Film: The Passion of the Christ (2004)
Moment: Basically all of it
Call it what you will – a gratuitous bloodbath, an anti-Semitic diatribe, the work of a brilliant artist, a potent validation of faith – but one thing is indisputable: The Passion of the Christ is a savage and merciless piece of filmmaking. Starting with a brutal flogging session in a public courtyard in which hunks of flesh are literally ripped from Jesus’ torso (at one point actually exposing his rib cage), the torture continues with the forcing of a crown of thorns atop his head, further beatings, and then finally his crucifixion, in which the audience literally witnesses Jesus’ every last shudder and gasp as nails are pounded into his hands and feet. The goriest shot probably comes right near the end, when a soldier pierces Jesus through the abdomen with a spear and blood comes shooting out as if from a drainage pipe. You could accuse Mel Gibson of a lot of things, but shying away from mass provocation certainly isn’t one of them.