If you are a feminist, this documentary can be nothing short of rage bait for you. We have all seen those influencers on social media who promote hyper masculinity. Louis Theroux explores them in the latest documentary, “Louis Theroux: Inside the Manosphere”. In this, Louis Theroux personally speaks to controversial online figures who are in the business of promoting hyper masculinity and carry anti-feminist views as they sell self-help advice and products in order to help men remain or regain their masculinity. In this documentary, we get to see figures such as Harrison Sullivan, Myron Gaines, and Sneako. These men come across as people who are creating some sort of guide for men who wish to seek dominance in the world. Louis Theroux keeps his job simple; he just listens calmly to them and their thought process. And somewhere, in between the trick questions, the obvious comes out - they think women are inferior to men. That is the bubble they wish to live in, and that is how they continue to live. By imparting advice on relationships and other related areas, this is how they function, telling men that they are above everyone else.
So, now I am sure readers that you have understood why watching this, especially as a female, is nothing but rage-baiting yourself. Throughout the run time, you will feel as if you are controlling your urge to slap these men, who are sadly on a digital screen. Their thought process is sickening, and worst of all, their overall attitude is even worse.
Another issue with this so-called documentary is that it avoids exploring the full consequences of what can happen. It is more like they rage-bait you and just leave you to deal with things on your own. At one point, you are like, wait, what? Why did I just watch, and what did I just watch? These are some of the questions, the answers to which you won’t have, and neither are you going to find. At one point, I felt as if this was more like giving them a platform to come up and openly say whatever came to mind. But why do you need to make a documentary on that? Isn’t their social media handles enough of that? My sincere question to Netflix is, what exactly were you trying to prove? Was it some kind of social experiment? Because I genuinely doubt, since I saw no results at all.
Other than that, the entire pacing at which the documentary works is slow. It goes on and on and on. What did we get out of it? nothing. Everything is just so boring with these insecure men and their thoughts that it becomes rather frustrating to watch. I also felt that these men say such things to get more engagement, even if it means becoming some of the most hated personalities online. They are so power and fame hungry that at this point, nothing will bother them at all.
As such, if you look at the broader picture, you aren’t going to get anything by watching this documentary. I, for once, felt that I wasted my time. But you don’t have to, especially my female readers. Don’t boil your blood over this stupidity that will add to your anger. The last thing you would want to unwind after a hard day at work is this nonsense. Because trust me, if you end up watching it, at some point, you will question why the makers felt an urge to make this, and what point they are trying to prove. As women, we all have already seen these thoughts before. The last thing we would need is a documentary on this.
Final Score- [3/10]
Reviewed by - Neerja Ch
Follow @NeerjaCH on Twitter
Publisher at Midgard Times