Roger Ebert Called Caligula “Sickening” & It’s Still Banned In Multiple Countries

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The 1980 film sparked outrage among both critics and viewers, with Roger Ebert famously calling it disturbing. Even before it hit theaters, the movie faced difficulties – its budget ballooned and the editing process became incredibly challenging. Both the director, Tinto Brass, and writer, Gore Vidal, distanced themselves from the project, and Brass was even removed before the final cut. Producer Bob Guccione, who also founded Penthouse magazine, then added explicit pornographic scenes to the already suggestive footage, without informing the actors. Reportedly, the cast was as shocked by the final product as the rest of the audience.

The movie was a historical drama that critics hated, filled with disturbing violence and explicit sexual content. Many countries banned it, and some of those bans are still in effect. Roger Ebert famously couldn’t even sit through the whole film, calling it “worthless.” Despite the outrage, the controversy actually made the movie a box office success.

Roger Ebert Walked Out of ‘Caligula’

Despite a strong cast including Malcolm McDowell, Peter O’Toole, and Helen Mirren, the film Caligula remains a critically disliked historical drama, currently holding a dismal 18% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. While the movie is known for its explicit content, critics also found the story unfocused and disjointed, feeling like a series of shocking scenes strung together. Even the renowned critic Roger Ebert couldn’t finish watching it, famously walking out and beginning his review with…

I found the film Caligula deeply disturbing and a complete waste of time. It’s either the worst movie I’ve ever seen, or that it involved talented people making something so awful makes it even worse. I was disgusted and left the theater after two hours of its nearly three-hour runtime.

What caused Roger Ebert to strongly dislike the film? Primarily, it was the inclusion of explicit sex scenes featuring actual performers engaging in unsimulated intercourse – leaving very little to the imagination. These scenes, along with numerous other shocking acts, were particularly jarring for audiences at a time before widespread internet access. However, Ebert didn’t label Caligula as simply “garbage” due to the sex; the film is also extremely violent. He detailed the brutal acts in his review, and his descriptions themselves were graphic, reflecting why the film was banned in many countries. He described the movie as “sickening” and explained his reasoning.

This film has a reputation for violence, but the extent and disturbing nature of it are shocking. It contains graphic scenes of extreme torture and brutality, including a man being force-fed until his stomach bursts, and another being castrated with his genitals fed to dogs. Other scenes depict decapitation, disembowelment, sexual assault, animal abuse, and acts of extreme sexual perversion involving corpses.

The film Caligula was a box office success, earning around $23 million despite receiving very negative reviews. It faced significant controversy, leading to bans in countries like Canada, Australia, Iceland, Singapore, and the UK. Italian police even confiscated it temporarily because of its content. While some bans only apply to the original, uncut version, edited versions of the provocative film are still available. Remarkably, many of these bans are still active, even though the movie was released in 1980.

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In 2023, the film Caligula was re-edited into a version called The Ultimate Cut. This new edit used original footage to trim unnecessary scenes and better reflect the director’s original intentions. Although it received improved reviews, the film’s controversial content still wasn’t universally appreciated. Today, Caligula remains a cult classic, known more for its scandalous reputation and whispered stories among film enthusiasts than for its artistic merit.



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2026-01-31 18:33