Poll: Banned Films

Results of 4,236 votes:

1. 1.
   

   Back to the Future (1985)

    

   Banned in China because of the government's belief that time travel is a dangerous element in fiction and because the actions of Marty McFly are highly inappropriate. (according to wikipedia)
2. 2.
   

   The Simpsons Movie (2007)

    

   Banned in Burma, where the colours of yellow and red in a film are banned. (according to Total Film)
3. 3.
   

   Schindler's List (1993)

    

   Banned in Indonesia as a film that is sympathetic to the Jewish cause. (according to wikipedia) Also banned in Malaysia, Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt, due to its scenes of "violence, torture and nu…
4. 4.
   

   Barney's Great Adventure (1998)

    

   Banned in Malaysia because the censors found it to be unacceptable for children to watch, without providing any further explanation. (according to wikipedia)
5. 5.
   

   Life of Brian (1979)

    

   Banned in Ireland because it was considered blasphemous. Ban lifted in 1987. It was also banned for a year in Norway, but marketed in neighbouring Sweden as "The film so funny that it was banned …
6. 6.
   

   The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)

    

   Dragon Tattoo It was banned in India for its adult scenes of rape and torture. The Central Board of Film Certification demanded that these scenes be cut, which the director David Fincher refused to d…
7. 7.
   

   Der ewige Jude (1940)

    

   This Nazi propaganda film can presently only be shown for use in college classrooms and for academic purposes in Germany; exhibitors must have formal education in "media science and the history o…
8. 8.
   

   The Hunger Games (2012)

    

   Banned in Vietnam due to alleged inappropriate content. (according to wikipedia)
9. 9.
   

   Borat (2006)

    

   Banned in Kazakhstan and Russia as "offensive". (according to wikipedia)
10. 10.
    

    Ulysses (1967)

     

    An adaption of probably the most famous work of Irish literature by one of the foremost writers the country ever produced and a Nobel Prize laureate for Literature, James Joyce, this film, shot in Ire…
11. 11.
    

    Kurtlar Vadisi: Filistin (2011)

     

    "Valley of the Wolves: Palestine" Banned in Germany, because of FSK's initial concerns over the film's perceived anti-Israeli and anti-American overtones. (according to wikipedia)
12. 12.
    

    Mad Max (1979)

     

    Both New Zealand and Sweden initially banned the film, the former due to the scene where Goose is burned alive inside his vehicle. It mirrored an incident with a real gang shortly before the film's re…
13. 13.
    

    2012 (2009)

     

    Banned in North Korea because the year 2012 coincides with Kim Il Sung's 100th birthday. The year had also been designated "the year for opening the grand gates to becoming a rising superpower.&q…
14. 14.
    

    Noah (2014)

     

    Banned in Indonesia due to religious reasons. Also banned in some other countries, including Vietam and Tunisia. (according to wikipedia)
15. 15.
    

    Monkey Business (1931)

     

    Banned in Ireland because censors feared it would encourage anarchic tendencies. Ban lifted 2000. (according to wikipedia)
16. 16.
    

    The Da Vinci Code (2006)

     

    Banned in Samoa outright after church leaders watching a pre-release showing filed a complaint with film censors. Also banned in Singapore. (according to wikipedia)
17. 17.
    

    Battleship Potemkin (1925)

     

    Banned in many Western countries until after the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953 for fear it could inspire a revolution (France) or promote Marxism (Germany) and similar reasons. (several sources, incl…
18. 18.
    

    Ben-Hur (1959)

     

    Banned in China for containing "propaganda of superstitious beliefs, namely Christianity." (Never given permission to screen). (according to wikipedia)
19. 19.
    

    Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

     

    The film was banned in many Arab countries - but not Jordan, where much of it was filmed with the support of the the King - as they felt they were misrepresented. Omar Sharif arranged with President G…
20. 20.
    

    All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

     

    The film was banned in Germany by Nazi Minister of the Interior Wilhelm Frick on the grounds that it ignominiously represented Germans as cowards. Ironically, in neighboring Poland, that country's cen…
21. 21.
    

    Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973)

     

    Banned in Israel in a unanimous decision by the censorship board that Alec Guinness's Hitler was represented in too human a light. (according to wikipedia)
22. 22.
    

    The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)

     

    Banned in Israel on the grounds that it could offend Christians. Also banned in other coutries for religious reasons. (according to wikipedia)
23. 23.
    

    Paths of Glory (1957)

     

    The French government placed enormous pressure on United Artists, the European distributor, to refrain from releasing the film. As a result, the film was not submitted to French censors, and was not s…
24. 24.
    

    Goldfinger (1964)

     

    Banned in Israel for a short time. It had played for six weeks before the Nazi past of Gert Fröbe, who played the title villain, was disclosed; it was unbanned after a few months after a man went to t…
25. 25.
    

    Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008)

     

    Banned in Thailand by the Ministry of Culture due to sexual content (characters showing how to make their own pornographic video; teens may try to mimic). (according to wikipedia)
26. 26.
    

    The Grapes of Wrath (1940)

     

    Banned in the USSR under the regime of Joseph Stalin, after a test screening in Poland. The film showed that even the poorest Americans could afford an automobile, unlike in the Soviet Union. (accordi…
27. 27.
    

    The Vanishing Prairie (1954)

     

    The Walt Disney documentary was banned in New York in 1956 because it showed a buffalo giving birth. The ban was lifted after a complaint by the American Civil Liberties Union. (according to wikipedi…
28. 28.
    

    The Wild One (1953)

     

    Banned in the UK until 1967. (according to wikipedia)
29. 29.
    

    The Tin Drum (1979)

     

    In 1980, the film was first cut, and then banned as child pornography by the Ontario Censor Board in Canada. On June 25, 1997, following a ruling made by State District Court Judge Richard Freeman, wh…
30. 30.
    

    Catch-22 (1970)

     

    Banned in Portugal until 1974 because of the scene showing Capt. Yossarian naked in a tree. (according to wikipedia)
31. 31.
    

    Doctor Zhivago (1965)

     

    As with the novel itself, the film was banned in the Soviet Union. It was not shown in Russia until 1994. (according to wikipedia)
32. 32.
    

    Brief Encounter (1945)

     

    On initial release, the film was banned by the strict censorship board in Ireland on the grounds that it portrayed an adulterer in a sympathetic light. (according to wikipedia)
33. 33.
    

    Scram! (1932)

     

    According to the book 'Laurel & Hardy Compleet' by Thomas Leeflang, this film was banned in The Netherlands in 1932. Moral crusaders thought that the scene where Laurel & Hardy lie on a bed wi…
34. 34.
    

    Sex and the City 2 (2010)

     

    Banned in Vietnam because of a conflict of "cultural values". (according to wikipedia)
35. 35.
    

    Anna and the King (1999)

     

    Banned in Thailand because could be construed as disrespectful towards the King of Thailand. (according to wikipedia)