10 Extremely Divisive Movies From The Past Decade That I Consider 10/10

Hollywood is no stranger to controversial films, from Alfred Hitchcock testing the limits of horror with Psycho to Blonde sensationalizing the tragic life of Marilyn Monroe. Although many films earn their divisive status, often alienating audiences and critics alike, some I would argue are simply misunderstood. Ranging from revisionist Westerns to creepy horror-thrillers, these movies are great examples of creators sticking to their vision at the expense of consensus.

Controversy has created mixed results for the film industry, with some movies sailing to success on the back of division, while others went down in flames. Directors and studios sometimes try and own the controversy, even incorporating it into their marketing campaigns, while others run away from it. The opinions of others should never prevent someone from enjoying a good film and, for my money, some of the best movies of the last decade are also some of the most divisive.

10

Tenet (2020)

Directed By Christopher Nolan

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Tenet

PG-13

Thriller

Action

Sci-Fi

ScreenRant logo

8/10

8.1/10

Release Date

September 3, 2020

Runtime

150 minutes

Director

Christopher Nolan

Writers

Christopher Nolan

Franchise(s)

Tenet

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Kenneth Branagh In The 30th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards

    Kenneth Branagh

  • Headshot Of John David Washington in The World premiere of 'Amsterdam' at Alice Tully Hall

    John David Washington

Armed with only one word—Tenet—and fighting for the survival of the entire world, a nameless Protagonist journeys through a twilight world of international espionage on a mission that will unfold in something beyond real time.

Studio

Warner Bros. Pictures

Studio(s)

Warner Bros. Pictures

Distributor(s)

Warner Bros. Pictures

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After making Interstellar and Dunkirk, Christopher Nolan enjoyed one of the all-time high points for a director, and seemed able to drive viewers to see anything he made. When Tenet was released, I remember the response being more mixed than I’ve seen of any film in his career. The first time I watched it, I completely understood where the frustration was coming from, since it simply doesn’t land with only a single viewing.

Tenet is, admittedly, a deeply cerebral and often confusing film, one that requires the full attention and focus of its audience. In effect, it feels like a blend of Mission: Impossible and HG Welles, and is designed to practically force you to watch it more than once. It’s been a while since a movie forced me to engage with every detail, and I couldn’t help but respect Nolan for what might be his most intricate and demanding plot yet.

9

The Hunt (2020)

Directed By Craig Zobel

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The Hunt

R

Horror

Action

ScreenRant logo

5/10

11

8/10

Release Date

March 13, 2020

Runtime

90 Minutes

Director

Craig Zobel

Writers

Nick Cuse, Damon Lindelof

Cast

See All

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Hilary Swank

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Ike Barinholtz

Set against a politically strained backdrop, The Hunt is a horror-action film that follows a group of captured Americans who are set loose in a booby-trapped ground where wealthy elite citizens hunt them for sport. As the game progresses, the elites notice something is off – and they’re right. One of the unwilling participants knows the game better than they do, and she aims to turn the tables on them.

Studio(s)

Universal Pictures

Distributor(s)

Universal Pictures

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Thanks to movies like The Raid, Dredd and John Wick, action fans like me have been positively spoiled over the last decade. When Blumhouse announced in 2019 their political action-comedy The Hunt, I remember the furor and controversy. However, I also understood that this was the studio’s plan: release a movie about liberals and conservatives fighting at the height of American political turmoil.

Daniel Craig in Skyfall and Matt Damon in The Bourne Ultimatum.

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After watching The Hunt, I can say it’s one of the most misunderstood films of the last decade, in no small part because its strongest critics haven’t actually seen it. The film doesn’t take sides between its two ideologies, instead presenting the audience with the excesses of the political left and right and letting them fight it out. In Crystal May Creasy, we got one of the best action heroes since John Wick, and the comedy landed in every scene. For any true action or satire fan, this movie is a modern classic.

8

The Hateful Eight (2015)

Directed By Quentin Tarantino

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The Hateful Eight

R

Mystery

Thriller

Drama

ScreenRant logo

9/10

7.7/10

Release Date

December 25, 2015

Runtime

188 Minutes

Director

Quentin Tarantino

Writers

Quentin Tarantino

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Zoe Bell

    Zoe Bell

  • Headshot Of Jennifer Jason Leigh

    Jennifer Jason Leigh

Quentin Tarantino’s 2015 Western incorporates elements of the mystery and thriller genres. Set in 1877, The Hateful Eight follows eight strangers who seek refuge from a blizzard in an isolated stagecoach stopover. Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walton Goggins, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Bruce Dern, and Channing Tatum, The Hateful Eight was inspired by the Western TV shows of 1960s.

