10 of the most complained-about movies of all time
“You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time,” such is true for life, and such is certainly true for cinema. Production companies and filmmakers have long thought that they know best when it comes to what audiences want, but often, the most obscure movies can produce the most complaints.
You’d expect the most complained-about films of all time to include the most brutal horror movies or most provocative documentaries, yet it appears by our list that the movies that ruffled the most feathers were the ones that threw their audience totally off-guard. Don’t expect to see the likes of William Friedkin’s The Exorcist or even Tom Six’s The Human Centipede, this list is far tamer.
Largely annoying hosts of angry parents, the following list of ten movies have been collated by High Impact Classification and include a collection of films from 1992-2018 that were each highly controversial, according to direct complaints received by the BBFC. Just missing out on the top ten is Marvel’s Deadpool, which lands at number 11 on the original list, likely being included due to the foul mouth of the film’s protagonist.
So, with an obligatory Marvel reference out of the way, let’s get into the list of ten of the most complained-about films of all time, according to the BBFC.
10 movies that received the most complaints:
10. Beowulf (Robert Zemeckis, 2007) – 53 complaints
Robert Zemeckis’ adventure movie is such a strange fantasy flick, merging revolutionary motion-capture technology with standard animation to tell a peculiar tale. Gaining complaints for its surprising gore and nudity from a half-animated Angelina Jolie, it was likely that parents were annoyed that they took their sons and daughters to watch this 12A and were met with a strange concoction of confusion.
Beowulf’s biggest crime was not its nudity or violence but its awful quality. In our opinion, it’s an unforgivable adaptation of a classic book.
9. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (Jonathan Mostow, 2003) – 54 complaints
We like to think that the majority of people complaining about this film were dads who promised their sons that ‘Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines would be just like James Cameron’s iconic originals’ only to discover that it was significantly below par. Rated R in the US and 12A in the UK, the film drew criticism from British audiences for its foul language and strong violence that saw Arnold Schwarzenegger pull off some pretty gruesome kills.
It’s fair to say that the third movie sparked the downfall of the franchise, with further sequels only consolidating the Terminator’s demise.
8. Red Sparrow (Francis Lawrence, 2018) – 64 complaints
The dark action espionage movie starring Jennifer Lawrence failed to achieve much critical or commercial attention, with many of the few people that caught the film in cinemas complaining about the movie shortly after. Criticising it for its strong violence, sexual themes and sadistic tone, the film’s 15 rating was deemed as far too liberal, with many believing that it should have been upgraded to an 18.
Receiving a large amount of criticism online, as well as directly to the BBFC, Red Sparrow has gone down as one of Jennifer Lawrence’s most controversial films.
7. War of the Worlds (Steven Spielberg, 2005) – 65 complaints
Despite it being based on a far more tame 1953 movie, the Steven Spielberg version of War of the Worlds is a brutal piece of science fiction cinema that makes some brutal additions to the classic story. Starring Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning and Morgan Freeman, the movie received considerable complaints from parents who believed it was damaging the innocence of their children with fantasy violence and visceral fear.
Rated 12A by the BBFC, many people believed that this rating was not appropriate, but this didn’t stop critics from giving it a pretty favourable rating across the board.
6. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Peter Jackson, 2001) – 66 complaints
New Zealand filmmaker Peter Jackson could have gone far more violent with his adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy, yet still many people were upset at the iconic 2001 movie. As with many movies on this list, we suspect that many of the 66 complaints here were from parents who took their children to see this movie, only to discover that it had some pretty violent battle scenes.
Off the top of our heads, we think the killing of Boromir was pretty outrageous, and the birth of the hideous Uruk-hai Lurtz is grim viewing too.
5. Casino Royale (Martin Campbell, 2006) – 82 complaints
The revolutionary James Bond movie that forever changed the course of the franchise, thanks to Daniel Craig’s portrayal of the fragile character, also received a large number of complaints from British audiences. Despite containing torture and strong violence, the film still received a 12A, with many people kicking up a fuss about this, along with moments of very brief tame nudity.
We mean tame as well, we’re not talking about breasts or bums, we’re talking about bikinis and swimming trunks.
4. Closer (Mike Nichols, 2004) – 93 complaints
Despite being directed by Mike Nichols, the same mind who created The Graduate, The Birdcage and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, you’d be forgiven for not knowing anything about his 2004 movie Closer. Though it was rated a 15, many viewers weren’t quite prepared for the level of strong language they heard, nor the strong sexual scenes and graphic references.
Of all the entries on our list so far, we can understand the complaints here, with many viewers taking issue with a scene in which a man asks a woman to describe her affair in strong detail. Did you touch yourself while he fu**ed you? You wank for him?”. Blimey.
3. The Woman in Black (James Watkins, 2012) – 134 complaints
It’s remarkable that we’ve got to number three on our list without even mentioning a horror film. Yet, here we are with James Watkins’ 2012 adaptation of the Stephen Mallatratt play, which attracted hoards of young viewers to the cinema thanks to the leading role of Daniel Radcliffe, hot off the back of his Harry Potter series. With that being said, many parents deeply regretted taking their kids to the cinema for this one, likely spending hours singing them to sleep afterwards.
It’s fair to say, the 2012 movie is certainly a creepy one, truly pushing the boundaries of its 12A certificate.
2. Mrs. Doubtfire (Chris Columbus, 1993) – 152 complaints
You wouldn’t expect the family comedy Mrs. Doubtfire to attract complaints, with Robin Williams’ portrayal of a loving nanny being truly inoffensive. Yet, this didn’t stop parents from hating the movie. Many of the complaints were pointed at one specific scene in which sexual dialogue is exchanged at a restaurant, and for years the BBFC have flitted back and forth between giving the film a PG and 12A rating.
Still, we have to admit, the 1993 movie is still pretty harmless, with its wholesome message overshadowing anything inappropriate.
1. The Dark Knight (Christopher Nolan, 2008) – 364 complaints
The film that received the most complaints by far was Christopher Nolan’s 2008 superhero classic The Dark Knight, starring Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman. With fantasy violence, dark themes and the disturbing sight of Ledger’s Joker, we can understand why this 12A movie was heavily complained about by viewers.
For a bit of insight, every single Joker appearance since the release of The Dark Knight has coincided with a 15-rated movie, with Jared Leto appearing in 2016s Suicide Squad, Joaquin Phoenix starring in Todd Phillips’ Joker and Barry Keoghan featuring in the character in Matt Reeves’ The Batman.
