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24 Great Films Too Painful To Watch Twice

post #1 of 87
10/13/07 at 2:10am
Thread Starter 
From A.V. Club

1. Requiem For A Dream
2. Dancer In The Dark
3. The Passion Of Joan Of Arc
4. The Seventh Continent
5. Winter Light
6. Bad Lieutenant
7. Straw Dogs
8. Audition
9. Sick: The Life And Death Of Bob Flanagan, Supermasochist
10. Come And See
11. In A Year Of 13 Moons
12. Safe
13. Irreversible
14. Boys Don't Cry
15. Grave Of The Fireflies
16. When The Wind Blows
17. Leaving Las Vegas
18. Jonestown: The Life And Death Of Peoples Temple
19. S-21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine
20. The Last House On The Left
21. Million Dollar Baby
22. United 93
23. Lilya 4-Ever
24. Nil By Mouth

http://www.avclub.com/content/featur...at_films_too/1
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post #2 of 87
10/13/07 at 2:50am
Million Dollar Baby? The hell?
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post #3 of 87
10/13/07 at 2:55am
Personally, I'd put Schindler's List over several of those. I saw it on its theatrical run, and not once since. I just can't motivate myself to go through that again.

Audition is right on the money, though. I can't imagine watching that again unless I were inflicting it on someone else. And I'd probably spend the whole time in my happy place.
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post #4 of 87
10/13/07 at 2:58am
I recently saw Jonestown on dvd. It goes without saying it was some seriously tragic stuff. But David is right, Schinder's List is nowhere to be found on that list.

And Leaving Las Vegas. While tragic I found to be somewhat dull.

However I will agree on Boys Don't Cry. Very difficult stuff to look at and admittedly some amazing work by Peter Saarsgard.
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post #5 of 87
10/13/07 at 3:21am
Quote:
Originally Posted by EdHocken
And Leaving Las Vegas. While tragic I found to be somewhat dull.
I've actually watched Leaving Las Vegas several times. Don't see why it qualifies for the list.

Irreversable, on the other hand, should be closer to the top.
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post #6 of 87
10/13/07 at 3:28am
I actually don't think that Irreversible is a very good movie, so that's enough reason for me to never watch it again, regardless of how painful it might be.
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post #7 of 87
10/13/07 at 4:38am
Totally agree with Requiem. I can't remember ever being so in love with and repulsed by a movie as I was with this one. While watching it, i knew it was something great, but that fucking feeling i had watching it... shit. I really felt like shit afterwards; had to take a shower and everything.
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post #8 of 87
10/13/07 at 4:43am
I've probably watched Straw Dogs and Requiem for a Dream a half dozen times a piece. Dancer in the Dark, on the other hand, only took me one viewing to realize it was a heap of garbage, and I didn't watch it again.
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post #9 of 87
10/13/07 at 6:14am
Requiem is depressing, but its still good filmmaking that I can watch again...like, once a decade or two.

I'd take Audition off the list and replace it with Breaking The Waves. Miike always has a repeatability factor, but I dont need to see Emma Watson in that state again.
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post #10 of 87
10/13/07 at 7:05am
Thread Starter 
They should of made it 25 and put Tim Roth's directorial debut, The War Zone on it. A movie about incest with Ray Winstone, Tilda Swinton, Kate "Liz from SOTD" Ashfield, and an early performance by Colin Farrell.

An absolutely brutal film.
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post #11 of 87
10/13/07 at 7:12am
Last House on the Left qualifies for a list of "great" films? On par with Irreversible and Requiem?
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post #12 of 87
10/13/07 at 7:48am
They should watch Bad Timing: A Sensual Obsession and see how fast that gets added to their list.
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post #13 of 87
10/13/07 at 8:02am
I would squeeze in HENRY: PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER, but that's just me.
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post #14 of 87
10/13/07 at 8:05am
Greg is right about Schindler's. The list is right about Lilya 4 Ever. And what about The Sweet Hereafter?
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post #15 of 87
10/13/07 at 8:36am
Straw Dogs I can watch any time. Funny Games and The Piano Teacher, on the other hand...
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post #16 of 87
10/13/07 at 8:38am
A film where Elisabeth Shue removes her breasts from a swimsuit and pours liquor on them, inviting her companion to orally remove said liquor, God damned demands multiple viewings.
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post #17 of 87
10/13/07 at 9:23am
Larry Clark's Kids.
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post #18 of 87
10/13/07 at 9:44am
It's true that I wouldn't watch Kids again, but not because it's painful or disturbing. It's barely a movie.
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post #19 of 87
10/13/07 at 9:47am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gabe Powers
I've probably watched Straw Dogs and Requiem for a Dream a half dozen times a piece.
Me too. Straw Dogs in particular is not that hard a watch these days, but it is still possibly Peckinpah's masterpiece.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Gabe Powers
Dancer in the Dark, on the other hand, only took me one viewing to realize it was a heap of garbage, and I didn't watch it again.
Yeah, okay. Like, the best garbage ever made. Seriously, whether you like them or not, you can't deny that von Trier's films are pretty immaculately put together.
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post #20 of 87
10/13/07 at 10:16am
Kids was just painful because it reminded me of all the pussy I wasn't getting as a teen.
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post #21 of 87
10/13/07 at 10:47am
I would not watch Million Dollar Baby again, but not because it is particularly depressing.
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post #22 of 87
10/13/07 at 11:17am
Naked Lunch could fit in that list.
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post #23 of 87
10/13/07 at 11:34am
I've seen Dancer in the Dark once. My roommate and I watched it. I was so emotionally drained afterward that I took a two-hour nap. She spent the same amount of time drinking. I thought it was fantastic, but I'm never watching it again.

