Caligula (1981)

A close and revealing look on human nature/basic instincts, wrapped into a visual masterpiece and daring acting - that's the reason why this movie is still after all gone by time controversial.Such producers and directors we need in our shallow and in mediocrity drowned times - any mature who cannot cope with the shown material should stick to Sesame Street and hopefully never drops by coincidence on a porn site ;)

Here's a film I wanted to check out because I'm a fan of Roman Empire era films. I wasn't that familiar with Caligula and his reign so that was an added interest. I learned that the X rated cut of this film has tons of sex and nudity in it but that kind of stuff is not something that I mind if the film has substance. Unfortunately, I can see why this film was basically panned by all parties upon release.This film is meant to be a bit of a life and time of Caligula's reign but it just meanders so much into pornographic, unsimulated sex. There's just not much going story-wise. I read that Tinto Brass (the director) had nothing to do with the hardcore sex scenes that were added to the film, and I can see why he and the cast wanted to distance themselves from the film.The cast of this film is actually pretty great. You have young Malcolm McDowell and Helen Mirren just to name a few. Its just crazy that a film with starpower like that can fall so off the cliff. I know the initial writer and director didn't have much to do with the finished product, but damn what where the producers thinking? They must have been looking to shock viewers and create the most controversial film of the decade.Erm, I can't really recommend this film because its hard to actually watch with someone else. Its about as close to watching a porno with a plot as you'll get in Hollywood. The film gets distracted in its multiple sex scenes; so much so that the plot suffers greatly and any interest you have in this long dreary film is lost right away. I can understand mixing sex with Roman culture media (i.e. Spartacus and Rome), just make sure its not excessive.5/10

Yep, I am one of the unfortunate few who have sat through this onslaught of vicious and violent pornography trying to pass itself off as a historical drama. I first watched this as part of a University Dare Night, where myself and my flatmates decided to watch something really racy and preferably controversial (because as we all know, when you go to University, you check your brain in at the door!).So what's the grilling? The film tells the story of Caligula, played by the always controversial Malcolm McDowell, the infamous psychotic, incestuous and delusionally murderous Caesar of Rome as he rises from his frightful youth under the rule of his Uncle Tiberius (played by Peter O'Toole, while drunk apparently), to his dominance as lord of the known World.What are the problems with this movie? Just about everything you could imagine, especially seeing as it is in fact a pornographic film. It's got all the gratuitous sex and perversion that you'd come to expect from a movie like that, the only problem being that it's not particularly sexy, if anything it would probably put you off.At the same time this is offset by incredible amounts of graphic violence, including brutal beatings, stabbings, murder, suicide, decapitation by moving wall with spinning blades, etc. This film really does push the boat out.The acting is incredibly questionable, either because you question what the actors were thinking when they did these unspeakable acts to each other, or questioning how many of these actors may or may not have been actually killed during production. Malcolm McDowell especially, who really seems to be getting into his role as the debauched ruler.I will however give this film two points. One point for the magnificent sets and locations built for the movie, which, now that I think about it, all seemed to have gone to complete and utter waste, and another point for the outfits, of which quite a lot of work appears to have gone into, for the few people who actually wear outfits and don't just wander about in the nude!Bottom line, I really cannot recommend this film on those two points alone. If you want a historical drama, this isn't for you, if you want a pornographic movie, it still isn't for you. It's incredibly violent, not sexy in the least, has no historical accuracy, and is about as fun to sit through as Root canal treatment. Stay away folks, stay far, far away!

Charting the titular Roman emperor's rise to power and his descent into madness, Caligula (the unrated version) is a curious beast. A top-class cast star in this lavish big-budget spectacular, written by renowned scribe Gore Vidal, but produced by Bob Guccione, publisher of Penthouse magazine, and directed by erotic movie maker Tinto Brass. The result is a fascinating epic with fantastic production values, some gruesome violence and a whole load of explicit sex.Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (or Caligula for short), as you may be aware, was the tyrannical ruler of Rome from 37AD to 41AD. During his short reign of power, he ensured his place in history with his many acts of depravity, cruelty and sheer madness. Malcolm McDowell is totally believable as the loony leader who shags his sister, makes his horse a member of the senate and forces his senators' wives and daughters into prostitution. Other big names that signed up for this highly controversial movie include (Dame) Helen Mirren, (Sir) John Gielgud and Peter O'Toole.Watching these highly regarded thesps mixing with Penthouse pets performing hardcore lesbian trysts and blow-jobs is a real eye-opener and really has to be seen to be believed. The film, at a running time of two and a half hours, is quite slow going but it's worth persevering! Where else will you get to see McDowell raping a virgin bride and then fisting her husband, or a man being killed, emasculated and then urinated on. What other big budget movie gives you a smattering of dwarf sex, a machine that decapitates prisoners buried up to their necks and a woman using semen as a skin lotion? The film might be a bit hard going at times, but fans of extremely bizarre and trashy movies should definitely see this one if they can.Caligula is by no means a great film (it is overlong, factually inaccurate and at times I was tempted to fast forward through the slower bits to get to the next 'shocking' scene), but it is one of those movies that one needs to witness first hand in order to understand how truly unique and unusual it is. It's a hard one to rate, but I think I'll give it a reasonable 7 out of 10 just for its willingness to go the extra mile to entertain.