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Top ten movies banned in Ireland - SEE VIDEOS

Ten movies that the Irish censors blocked from Ireland's cinemas


"The Life of Brian": Eric Idle and Graham Chapman in the famous "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" scene.
"The Life of Brian": Eric Idle and Graham Chapman in the famous "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" scene.

SEE VIDEO - Clips from the top ten movies banned in Ireland

Read more: The worst Irish accents in Hollywood movies

Ireland had a long history of banning  films, but even some in recent time caught the  attention of the censor.

Here are  the top ten movies to be banned:

1. Clockwork Orange (Stanley Kubrick, 1971)

Stanley Kubrick's famous "Clockwork Orange" was banned in Ireland until 2000. Adapted from Anthony Burgess' best-selling novel the movie tells the story of Alex and his gang of violent 'droogs' who kill tramps and rape women.

The movie became infamous for inciting copycat behavior. This was thought to be the reason that Stanley Kubrick withdrew the movie in Britain. However, after his death his wife Christiane revealed that he pulled the film because his family had received death threats.

2. From Dusk Till Dawn (Robert Rodriguez, 1996)

This movie starring George Clooney, Quentin Tarantino and Salma Hayek tells the story of two criminals and their hostages who take refuge in an establishment populated by vampires.  It was banned due to its demonic representations such as Salma Hayak's character, Satanico Pandemonium. The ban was lifted in 2000.

3. Meet the Feebles (Peter Jackson, 1989)

This black comedy movies features Jim Henson-esque puppets in a perverse comic satire. During its limited release in the U.S. in 2002 critic James Berardinelli wrote "The stories of these ... characters are told in a disgustingly graphic, obscenely offbeat, and caustically funny manner. Meet the Feebles is for those with a strong stomach and a seriously warped sense of humor. The film is so off the beaten track that it makes Monty Python seem main stream."

4. Monkey Business (Norman Z. McLeod, 1931)

This is the third of the Marx Brothers' movies starring the famous brothers Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx and Zeppo Marx.  The story takes place on an ocean liner crossing the Atlantic Ocean.


As with many of the Marx Brothers' movies the censors in the U.S. demanded that some of the lines with sexual innuendo be changed however in Ireland and some other countries the movie was banned entirely fearing it would encourage anarchic tendencies.

5. Monty Python's Life of Brian (Terry Jones, 1979)

The story of "Monty Python's Life of Brian" is that Brian is born in the stable next to Jesus and is therefore mistaken for the Messiah. It was banned in Norway, Singapore and Ireland because of its heavy religious satire. It was not well received by religious activists.

The makers of the film used the controversy at the time of its release to their advantage. They marketed the movie as "The film so funny that it was banned in Norway."
 
6. Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (Terry Jones / Terry Gilliam, 1983)


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12 Comments

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Adding a few of these to my Netflix list.........,-p
I posted it and the Riverdance on ice on my Facebook page. One because it was surprising that Ulysses would be banned, and the second because I can't imagine how the ice version could look anything like the original. Lots of ice chips flying is what I imagine.
"Ulysses was never banned in Ireland - it just wasn't available.." this is adirect quote to me from long established Irish book publisher. I love it - it says sooooo much about us.
Just want to share - remember seeing Monty Phyton's "Life of Brian" on a visit to London with a friend from Dublin -when I was young - we thought it was very funny and wondered why is banned at home!!!!!!!!
I have seen 5/10 of these.
"The movie had been banned in many parts of Europe... It became Chaplin's highest grossing film." Doesn't that just sum up the futility of prohibition? Whatever the substance. (I see my culture is lacking, too - I haven't seen most of these ;-))
What about Disney's "Darby O'Gill and the Little People"? All the men were lazy drunks and all the women long-suffering enablers. Talk about Stepin Fetchett!
Well, Ireland certainly picks some very good movies to supply free publicity for.
So, why not Star Wars? A whole planetary civilization is destroyed ...hundreds of millions of people killed and it's not banned? We get it about the irreligious politically inspired sex, drugs and rock and roll, but ...
Regarding #9 The Great Dictator-Eire was a declared neutral during WWII and it was unlikely as by 1940 there was no appeasement policy in that the British govt. had already declared war on Germany the year before, after the Wehrmacht had invaded and then ultimately subdued Poland. The PM Winston Churchill fumed that Ireland remained neutral-but given the ever duplicitous nature of the Brit' and theirs political history- I feel it was entirely justified. Please do check your facts better next time! ;)
Appeasement of Hitler and banning Joyce, its great writer. Way to go, Ireland.
The Great Dictator was not a silent film. In fact, one of the most controversial elements was Chaplin's monologue at the very end of the film.
 




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