I could see an argument for Vera Drake being on this list. The ending makes amends to some extent, but parts of it are just brutal.
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post #24 of 87
10/13/07 at 12:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Feral Akodon
Naked Lunch could fit in that list.
Naked Lunch gets better with repeat viewings. The connections make much more sense.
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post #25 of 87
10/13/07 at 12:32pm
Yeah, I'm just gonna step in here and re-state that Dancer in the Dark is not a heap of garbage, and Schindler's List and maybe something like Cannibal Holocaust should be on this list due to animal murders and the dingy, uncomfortable experience it is to watch it.

Not Audition though, the violence in that film is a bit "so what", and the only thing painful about it is how dull most of the film is.
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post #26 of 87
10/13/07 at 12:53pm
I haven't sat through the whole Schindler's since I saw it the first time, but I've sat through the second side of the disc a few times. It doesn't hold up. The first time you see it the visceral impact of it gets you. The subsequent viewings show the flaws in the film.
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post #27 of 87
10/13/07 at 1:41pm
I actually saw Schindler's List 3 times in the theater, and at least 3 times since then, so I can't agree on that one. I also disagree on Requiem For A Dream. The spectacular filmmaking makes it a must to rewatch.

United 93 is definitely a one-timer for me. I feel like I should own the DVD because it was high on my list of favorite films last year, but then I can't imagine ever watching it again.
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post #28 of 87
10/13/07 at 3:14pm
I do own United 93, but I can't imagine watching it again. I hated the post 9/11 slogan "Never Forget," because the truth of it is how could I? I feel the same about this film. It is with me.
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post #29 of 87
10/13/07 at 3:40pm
I'll echo the Dancer In The Dark sentiment. I've owned the film for about 5 years, and have watched it all the way through maybe twice. I can't even listen to the soundtrack without needing a tissue. That said, seeing as said soundtrack has a Thom Yorke/Bjork duet, sadly, my ability to resist going back is a little less solid there.

United 93 nearly gave me a goddamned heart attack in the theater. I'd like to be able to watch it again, but not at that expense.

Also, I'm a little surprised the recent where-the-fuck-did-this-come-from train of Grave of the Fireflies hate hasn't made its way to this thread yet.
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post #30 of 87
10/13/07 at 4:02pm
Grave of the Fireflies hate? When did this start? And who's responsible?
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post #31 of 87
10/13/07 at 4:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Russ Fischer
And fuck GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES. It's boring as shit, and hardly as touching as it's made out to be.
***
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post #32 of 87
10/13/07 at 4:46pm
I like that they included When the Wind Blows.

I just had the pleasure of rewatching this film again. Quite a depressing look at the life of an elderly couple as they attempt to survive radiation poisoning and fallout in a nuked England.
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post #33 of 87
10/13/07 at 5:06pm
I was baffled by the love for Million Dollar Baby. Sorry, but that movie was fucking shit. First two thirds are a great sports movie, then WHAM! It dips into moral-decision-of-the-week-on-CBS territory. Only reason the movie isn't the complete drizzling shits is Morgan Freeman.

So yes, the movie is too painful to watch twice, but not for the reason it's on that list. It's too painful to watch because it's a bad movie.

