It can be hard to defend Uwe Boll.
The provocateur is responsible for some not-so-good films, including "House of the Dead," "Alone in the Dark" and "BloodRayne." Those films have Rotten Tomatoes' scores of 3 percent, 1 percent and 4 percent, respectively.
He also challenged his worst critics to boxing matches to settle the creative score ... and went through with it. He might be a better pugilist than filmmaker.
He still deserves the right to tell his stories his way. Yet he couldn't fully do that with his latest film. "Citizen Vigilante," starring an uncancelled Armie Hammer, follows an American in Europe stalking violent illegal immigrants.
Judge. Jury. Executioner. The character makes Dirty Harry look cuddly by comparison.
Once again, Boll's filmmaking is rough around the edges, to be blunt (and kind). The film's social commentary couldn't be clearer. Boll is furious at both migrant crime rates across Europe and the elite's willingness to dismiss the worst or the worst or condemn those who bring the subject up in the first place.
The opening sequence alone is hard to watch, but it serves a powerful purpose. The crime in question could happen to anyone, and it must be stopped.
He's got a point, several, actually. And he's courageous to even ask tough questions on the big screen.
Yet his native Germany essentially banned "Citizen Vigilante" on the grounds it's too violent and could inspire anti-immigrant hate.
Too violent? Have they seen the "Terrifier" films? And it's not anti-immigrant but anti-violent immigrants. There's a sizable difference. Plus, the film doesn't portray Hammer's character as heroic. He's morally dead inside.
German officials refused to classify the film under its ratings system, meaning it cannot be shown in the country's theaters, according to Newsweek.
So where are Boll's fellow artists rising up to his defense? Scorsese? Spielberg?
What about free speech goddess Jane Fonda, who just staged a cringe-worthy event to honor unfettered speech? How about Jimmy Kimmel, who claimed without evidence that President Donald Trump nearly stole his free speech rights?
Crickets. And it's even worse.
The media is also tsk-tsking the situation. No outrage. No cries to let the film be shown everywhere. It's how you know the Legacy Media's sudden interest in free speech is as fake as a sketch comic's wig.
Sites like The Hollywood Reporter covered the Germany situation sans anything close to outrage or offense. If Boll's film had a progressive message, the caterwauling could be heard from outer space. As is, they'd prefer not to give it support.
Boll will have to go it alone. But he doesn't seem to mind. He courts controversy and refuses to play by the industry's rules. Plus, he's already teasing a sequel. Or is he pulling our collective leg?
Citizen Vigilante 2. Coming 2027 pic.twitter.com/s02MC8MCSB
— uwe boll (@BollFILMS) June 26, 2026
