It's a list that includes some of the most controversial movies of all-time.

Irreversible, Salo, Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, Oldboy, Antichrist, Natural Born Killers, Cannibal Holocaust and Hostel 2 all feature as part of UK magazine Total Film's 30 Most Violent Movies Ever Made.

But amongst the censor-baiting line-up, some of which have even fallen afoul of the authorities or had campaigns launched against them here, is a 1992 Wellington-shot horror comedy made by one Sir Peter Jackson.

ross giblin Sir Peter Jackson with Braindead's "zombie baby".

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Starring Tim Balme and Elizabeth Moody, Braindead is the story of a man who has to resort to extreme measures to battle a plague of zombies caused by a rabid Sumatran rat-monkey.

In justifying its inclusion on the list, Total Film described the movie as "a giddy and hilarious splatter comedy that's as outrageous as it is brilliant".

Sir Peter Jackson on the set of Braindead during a particularly gruesome scene.

"Squelchier than a baby's nappy and redder than the Chinese flag, Braindead is packed full of deliriously OTT violence. Fancy seeing a baby wielding a lawnmower to deadly ends? You got it. How about zombies that just refuse to stay dead, whatever punishment they take? Oh yes..."

They also looked back at how the Americans initially mistreated the NZ$3m movie, changing the name to Dead Alive, and reducing the original running time of 104 minutes to just 85, removing what Total Film described as "almost all of the messiest scenes". It was also heavily censored in Germany, with the uncut version still banned in that country.

Braindead also made headlines here in 1993 when a Mr Bradley objected to the prominent sight of his family tombstone in a scene shot in Karori Cemetery and took his concerns to the High Court. They were dismissed, although Judge Gallen's verdict became an important landmark in privacy law in New Zealand.