**Madonna’s Favorite Movie – Long Banned Worldwide – Returns to the Big Screen for a Rare One-Night Showing**
*Published Oct. 17, 2025, 7:17 p.m. ET*
Pier Paolo Pasolini’s *Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom*—often described by critics as “essential to see but impossible to watch”—is marking its 50th anniversary with a rare, one-night-only screening on November 11 at London’s Barbican Centre. Despite its reputation as the “sickest movie ever made,” the film continues to attract hardcore cinephiles and celebrities who are obsessed with this infamous and provocative work.
### The Film That Shook the World
Directed by Pasolini shortly before his brutal murder in 1975, *Salò* has maintained its status as cinema’s most disturbing masterpiece. Banned across Europe for decades, the film was condemned for its unflinching depiction of ritualized sexual violence, torture, and degradation.
Set during World War II in the fascist puppet state of Salò, the film is a twisted reimagining of the Marquis de Sade’s unfinished novel *The 120 Days of Sodom.* It portrays four elites who imprison and systematically violate a group of teenage boys and girls, forcing them into grotesque rituals—including the notorious banquet scene where victims are served their own feces.
The rediscovery of *Salò* in today’s world—an era preoccupied with themes of power, abuse, and voyeurism—has reignited debate about the film’s place in cinema history and whether it should have been made at all.
The Italian director was found beaten to death and run over by his own car just weeks before the film premiered. The shocking nature of both *Salò* and Pasolini’s death cemented his legend as one of Europe’s most controversial auteurs.
### “It Wasn’t Pornography – It Was a Warning”
Marco Lucantoni, one of the film’s surviving actors, speaks candidly ahead of the Barbican screening:
“Pasolini had seen fascism firsthand, and *Salò* was his way of exposing the physical and moral corruption of power. It wasn’t pornography—it was a warning. But it cost him dearly. He was playing with fire, and we all knew it.”
Another cast member, the late Paolo Bonacelli, who portrayed the sadistic Duke, recalled that behind the camera, the atmosphere was surprisingly lighthearted despite the disturbing content on screen.
“Everyone’s horrified by that scene,” he once said of the infamous ‘Circle of S—,’ “but for us, (we were eating) just chocolate and raisins.”
### From Police Raids to Academic Praise
The Barbican screening comes despite *Salò*’s long and controversial history with censorship. In 1977, a private showing in London’s Soho was raided by police, who seized the film print for being “grossly indecent.” The uncut version was only cleared for release in the UK in 2000.
Since then, *Salò* has appeared sporadically in arthouse cinemas but has largely remained unavailable on mainstream streaming platforms.
A source close to the Barbican’s film program commented:
“This isn’t a film we screen lightly. *Salò* still shocks, but that’s exactly why it remains relevant. It’s about the abuse of power, the commodification of bodies, and the way horror becomes spectacle—all themes that feel disturbingly modern.”
### Madonna’s Obsession and the Film’s Lasting Legacy
Over the years, *Salò* has garnered admiration from some of pop culture’s most provocative figures. Director John Waters famously called it “elegantly beautiful, but at the same time you can barely watch it.”
Pop icon Madonna reportedly used to show the film to potential friends, employees, and lovers as a litmus test for compatibility, famously saying:
“Watch this movie—and if you don’t like it, we can’t be friends.”
Despite its grotesque content, *Salò* has been reappraised by film scholars as a radical political statement. Lucantoni added:
“Pasolini foresaw what Italy—and the world—would become. He saw how power corrupts absolutely and how people can consume horror without flinching. That’s why it still matters, even 50 years later.”
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*Don’t miss the exclusive one-night screening of Pasolini’s* Salò *on November 11 at the Barbican Centre, London.*
https://radaronline.com/p/madonna-favorite-banned-film-returns-cinemas-disgusting-movie/
