The Cannes Film Festival is often seen as the most prestigious film festival in the world. Some of the biggest, most lauded movies have had their premieres there, and the response from an audience can make or break a film’s potential. But throughout its storied history, Cannes has also been home to some massive drama. From booing audiences to critics literally walking out of the theaters, Cannes has had its fair share of notorious moments.
Here are 10 of the most controversial Cannes movies of all time and where to stream them online.
The Brown Bunny (2003)
Story-wise, The Brown Bunny is relatively mundane. A man haunted by his past travels cross-country and meets women along the way, sharing moments with them. But what really made The Brown Bunny controversial was the fact that it was directed, produced, and written by Vincent Gallo…who also starred in the movie and hand-selected actress Chloë Sevigny to star as a character who gives him un-simulated fellatio.
The agonizing, four-minute long scene prompted boos from audiences. Then, there was a notorious fight after the film’s premiere between Gallo and famed critic Roger Ebert, who walked out of the movie and called it the worst movie that’s ever premiered at Cannes.
Southland Tales (2006)
No one is entirely sure what Southland Tales is about (seriously). The almost-three-hour movie remains incomplete (Director Richard Kelly has even admitted so in interviews). It involves an actor who wrote a script predicting the the end of the world, and now the Republican party is trying to use him to win an election. Also, he’s dating a pornstar, and during the wars in the Middle East, America discovered a perpetual energy source, but it’s also a highly addictive drug…and Justin Timberlake dances to “All These Things That I’ve Done” by The Killers. There’s just a lot going on for reasons that aren’t entirely clear.
Naturally, the film had a horrendous premiere at Cannes. Roger Ebert wrote, “I was dazed, confused, bewildered, bored, affronted and deafened by the boos all around me, at the most disastrous Cannes press screening since, yes, The Brown Bunny.” In an interview with IndieWire, producer Kendall Rhodes even remembers waking up the next morning and seeing the front page of the news read “Southland Tales est une bombe!”
Irréversible (2002)
Often considered one of the most offensive movies ever made, Irréversible is a French film about a women who is brutally raped almost to death by a gay rapist after he was originally trying to rape a transgender sex worker. After hearing about the incident, her friends decide to hunt down the rapist and brutally murder him. The premiere created shockwaves through Cannes and naturally polarized critics. The Guardian even said, “Women have nothing to say for themselves in this poisonous nullity. Only men count, a utopia of shaven-headed, righteously angry men, who track down homo-rapists in their homo-clubs and kill them.”
Numerous people walked out during the premiere at Cannes. In recent years Irréversible has received even more scrutiny for its confusing narrative of making all the villains gay men who are rapists. As Slate said, “Irreversible might be the most homophobic movie ever made.”
Melancholia (2011)
One of Cannes’ most shocking controversies didn’t happen during a screening, but afterwards. Director Lars von Trier is a Cannes regular and his movies almost always cause outrage. At the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, Trier premiered his film Melancholia, about a woman who suffers from depression and knows the world is about to be destroyed by a rogue planet.
The screening was a hit, and Melancholia received rave reviews. But during a festival press conference after the screening, Trier made an alleged joke in which he called himself a Nazi and said that he “understood Hitler.” Those comments caused him to be officially banned from the festival for a year, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
The House That Jack Built (2018)
Trier caused an even bigger controversy in 2018 when he returned to Cannes with The House That Jack Built. The movie stars Matt Dillon as a serial killer who butchers women and children…and Cannes audiences were not having it. In fact, it’s one of the most walked-out of movies in the festival’s history, with many in attendance saying that over 100 people walked out.
Even more concerning, critics couldn’t help but notice that two of the movie’s stars, Uma Thurman and Riley Keough, didn’t even come to Cannes to promote the film. While they never directly said why, it’s odd and very noticeable when actors don’t come to their premieres at the most prestigious film festival of the year.
The Paperboy (2012)
In a weird way, The Paperboy gained the best kind of infamy you could hope for in a Cannes bomb. Directed by Lee Daniels, the movie is set in the deep south and centers around two brothers whose lives are turned upside down. It’s super queer, super camp, and wildly bombastic.
Critics and audiences at Cannes were torn at the movie’s premiere. The film involves lots of Zac Efron in tighty-whities, Matthew McConaughey engaging in a violent race play fetish, and even sees Nicole Kidman urinating on Efron. The Paperboy polarized viewers, receiving both jeers from audiences but also a standing ovation from those who stuck it through.
Crimes of the Future (2022)
The always-controversial David Cronenberg terrified audiences in 2022 with Crimes of the Future. The film is set in the distant future, where most humans no longer feel pain…leading them to start experimenting with their physical bodies in some very grotesque ways. In fact, many humans have started taking sex to a new level, becoming more aroused by wounds and internal organs than anything else.
At Cannes, numerous critics walked out of the theater in disgust, which Cronenberg had predicted. He told Variety before the festival, “It’s not a normal audience. A lot of people are there just for the prestige or for the red carpet. And they’re not cinephiles. They don’t know my films. So they might be walkouts.” Despite the many walkouts, Crimes of the Future also received a standing ovation.
Crash (1996)
Crimes of the Future wasn’t Cronenberg’s first Cannes controversy. In 1996 he debuted his film Crash at the festival, a movie about people who are sexually aroused by car crashes. Because of the combination of violence and sex, Cannes audiences were outraged. “I never dreamed that it would create this absolute maelstrom,” producer Jeremy Thomas told Deadline.
But Cannes wasn’t the only controversy the movie faced. It was temporarily banned in England, leading to its own controversy with the UK tabloids, and Ted Turner was a vocal opponent of it being released in the US.
Taxi Driver (1976)
With how gory and violent movies can be these days, it’s hard to believe that in the ’70s, Taxi Driver was considered almost unbearably violent. The film shocked and angered viewers at Cannes, who were enraged by the movie’s violence and its use of an underage actress (Jodie Foster) playing a prostitute.
Even that year’s jury head, Tennessee Williams, allegedly hated the movie. But despite its controversy, it still managed to gain praise from other viewers. “Half the audience was on its feet cheering,” producer Michael Phillips told The Hollywood Reporter. “The other half was booing.”
Mektoub, My Love: Intermezzo (2019)
There’s a lot to dislike about Mektoub, My Love: Intermezzo. First of all, the movie is almost four hours long and incredibly boring. However, the film garnered controversy due to its very long un-simulated sex scenes (one is literally 14 minutes long).
At Cannes, critics walked out of the theater, calling the film “vapid” and saying it was nothing but “objectification.” For Mektoub, things didn’t get much better after Cannes either. It currently holds a 10% on Rotten Tomatoes, with The Hollywood Reporter calling it “shapeless and monotonous” and saying it’s a “terminally indulgent macho doodle posing as a movie.”
Where To Watch The Most Controversial Cannes Movies Online
To discover more about TV shows and movies currently streaming in the US, check out the JustWatch streaming guide! You can filter your search by streaming service, genre, price, age rating, and score. Be sure to build your watchlist and receive helpful notifications on what to watch next based on your preferences!