Disagree with United 93 on the list though. I'd watch that again as it was a great movie. Hard to watch, but riveting.
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post #34 of 87
10/13/07 at 5:10pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Greg David
Grave of the Fireflies hate? When did this start? And who's responsible?
Also, whenever Devin says that all anime is horrible, and it's brought up as an example of good anime, he brushes it off saying it probably sucks.
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post #35 of 87
10/13/07 at 5:39pm
Winter Light is probably the only one of the films on that list I've seen more than once. It's Bergman, so it's well worth another look, but it's slow and deeply depressing, one of its main themes being "the silence of God" (not exactly an uplifting subject, I know). But it's one of my favorite Bergman films, so I'll recommend anyone to at least see it once. Sven Nykvist's photo is (perhaps even more so than usual) absolutely beautiful, using the cold, Swedish winter light to paint his frames in stark black and white.
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post #36 of 87
10/13/07 at 6:06pm
I don't think I could ever sit through Plague Dogs again. They should package anti-depressants with the dvd. But this scene never fails to get a chuckle out of me. After all the misery these poor animals go through, when one of them finally gets a chance at a good life, that happens. Oh, you think this will end happily? WRONG! It's so over the top, I can't help but laugh.
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post #37 of 87
10/13/07 at 6:41pm
Plague Dogs. Very good choice. I just last weekend rewatched it for an article I'm writing and I barely mad it through. The long cut is even sadder.

So far as Dancer in the Dark goes - the musical scenes are well done, and I respect Von Triers other films, but even he admits that it doesn't work on the commentary track (I lied, I've actually seen the film twice). I see it as the very definition of maudlin. It took me years to admit out loud because so many of my friends adore it and I didn't want to hurt their feelings.
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post #38 of 87
10/13/07 at 6:42pm
Come and See is one of the most profoundly disturbing films I've ever seen, I'm both thankful and resentful of Geoff Foster and Straxboy for peaking my interest in the film. It's almost like the filmmaker picks you up by the scruff of the neck and puts your face into the reality of what is was like on the Eastern Front where the Nazis had no qualms in exterminating whoever they wished.

I'd probably add Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance and take out Million Dollar. I love the film dearly, but I've only been able to watch it twice and both of those were showing it to others. There's something about that film which makes me feel utterly hollow, same with Nil By Mouth which is one of the most depressing and bleakest films ever made. It's so hardcore in its misery that the DVD can kill any houseplants it's in close proximity too.
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post #39 of 87
10/13/07 at 7:17pm
Mr. Vengeance is one of the most brutal films ever made. There was only one other person in the theater and they stormed out during the first autopsy scene.

Cannibal Holocaust is one of my favorites but I always have to skip the part with the turtle.
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post #40 of 87
10/13/07 at 8:01pm
How is Passion of the Christ not on this film? I'm certainly no Christian, but man...I just wanted to kill myself when that was over.

And speaking of Last House on the Left: it's reputation is entirely undeserved, and that's coming from a Wes Craven fan. The only parts that are "hard to watch" are the inane attempts at comedy involving the cops.
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post #41 of 87
10/14/07 at 3:39pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Patrick Ripoll
Naked Lunch gets better with repeat viewings. The connections make much more sense.
I just can stand the "I guess it's about time for our William Tell routine" stuff. Too much gravitas. and yes, you are right.


Another example: Lord of the Flies.
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post #42 of 87
10/14/07 at 4:10pm
The Piano Teacher really should be on that list, and although I've yet to watch it, I suspect Salo would also be a prime candidate.
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post #43 of 87
10/15/07 at 1:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Xagarath Ankor
The Piano Teacher really should be on that list, and although I've yet to watch it, I suspect Salo would also be a prime candidate.
Oh, it is. How did they miss that one?
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post #44 of 87
10/15/07 at 4:22pm
Taxi Driver. One of the finest and most depressing movies ever.
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post #45 of 87
10/15/07 at 4:24pm
Now oddly enough I've been meaning to re-watch taxi driver sometime because it's been eight years since I last saw it. In fact I remember that because it was the last movies I saw before we went over to 2000.
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post #46 of 87
10/16/07 at 8:29am
Taxi Driver fucking demands to be re-watched every couple of years, at least. Sure, its unsettling, but its also one of the best films ever made, one which gets better every time you see it.
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post #47 of 87
10/16/07 at 11:13am
Here's one most people didn't see, and those who did will never watch it again:
Man Bites Dog (original title: C'est arrivé près de chez vous).
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post #48 of 87
10/16/07 at 11:34am
The good, original version of The Vanishing is pretty rough. Some of you might only enjoy it once.

I'm not one of them.
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post #49 of 87
10/16/07 at 11:35am
Also... my mom refuses to watch Seven, again. That shit wrecked her, but I think her number one fear is her head in a box.
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post #50 of 87
10/16/07 at 11:42am
Quote:
They should of made it 25 and put Tim Roth's directorial debut, The War Zone on it. A movie about incest with Ray Winstone, Tilda Swinton, Kate "Liz from SOTD" Ashfield, and an early performance by Colin Farrell.

An absolutely brutal film.
Yeah, no shit. That's a wrist-slitter.

I'd also add Little Odessa to this list. Just relentlessly bleak and grim. Damn you, Tim Roth.
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