Written by Michael Clawson
60/100
Steamy and improbable, The Voyeurs is Brian De Palma for late Gen Z-ers. An erotic thriller with a silky indie pop soundtrack and twists so far-fetched and silly that they border on camp, the movie stars Sydney Sweeny (Euphoria) and Justin Smith as Pippa and Thomas, a young girlfriend and boyfriend who after moving in together, realize their spacious new loft comes with a clear view into the apartment of a rich and exceptionally hot neighboring couple (who needs curtains, right?). Initially shy about peeking into her neighbors’ sweaty, sex-heavy private life, Pippa’s voyeurism becomes an obsession: not content with simply watching, Pippa wants to listen in on her neighbors too, a desire that’s satisfied by Justin’s turning of a laser pointer into a long-range microphone (not even the most unbelievable thing that happens). Further driving home the movie’s central theme of looking, Pippa works as an optometrist, and of all the eye clinics in Montreal, it’s hers that the woman she’s spying on—her name is Julia—eventually walks into. Wracked with guilt and a sense of responsibility as she befriends Julia and hears how deeply in love Julia is with her chiseled photographer husband, who Pippa has seen seduce practically every gorgeous model he brings into his in-home studio, Pippa gets over-involved in their relationship. The consequences are completely absurd: The Voyeurs is all salacious concoction, with little to no interest in narrative plausibility. The performances aren’t much more convincing than the story’s surprises, and the aesthetic is glossy in the manner of virtually every other new original movie or series on the major streaming services. But on the bright side, at least writer/director Michael Mohan appreciates that there’s still some fun to be had in the all-but-gone genre of trashy erotica.
The Voyeurs Trailer
The Voyeurs is streaming on Prime Video.
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