Top 10 Most Controversial Films of All Time?

After contemplating many different options for this week's Top Ten List, including a list from the old "Late Night with David Letterman" from 1991, I've chosen to go with a Top Ten List which deals with the supposed most controversial films ever made.

I did not make this list myself, and it was posted on listserve.com three years ago today and hence it does not feature the fairly recent Lars Von Trier film "Anti-Christ."

But, since many of the films mentioned on this particular list and the one I will post on my other blog deal with religion, we thought we'd go with an image of Jesus Christ who is apparently going to be visiting a fundamentalist church in Madison, NC, soon (we couldn't resist!)*.

Interestingly enough, this film does not include German Nazi films like "Triumph of the Will" nor any Vietnam War films from either the left or the right, including the documentary "Hearts and Minds" from the left or the John Wayne film "The Green Berets" from the right.

The Sundance Channel will be broadcasting the early '70s documentary "FTA," featuring Jane Fonda making anti-Vietnam War rallies outside American military bases in Hawaii, The Philippines and Okinawa (Japan) on Monday. This film by the late Francine Parker which was effectively banned upon its initial release will show at 8:40 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. on Monday. To this date, it is the subject of great debate.

*- We mention Madison, NC, 20 miles north of Greensboro, in particular because there is a church there which has erected some 14 white crosses along Rte. 220!

Here is the list:

10. "Last Tango in Paris" (Bernardo Bertolucci, 1972)

9. "Natural Born Killers" (Oliver Stone, 1994)

8. Birth of a Nation (D.W. Griffith, 1915)

7. "The Last Temptation of Christ" (Martin Scorsese, 1988)**

6. "JFK" (Oliver Stone, 1991)

5. "Deep Throat" (Gerard Damiano, 1972)***

4. "Fahrenheit 9-1-1" (doc. Michael Moore, 2004).

3. "Salo" (Pier Paolo Pasolini, 1975)

2. "A Clockwork Orange" (Stanley Kubrick, 1971)

1. "The Passion of the Christ" (Mel Gibson, 2004)

**- Scorsese's film is actually banned from Bulgarian public television.

***-"Deep Throat" is the only film on the list which is considered an adult film.