February 1, 1980. Penthouse's pornographic Roman epic Caligula gets released in the United States through indie playhouses and art house spaces. The year prior, Bob Guccione's magnum opus was released in his home country of Italy and was met with shocked viewers and authoritarian action from Italian officials. Caligula toed the line between pure pornography and mildly interesting exploitation, earning it the ire and scorn of law makers worldwide. As soon as Caligula's reels reached US shores, law suits and state bans were thrown at Guccione's feet. Widely considered one of the most extreme, disturbing films released, Caligula had to be cut down multiple times to avoid the ire of the law. However, the most expensive independent film of all time (at the time) never got passed the negative press and censorship attempts from law enforcement, failing to make back it's budget and going down as one of the biggest box office busts of all time.
On this weeks episode of BOMBED!, the Foul House Mates have reunited and it feels...kind of gross. Stand up comic and FHM co-host Daniel Caprio joins Liam Wolfe in discussing his favorite movie, the shocking Roman epic Caligula. Countless lawsuits, a frustrated Gore Vidal, an even more screwed up Peter O'Toole and the creative back stabbing of Bob Guccione are all covered here this week. If only this film had just one cut! It's Caligula here... on BOMBED!