Studio(s)

The Weinstein Company, Shiny Penny, Film Colony, Double Feature Films, Visiona Romantica

Distributor(s)

The Weinstein Company

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After bringing the Western genre to box office heights in Django Unchained, I was ready for Tarantino to get back in the saddle of the Old West. When I finally got around to watching The Hateful Eight, I understood what the director was going for right off the bat: John Carpenter’s The Thing reimagined as a Western whodunit. The charm here really lies in its characters, each of whom represents a core archetype of the genre.

The charm here really lies in its characters, each of whom represents a core archetype of the genre.

The Hateful Eight ebbs and flows between cozy mystery in a rustic cabin and character drama, and I think that brings out the best in Tarantino’s writing. As with any Tarantino movie, everything from the film’s use of racial slurs to extreme violence earned its share of criticism. However, everything we see is perfectly on-brand for both its post-Civil War setting and the director’s style. It’s a revisionist Western whodunit, and for that reason alone it’s a genuinely unique piece of cinema, held together by a wonderful cast.

7

Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

Directed By Zack Snyder

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Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

PG-13

Action

Adventure

Sci-Fi

ScreenRant logo

6/10

56

7.6/10

Release Date

March 24, 2016

Runtime

152 minutes

Director

Zack Snyder

Writers

Chris Terrio, David S. Goyer

Prequel(s)

Man of Steel

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Ben Affleck

    Ben Affleck

  • Headshot Of Henry Cavill In The World premiere of 'Argylle'

    Henry Cavill

In this high-action film by Zack Snyder, the two DC superheroes face off against one another in a conflict spurred on by the villainous Lex Luthor. The film also features WonderWoman playing a role in the fight against Doomsday and other villains from beyond the Earth. As the world’s two most powerful superheroes prepare to destroy each other, an unexpected commonality brings them together to defeat their real enemy.

Studio

Warner Bros. Pictures

Distributor(s)

Warner Bros. Pictures

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To say that Zack Snyder’s DCEU movies were controversial would understate the division it sewed among DC Comics fans. No movie represented this quite like Batman v Superman, which was panned for everything from its casting decisions to hammy dialogue. Despite this, I can’t help but love the movie for how it went all in on its premise: a grudge match between America’s two most iconic superheroes.

Batman v Superman shouldn’t be viewed through the lens of a representation of the core DC universe. Instead, it should be enjoyed for effectively blending the stylized, well-choreographed tone of 2010s action movies with Ben Affleck’s Dark Knight paying homage to Frank Miller’s work. I’d never claim the movie deserves an Oscar, but I rank it among the best DC movies there is for an action fan. The film’s third act alone gave us some of the best Batman action we’ve ever seen.

6

Civil War (2024)

Directed By Alex Garland

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Civil War

R

Action

Drama

ScreenRant logo

7/10

27

7.1/10

Release Date

April 12, 2024

Runtime

109 Minutes

Director

Alex Garland

Writers

Alex Garland

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Kirsten Dunst

    Kirsten Dunst

    Lee

  • Headshot Of Wagner Moura

    Wagner Moura

    Joel

Civil War is a 2024 action thriller from writer and director Alex Garland. Starring Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, and Stephen McKinley Henderson, Civil War takes place in the near future and shows the United States entering a new Civil War after California and Texas attempt to separate from the country.

Main Genre

Thriller

Studio(s)

DNA Films

Distributor(s)

A24

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It shouldn’t come as any surprise that a movie titled Civil War would divide its audience. Exploring a possible future for America where the nation is divided into different factions at war, the film follows a team of journalists as they document the conflict. As they push on, they’re met with dangerous characters and the horrors of war, costing some of them their lives.

Imagery from Apocalypse Now and Saving Private Ryan

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Civil War has a clear message: war truly is Hell and nobody wins. A warning of national conflict needs to be bleak to be effective, and Garland does a commendable job of highlighting this. While some wanted an epic, Call of Duty-inspired action movie, the grounded, harsh tour of the after-effects of war and how it brings out the worst in people did the premise justice. I understand not everyone got what they wanted, but I found the movie’s intensity a perfect match for its themes and message.

