Refreshing change (Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends)

Name: neinel

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Product:	Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends
Date:	05/10/00 (324 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: One of the most refreshing and entertaining programmes of recent years

Disadvantages: None

I'm not a big fan of documentaries but there's something about Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends that I just love. Louis comes across as the most genuine, easy going and likable personalities on TV today. He often seems completely out of his depth and you have to admire his boundless enthusiasm carry on when things go wrong. I particularly enjoyed Weird Christmas, a special episode screened on Christmas 1998, where Louis got together with four guests from the first four episodes of the previous series. They stayed in New York and Louis' plan was to try and get the four very different guests to accept what each other does in their lives, overcoming any prejudices they may have. It was a disaster in many ways because they were all completely different people and the fundamentlist Christian just couldn't accept what the male porn star did for a living. But Louis persevered, as he always does, and tried everything to get the four to become good friends but, ultimately, he failed. This just demonstrates Louis' genuine passion for working with people and trying to find out how they tick.

Many people (at least non-Americans) love Weird Weekends because it remorselessly shames American people in a very clever way. Louis Throux is not a stand up comedian, making crude gags about their peculiarities to their face. Instead, he allows the American public to make fools of themselves by taking a back seat and allowing them to do all the work for him. But Louis' intention is not simply to poke fun at Americans (he is an American citizen himself and only chose to make Weird Weekends in the US because the people over there are much more open about their lives than they are in the UK), it is to gain an insight into certain areas of society such as the porn industry, cults, swingers etc. The fact that Americans make fools of themselves is merely an amusing byproduct of the main perogative. Louis seems to get a warm welcome everywhere he goes and alway
s tries very hard to achieve his goals. Even when he doesn't achieve them, it doesn't take anything away from the brilliance of the show. His interviewing manner is very laid back and it seems too formal to lable Weird Weekends a documentary, it is simply a filmed account of Louis' adventures.

Weird Weekends is immersing, funny, touching, and, above all, entertaining. Louis Theroux has an extraordinary talent for working on television and his exploits are a delight to watch.

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