 2006
Genre: Crime, Drama
Language: English
Director: Gabriel Range
What's it about?
British director Gabriel Range drew the ire of numerous critics, politicians and viewers for "killing" then-President George W. Bush in this 2006 mockumentary. Some cinemas in the US and Japan refused to screen the film, which combines real archival footage with a fictional investigation of the assassination of President Bush in the heat of the anti-Iraq war protests. Death of a President also explores the effects of aggressive anti-terrorism laws on the country's civil liberties, and the degradation of its fragile relationship with the Middle East.
Source: SBS Movies
Compliance
M
USA, 2012
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Language: English
Director: Craig Zobel
Starring: Ann Dowd, Dreama Walker, Pat Healy
What's it about?
Based on , Compliance has been described as one of the most disturbing movies ever made, for its intensive study of the worst of human nature. Someone claiming to be a police officer calls a fast food restaurant and convinces the manager that one of her employees has committed a crime. She listens intently as he briefs her about the correct protocols, and his instructions take an increasingly intrusive and unlawful turn. An unnerving cinematic experience, which explores how easily we can let go of our free will and common sense in the face of authority.
[link title="Why you should watch: Compliance" url="node/107804"]
[link title="Compliance review: A delectably unnerving cinematic experience" url="node/6052"]
Source: Magnolia Pictures
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