5

Halloween Kills (2021)

Directed By David Gordon Green

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Halloween Kills

R

Horror

Thriller

ScreenRant logo

4/10

8/10

Release Date

October 15, 2021

Runtime

105 Minutes

Director

David Gordon Green

Writers

David Gordon Green, Scott Teems, Danny McBride

Prequel(s)

Halloween, Halloween

Cast

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  • halloween-ends-poster-laurie-strode-michael-myers.jpg

    James Jude Courtney

  • Headshot Of Anthony Michael Hall In The Apple TV+'s 'Ted Lasso' Season 3 FYC Red Carpet

    Anthony Michael Hall

In the sequel to 2018’s Halloween, Halloweek Kills sees the Strode family minutes after they left masked monster Michael Myers caged and burning in their basement; Laurie is rushed to the hospital with life-threatening injuries, believing she finally killed her lifelong tormentor. But his ritual bloodbath resumes when Michael manages to survive. The Strode women join a group of other survivors of Michael’s first rampage, deciding to take matters into their own hands to end Haddonfield’s killer once and for all.

Story By

John Carpenter, Debra Hill

Studio(s)

Blumhouse Productions, MiraMax, Trancas International, Rough House Pictures

Distributor(s)

Universal Pictures

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After the disappointment of Rob Zombie’s Halloween, I was immediately ready for the franchise to get back to basics. When David Gordon Green released his 2018 requel, I was taken right back to the world John Carpenter created. Following Michael Myers’ return to Haddonfield forty years after his night of horror, Halloween Kills gets right back into the action of the prior movie, adding a message about paranoia and mob justice.

Halloween Kills was created more as a piece of slasher fan service than anything else. Here, Green gave the audience enough credit to take a break from building the lore of Michael Myers and just give fans a borderline action movie. By this point, we all knew what the Halloween franchise was, and there was no need to build up the suspense already established by the 2018 movie. For my money, there’s no slasher movie as rewatchable as this.

4

The Whale (2022)

Directed By Darren Aronofsky

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The Whale

r

Drama

ScreenRant logo

6/10

8/10

Release Date

December 9, 2022

Runtime

117 minutes

Director

Darren Aronofsky

Writers

Samuel D. Hunter

Cast

See All

  • Headshot Of Brendan Fraser

    Brendan Fraser

  • Headshot Of Sadie Sink

    Sadie Sink

Directed by Darren Aronofsky, The Whale is based on a 2012 stage play of the same name by Samuel D. Hunter. The film star Brenden Fraser as Charlie, a reclusive and obese English teacher who, faced with his own mortality and guilt-ridden over his past, attempts to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter Ellie, played by Sadie Sink. The film was part of Fraser’s comeback to acting and earned him an Academy Award for Best Actor. 

Studio(s)

A24

Distributor(s)

A24

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After enjoying Doom Patrol, I was ready to see more dramatic acting from Brendan Fraser on the big screen. In The Whale, that’s exactly what I got as I watched the story of a man struggling through depression, just trying to build a relationship with his estranged daughter. When I found out the movie had attracted controversy, I didn’t understand it, especially when I found out how little of it had to do with the film itself.

The main criticism of The Whale seems to be Brendan Fraser’s use of a bodysuit and a straight actor playing a gay character. Surely, however, anyone who can appreciate the skill of good acting could focus on the story and performances over the superficial side of production. The movie helped Fraser re-establish himself as a Hollywood icon for modern audiences, and that alone should have earned Aronofsky’s film universal high praise — let alone the heartbreaking experience of its narrative.

3

Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood (2019)

Directed By Quentin Tarantino

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Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

R

Comedy

Drama

ScreenRant logo

8/10

9.4/10

Release Date

July 26, 2019

Runtime

159 minutes

Director

Quentin Tarantino

Writers

Quentin Tarantino

Cast

See All

  • Headshot Of Tim Roth

    Tim Roth

  • Headshot Of Margot Robbie In The 10th Annual Breakthrough Prize Ceremony

    Margot Robbie

Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, which takes place in Los Angeles in 1969, at the height of hippy Hollywood. The two lead characters are Rick Dalton, the former star of a western TV series, and his longtime stunt double Cliff Booth. Both struggle to make it in a Hollywood they don’t recognize anymore, but Rick soon realizes he’s the next-door neighbor of the infamous Sharon Tate.

