Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975)

Pier Paolo Pasolini's final film transposed the Marquis de Sade's novel to Fascist Italy, depicting the systematic torture, rape, and murder of kidnapped teenagers by powerful libertines. It remains banned or heavily restricted in multiple countries. Pasolini intended it as a metaphor for the commodification of bodies under fascism and capitalism. He was murdered shortly before its release, and the film's extremity has divided audiences ever since between those who see political art and those who see exploitation.