Ladbible X Whatsapp
  • iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK News
    • US News
    • Australia
    • Ireland
    • World News
    • Weird News
    • Viral News
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Science
    • True Crime
    • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV & Film
    • Netflix
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • TikTok
  • LAD Originals
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • Lad Files
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Extinct
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube

LAD Entertainment

YouTube

LAD Stories

Submit Your Content
Why movie with unsimulated sex scene was so graphic it was instantly banned in most countries

Home> Entertainment> Film

Published 14:30 19 Aug 2024 GMT+1

Why movie with unsimulated sex scene was so graphic it was instantly banned in most countries

The film starred Helen Mirren and A Clockwork Orange's Malcolm McDowell

Britt Jones

Britt Jones

If you love Helen Mirren like the rest of us, you’ll never be able to look at her the same after you see this 1979 flick starring her and A Clockwork Orange’s Malcolm McDowell.

Caligula was fondly described by Mirren as 'an irresistible mix of art and genitals', but there were a few portions of the film that led it to be banned in several countries.

The movie is a historical drama about the life of a Roman emperor, who legend had it demanded to be worshipped as a living god and even went so far as to try and appoint his horse to political office.

Then, after four years ruling the Roman Empire, he was assassinated.

Advert

The film was banned in several countries. (Analysis Film Releasing Corporation)
The film was banned in several countries. (Analysis Film Releasing Corporation)

But people may not realise just how many cuts this movie received before it could be released to the public.

One of the movie's producers was Bob Guccione, the founder of the adult magazine Penthouse, while used some of the 'Penthouse Pets' in the film as extras during sex scenes.

Unsimulated sex, I might add. Gross.

And that isn’t the worst bit.

Advert

British model Jane Hargrave claimed Guccione showed women bestiality videos and got women who appeared in Caligula to perform real sex acts on camera.

Guccione also filmed a number of hardcore sex scenes to be edited into the film, which led to director Tinto Brass to disown the whole production.

Gore Vidal, who wrote the original screenplay, even asked for his name to be taken off the production after rewrites put in more sex and violence.

Critics slammed it. (Analysis Film Releasing Corporation)
Critics slammed it. (Analysis Film Releasing Corporation)

So, what happened when it was eventually released?

Advert

It bombed at the box office for starters.

But other countries didn’t get the luxury of watching the porno film unless some edits were made.

In Italy, the film was confiscated by police as the government called it 'flagrantly obscene', so Italians could never watch it.

Customs officials in the US seized the footage when it arrived but didn’t go so far as to call it obscene.

Even the homeland of most of the actors didn’t like it.

Advert

When film reels of the movie were brought to the UK in 1980, it had to be edited to remove the footage considered too obscene to show on screen.

This included eight minutes of footage which showed scenes of castration, disembowelling and rape.

The film was slammed by critics during its release and different cuts were made with various levels of explicit content.

Then, in 1985 it became the first film with unsimulated sex scenes broadcast on French TV.

Now, you didn’t expect that to be where you saw McDowell, Mirren and Peter O'Toole, did you?

Featured Image Credit: Analysis Film Releasing Corporation

Topics: Film, TV and Film, Entertainment, News

Britt Jones
Britt Jones

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

17 hours ago
19 hours ago
  • 17 hours ago

    Kesha said infamous red carpet incident with Jerry Seinfeld was the ‘saddest moment of her life’

    Jerry Seinfeld said 'no thanks' to Kesha during a red carpet event

    Entertainment
  • 17 hours ago

    Movie fans say they still think about ‘traumatising’ but ‘amazing’ film 14 years after watching

    The film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Brady Corbet and Michelle Trachtenberg

    Entertainment
  • 17 hours ago

    Ex-Superman Dean Cain hits out on ‘woke’ new version of the film after James Gunn called superhero an ‘immigrant’

    Cain also took issue with James Gunn changing Superman's motto

    Entertainment
  • 19 hours ago

    Follow up to The Office is coming to TV incredibly soon

    Expect to see a fan-favourite character pop-up in the follow-up series

    Entertainment