Studio(s)

Columbia Pictures, Heyday Films, Bona Film Group, Visiona Romantica

Distributor(s)

Sony Pictures Releasing

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After Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood released, it quickly became one of Tarantino’s most controversial movies. From people insisting the film carried sexist undertones to its treatment of Bruce Lee, it was hard to get away from criticism of both the story and the director himself. However, many of those critics missed the point of the movie as a ’70s-style buddy comedy that tours a revisionist version of Hollywood, one that peels away the rose-tinted image audiences have of the era.

Custom image of Samuel L. Jackson and Pam Grier

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Quentin Tarantino holds Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood up as his personal favorite of his own movies, and I can completely understand why. The film is one big love-letter to one of the industry’s most consequential periods, and masters the buddy hangout dynamic the director incorporates into most of his movies. I can see why fans of his action-focused stories might not love it, but it has some of the best comedy of its decade, as well as great characters and phenomenal acting.

2

Clerks III (2022)

Directed By Kevin Smith

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Clerks 3

R

Comedy

Release Date

September 13, 2022

Runtime

115 minutes

Director

Kevin Smith

Writers

Kevin Smith

Prequel(s)

Clerks, Clerks 2

Cast

See All

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Brian O’Halloran

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Jeff Anderson

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Trevor Fehrman

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Austin Zajur

Following up years after Clerks II, Clerks III returns to the iconic Quick Stop/VHS strip location that’s been around since the first film. In this third entry in the Clerks series, Randal Graves has just had a heart attack. Upon his recovery, he realizes he wants to finally push ahead by making a film about his life surrounding the Quick Stop and his best friend, Dante Hicks.

Studio(s)

Lionsgate

Distributor(s)

Lionsgate

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Since making Clerks in 1994, Kevin Smith has been one of the most renowned comedy directors of the last thirty years, thanks to the characters of the View Askewniverse. In Clerks III, he returned to the dynamic of Dante and Randall, but the film’s tragic, heartbreaking tone wasn’t what fans of his raunchy series were expecting. Focusing on Randall’s attempt to make a self-biopic after a heart attack, the film ties up loose ends from prior movies in a heartfelt way.

For me, the film was more a symbol of Smith’s own evolution as a film-maker, telling a story of introspection, love and personal growth more than anything.

Clerks III disappointed many fans who were shocked and, in some cases, angry to see the death of Dante, as well as the movie’s overall melancholy tone. For me, the film was more a symbol of Smith’s own evolution as a film-maker, telling a story of introspection, love and personal growth more than anything. After the disappointment of Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, this movie fully restored my faith in Smith’s ability to tell a meaningful but still funny story.

1

Longlegs (2024)

Directed By Osgood Perkins

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Longlegs

R

Horror

Thriller

ScreenRant logo

7/10

16

7.8/10

Release Date

July 12, 2024

Runtime

101 Minutes

Director

Oz Perkins

Writers

Oz Perkins

Cast

See All

  • Headshot Of Maika Monroe In The PUMA x Balmain Launch Event

    Maika Monroe

  • Headshot Of Nicolas Cage In The 77th Cannes Film Festival 'The Surfer' Premiere

    Nicolas Cage

Longlegs is a horror thriller film by writer-director Osgood Perkins. When FBI agent Lee Harker is assigned to a serial killer cold case, their investigation leads them down a rabbit hole riddled with disturbing discoveries and the occult at the center of it all. When the trail of evidence reveals a personal connection, it becomes a race against time to prevent another murder.

Main Genre

Horror

Studio(s)

C2 Motion Picture Group, Saturn Films

Distributor(s)

Neon

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Longlegs was one of those movies that, once the trailer dropped, horror and thriller fans were incensed, myself included. With Nicolas Cage taking on the role of a Satanist serial killer, there was rarely a moment when the film didn’t make me feel uncomfortable in the way any good occult story should. For many, the experience was too slow and underwhelming, something I can understand even if I don’t agree. What I experienced was closer to this generation’s Silence of the Lambs.

Longlegs is, to me, a movie that should be enjoyed for its tone and atmosphere more than anything else. The story is good, but it’s really the never-ending sense of existential dread that defines the movie and makes it worth a watch. From Nicolas Cage turning in one of the most disturbing, over-the-top roles of his career to the sheer creepiness of the story, it’s worth the watch. I understand some people wanted more, but it was the ambiguity of the story that made it the masterpiece it is.

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