# Violent scenes in TV/movies that were \*too\* well done (potential spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 9, 2002, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656 "2002-09-09T14:47:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jadis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/87869e/32.png) [@Jadis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jadis)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/1 "2002-09-09T14:47:00Z")
**Sopranos spoiler contained within, proceed with caution** So, I started watching season 3 of The Sopranos over the weekend, and I was a little disconcerted by Dr. Melfi’s rape scene in Episode 30 (the 4th episode of the 3rd season, entitled “Employee of the Month”). Not only was I completely unprepared for it, but it was so graphically realistic, that it made me a little bit ill. While I respect the outstanding acting ability of Lorraine Braco, as well as the rest of the cast of The Soranos, I think that this scene was a little _too_ well done for my comfort. I’m not usually squeamish about things I see on TV, but I sure wish I’d known that was coming up. Guh. While I’m at it, I’d like to rant for a minute. For as uncomfortable as the scene made me, I was also simultaneously pissed off at how they tried to advance the plot by saying “the chain of custody of the rape kit was mishandled, so he had to be let go”. Ummm…huh? Even without the physical evidence, she still could have picked him out of a lineup, he would have had to have an alibi (or not), he was in possession of her Palm Pilot, he could have been stalking her since he worked at a place she went for lunch regularly, etc. There was still plenty of evidence with which to hold/charge him. There’s no way I’m buying the plot device of him having to be let go, even though the story line relied on her not getting justice through proper legal channels. It was poorly set up, I thought. Foo. I hate when writers do stupid things that ruin good TV for me. Anyway…anyone else have movie scenes that are so realistic that they give you the heebie-jeebies? ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/2 "2002-09-09T14:55:08Z")
The opening battle scene in Saving Private Ryan\*\*. The plane crash scene in Cast Away. Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![UrbanChic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9dc877/32.png) [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/3 "2002-09-09T16:07:42Z")
If I recall correctly, the rape scene in _Eye for an Eye_ was a tad hard to watch. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Maximino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e95f7d/32.png) [@Mighty\_Maximino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Maximino)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/4 "2002-09-09T16:09:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jadis \* > \*\*There’s no way I’m buying the plot device of him having to be let go, even though the story line relied on her not getting justice through proper legal channels. It was poorly set up, I thought. Foo. I hate when writers do stupid things that ruin good TV for me. \*\* 'zactly. It was even worse than that, IIRC – the police read the husband the guy’s name, address, telephone #, and inseam. I wasn’t buying that for anything other than a question of whether or not she’d sic Tony onto him. But in regards to the OP, the scene in **Reservoir Dogs** where the policeman gets his ear cut off and then the criminal throws gasoline on him is pretty intense. ---
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/5 "2002-09-09T16:18:21Z")
**Saving Private Ryan Spoiler ahead** When Mellish gets that knife pushed into his chest. The acting, the script, the sound. God that was a very disturbing scene. There are a few scenes in “Once were Warriors” that really got to me and the rape scene in “Once Upon a Time in America” in the car is almost impossible to watch IMO. All of the above examples while being very shocking and potentially disturbing all had their place in the movie in question IMO BTW. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/6 "2002-09-09T16:22:29Z")
The implied foot-on-the-back-of-the-head scene from _American History X_. I also found the violence in _Casino_ a little hard to stomach. ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Spaulding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b5a626/32.png) [@Capt.Spaulding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Spaulding)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/7 "2002-09-09T16:22:53Z")
**American History X** When Edward Norton’s character forces the guy at gunpoint to place his open mouth on the edge of the concrete curb…and then stomps on the back of his head. I may just skip lunch today. ---
**Author:** ![manwithaplan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@manwithaplan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manwithaplan)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/8 "2002-09-09T16:48:31Z")
Ditto on Casino - particularly the beating up and live burial of Joe Pesci’s character. Also, the scene in Taxi Driver when Travis shoots up the house of ill repute. Unusually, it was the sound in that scene which repulsed me more than anything. It also didn’t help that I was tripping the first time I saw it. ---
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/9 "2002-09-09T17:21:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by manwithaplan \* > **Ditto on Casino - particularly the beating up and live burial of Joe Pesci’s character.** Also, when they put the guys head in a vise (I can’t remember the character’s name) and tighten it so much that his eye pops out. As they keep tightening it, he actually begs to be killed. Yuck! ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/10 "2002-09-09T17:39:49Z")
Yep I’m with **SPR**. Some of that stuff seemed very realistic. ---
**Author:** ![DarkWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee59a6/32.png) [@DarkWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarkWriter)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/11 "2002-09-09T19:47:27Z")
The torture scene in **Audition**. That was _brutal_. Sheri ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/12 "2002-09-09T20:59:48Z")
_Blood Simple_ has some moments that are very well done. I was talking from a prop-master from the Startford Festival in Canada. Yep, we’re talking _live threatre_ not film or TV. One year they did _Titus Andronicus_. At one point Titus gets his hand chopped off, on stage in plain sight. They built a prosthetic and filled it with fake blood… and _celery stalks_. The acoustics are great too, so when they sliced off the rubber hand, you could hear the wet, celery crunch. They had people fainting in the audience. ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/13 "2002-09-09T21:03:05Z")
Pardon me, that should have said “Stratford.” ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/14 "2002-09-09T22:58:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Charmian \* > \*\*I was talking from a prop-master from the Startford Festival in Canada. Yep, we’re talking _live threatre_ not film or TV. One year they did _Titus Andronicus_. At one point Titus gets his hand chopped off, on stage in plain sight. They built a prosthetic and filled it with fake blood… and _celery stalks_. The acoustics are great too, so when they sliced off the rubber hand, you could hear the wet, celery crunch. They had people fainting in the audience. \*\* Generally speaking, that particular show was brutal in and of itself! The visual in the film version (_Titus_) when the daughter has the sticks shoved into her arm cavities and blood pouring out of her mouth is insane. ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/15 "2002-09-09T23:18:47Z")
I have only actually watched the hobbling scene in _Misery_ one time - the first time. Now I have to leave the room when it comes on. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/16 "2002-09-09T23:41:06Z")
_Scary Movie II_ was dumb fun, except for one scene in which a bimbo is confronted by the killer and says sarcastic things like “Oh, yeah, right, so like this is part where I scream, huh? And this is the part where I’m supposed to run except I fall and break my leg…” and _snap!_ instant and graphic double compound leg fracture that immediately had me throwing up my hands and going _ewww_. The ear-slicing in _Reservoir Dogs_ was relatively tolerable. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2002, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/17 "2002-09-09T23:44:49Z")
All of _Last House on the Left_. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2002, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/18 "2002-09-10T00:41:40Z")
Another scene from The Sopranos: The Bada Bing! dancer that Ralphie beat to death. The scene from Saving Private Ryan that **yojimbo** mentioned. Does anyone remember Jodi Foster’s rape scene in The Accused? That was brutal. ---
**Author:** ![Aixelsyd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/439d5e/32.png) [@Aixelsyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aixelsyd)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2002, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/19 "2002-09-10T01:19:55Z")
I’ll second Juanitatech’s mention of the rape scene in Eye For An Eye. The fact that the victim was a child makes the scene so much more disturbing. (of course, all such scenes are disturbing). ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2002, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656/20 "2002-09-10T03:09:21Z")
The first death in \*\* Jaws. \*\* I’ve seen it 25 times by now, and I know exactly how it was done, yet it still freaks me out. It looks completely believable. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/violent-scenes-in-tv-movies-that-were-too-well-done-potential-spoilers/127656.md?page=2)