Having already watched this, it was offered for a review, I watched this film blind, clicking on it unsure of what to expect. The title and Netflix description was so vague that I actually thought it was fictional. However when it started, I was clearly wrong.
Voyeur follows the strange 30 year long story between two men: famous American journalist Gay Talese, who writes about the sexual history of America, and Gerald Foos, a man who bought a motel in order to spy on his own guests.
Gerald Foos says that he is just trying to redeem is consciousness and be remembers for his worth as he describes himself as an investigator rather than a voyeur, after having taken notes of all of his viewing.
The crux of the documentary is whether Talese, as a non-fiction writer, can trust all that Gerald Foos says, as Talese fears that Foos is just attempting to get rich and famous by getting into contact with him with false information. This becomes specifically important at the midpoint when the documentary takes a darker turn, after as serious crime is committed in the motel, alongside attempting to get a story past New York Times fact checkers.
This brings many questions to light about his actions. Isn’t this illegal? Why would the journalist actually get involved at all? Why did Netflix actually decide to make this documentary?
It’s incredibly slow. Weirdly filmed. And for a topic that could actually been interesting, is unfortunately very boring.
The second half of this documentary devolves in to a pity party for both involved, which makes it particularly difficult and frustrating to watch. And with the attempt of a wholesome ending to a story essentially about a pervert, I would not recommend this documentary unless you’ve watched and read every single other piece of media which has ever been created.
