9 Fictional Torture Devices That Made Us Shudder

The Ludovico Technique fromA Clockwork Orangedoes not aim for torture; causing pain is not its main goal. Still, it feels unpleasant.it is plenty unpleasantVictims take drugs causing intense pain and nausea. They must watch sex and violence scenes; their eyelids stay open so they cannot close them to avoid viewing.

The device creates a physical, conditioned reaction in the subject, stopping them from thinking about crimes without feeling pain. Using it on juvenile delinquent Alex DeLarge (Malcolm McDowell) shows the film's moral point: what does it mean to be a moral human?It seeks to be a moral human.If someone learns to be lawful through conditioning, does that make them good? Does it matter if they cannot harm others?

Not all torture tools are machines; some are living things. Take the Ceti Eel.Ceti EelfromStar Trek II: The Wrath of KhanA wormlike creature from the barren world Ceti Alpha V can burrow into a human's brain if placed in their ear.

The person becomes very open to suggestion before going insane and dying. Khan uses Ceti Eels to put two officers of the USS Reliant under his command.ReliantCaptain Terrell and Commander Chekov used them to capture the ship under his command.

Many people think the Iron Maiden was a real medieval torture device. Evidence shows it was fictional.It was actually fictional.it stems from modern imagination, not medieval cruelty.

People thought it was an enclosure where a victim was locked and pierced by spikes. Matthew Peacock, a 19th-century collector, put it together and gave it to a museum without any real history. The idea comes from Johann Siebenkees, an 18th-century archaeologist who wrote a fictional account of the device being used in the 16th century.Johann Siebenkees, an 18th-century archeologist who wrote a fictional account of the device used in the 16th century.

We never see the bore worms in the campy 1980s sci-fi film.Flash GordonPresumably, they bore into victims' flesh. We only see the terrified reaction of Princess Aura (Ornella Muti), the duplicitous daughter of Emperor Ming the Merciless (Max von Sydow), when his security chief Klytus threatens to use them on her during an interrogation.

She delivers the line with sheer terror.“No! Not the bore worms!”shows us all the evidence of their horrific nature.

The contraption used against hero Westley inThe Princess Brideis known only as “The Machine.” Somehow, it sucks life from a person's body, one year at a time, causing much pain. Put it on the max setting long enough, and it drains all a person's life. Westley is lucky; the process leaves him “mostly dead.”

AgonizersAre one of two torture devices shown in the classicStar Trekepisode “Mirror, Mirror.” Each crewmember wears one on their belt so a senior officer can use it to punish them for breaking rules.

Enterprise officers Kirk, Scotty, Uhura, and McCoy find themselves in the Mirror Universe after a transporter malfunction. Mirror-Spock uses an agonizer on transporter chief Lt. Kyle to punish him for incompetence. This shows the heroes something has gone seriously wrong.

In Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back.Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back.After taking control of Cloud City on Bespin, Darth Vader tortures Han Solo but asks no questions. Vader wants to use Solo as bait, hoping Luke Skywalker detects his friend's pain and flies to Bespin to save him.

The.Scan Grid.This piece of mining equipment isn't for torture. It emits electrical charges that can make a prisoner suffer in a pinch.

The Mirror Universe in Star Trek: TOS.Star Trek: TOS.This place maintains order through fear. Ship officers use assassination to climb the ranks. The Agony Booth.Mirror-Spock calls the Agony Booth a “most effective means of discipline.”

During “Mirror, Mirror,” the episode introducing the Mirror Universe shows the booth used on Mirror-Chekov for failing to stop an attack on Kirk's life. The device made another appearance.decades later on Star Trek: Discovery.Star Trek: Discovery..

In Jane Fonda's campy sci-fi cult classic Barbarella., she becomes a captive of the evil mastermind Durand Durand (Milo O'Shea). He puts her in a “torture” device he calls the Excessive Machine..

A keyboard controlled by Durand inflicts so much pleasure on Barbarella's body that he hopes it will kill her. Luckily, the brave protagonist handles the pleasure, and the machine burns out.