Louis Theroux

[K9]

We really need a thread where we talk about how great this guy is.

His most recent documentary was a two-part look at jails in Miami which was both brilliant and upsetting. I have also re-watched his Las Vegas and San Quentin documentaries recently.

I cannot quite figure what it is about him that enables him to work with his subjects so well. I suspect it is a combination of appearing utterly harmless and non-threatening, and the fact that he never unfairly judges his subjects, even when he actually does pass judgement. Mainly though, I suspect he has immense courage and confidence.

I have never watched a documentary of his that I have not found thought-provoking and challenging. You can find most of them on YouTube.

[IainC]

I thought he was going to be murdered to death when he did the episode on neo-Nazi Christian fundamentalists. He's in a fortified camp somewhere out in Montana with a bunch of guys who own terrifying numbers of guns and send each other Adolf Hitler Christmas cards and he finds out that the minister and leader of the group is a big fan of Are You Being Served (a very camp, British sitcom from the late '70s). He then spends some time winding the guy up about this.

The one on the porn industry was great too.
LT: What would you say was your greatest movie?
Rob Black: Sodomania 7
LT: What was it about that which made it better than 6 or 8?

[K9]

There have been multiple times I have fully expected to see him get violently attacked. In the Vegas one when he keeps asking the guy chasing a losing streak how he's doing, I was waiting for the guy to just slap him. Not that Louis deserved it; he does have a knack for challenging folk just enough.

LT: What would you say was your greatest movie?
Rob Black: Sodomania 7
LT: What was it about that which made it better than 6 or 8?

This, forever.

[Teleku]

I thought he was going to be murdered to death when he did the episode on neo-Nazi Christian fundamentalists.

"Now I will kill you until you die from it!"

[fuser]

Hand's down the Black Nationalism episode was the best TV he's ever captured purely for The Israelites, fantastic as they berated him and gave their presentation  

edit: woops wrong episode title

[LK]

That gambling documentary adequately prepared me for Vegas this weekend.

Nobody really came out and said anything direct about what they were doing. The levels of self-delusion... huge.

[Azazel]

I really need to get hold of some better quality copies of some of these. Also good to hear about the Miami ones - I'll seek those out..

[DraconianOne]

I wasn't keen on the whole "When Louis Met..." series (apart from the Max Clifford episode which was gold) but his Weird Weekends were astounding (that interview with Eugene TerreBlanche in South Africa was terrifying).

His doc about the Westboro freaks ("The most hated family in the world") is also worth watching.

[lac]

I'll have to dig up the Westboro one, I must have missed it.

Miami Mega jails was Theroux at his best. His faux-naive demeanor and great use of silence during interviews always makes people open up and tell great stories.
He does of course carefully select his subjects so they'll be slightly provocative and picks people or situations where he knows his style will work. He also films a lot, sometimes multiple weeks, to edit choice bits into a 50 minute or so special. Still, he's awful good at what he does.

[K9]

Bumping this up because he's doing another documentary series. This time the theme is "Extreme Love" and it focuses on people who care for those with severe mental issues (specifically autism, alzhemiers and dementia). The autism one is good, but is a little bit of a retread on his documentary about medicated kids.

The documentary about dementia though, holy fuck. Watching this was like a punch in the gut. I'm not prone to tears, but this had me on the verge for a lot of it. The devotion these people have to loved ones who no longer remember them, or acknowledge them, or can even process that there is a world out there is staggering. It's remarkably human, and Louis handles it with his usual skill. If you can, you should watch this, it isn't easy watching, but it is worth it.