“The Voyeurs”: to watch or not to watch Prime Video’s erotic thriller with Sydney Sweeney and Justice Smith? [RESEÑA]

Although very young, Sydney Sweeney (24) and Justice Smith (26), have a very interesting work resume that has led them to be part of series and movies that achieved relative success. About the first we can mention his roles in series like “euphoria”, “The Handmaid’s Tale” and, most recently in “The White Lotus”. While, in the case of the second, we can mention “Paper Towns”, “The Get Down” and, of course, the commercial entertainment movie “Detective Pikachu”.

Fate would make these two actors meet for an ambitious bet but whose final result does not necessarily leave a good taste. We refer to “The Voyeurs”, an erotic thriller that has just been released internationally by the Amazon Prime Video streaming network.

In this two-hour film, both give life to a couple in love made up of Pippa and Thomas. She, an ophthalmologist by profession, and he, a musician who shoots commercials from home, have just moved into a spacious and beautiful apartment in Montreal, Canada. It is there that, from their first night together, the plot begins to unfold.

As they celebrate their arrival in this dream space, Pippa and Thomas notice that in the apartment located in the building opposite, a couple begins the ritual prior to sexual intercourse. Although initially they are guided by modesty and prefer not to see (for this it is worth saying that in these buildings nobody uses curtains), they finally give in to temptation.

So far we have a first glimpse of what it offers us “The Voyeurs” as for its plot. Everything else will be analyzed in three aspects: the emotional bond between Pippa and Thomas throughout the film, the highly professional tone with which the erotic cut scenes are presented and, finally, the plot stumbles in the second part of the story. .

Throughout much of the film we are made to understand that it is Pippa who takes the initiative in the relationship. She encourages Thomas not only to see through binoculars the sexual encounters between his neighbors, but also (while he sleeps), he returns to his living room to continue snooping. Although initially in favour, Thomas finally changes his mind and even gets annoyed at the mere idea of ​​continuing to ‘gossip’ what is happening a few meters from his house. This ‘difference’ between the two undermines their relationship.

Most of the American media that have published their impressions of this Prime Video tape have influenced its erotic cut. This is not wrong because, although the crime closes this story (but we will deal with it in the next point), it is undeniable that it is the erotic factor that sustains it for 120 minutes. About Pippa and Thomas we will not know much more than what is described above. They share mutual friends. He enjoys taking chlorophyll extract. She is an expert recommending glasses for each type of face. There’s no more.

What we will witness is each of the love sessions that the neighbors (Seb/Ben Hardy and Julia/Natasha Liu Bordizzo) carry out inside their apartment. Then, when it is Pippa’s turn and the images are no longer distant and dwarfed by the binoculars, a series of subtle shots unfold, capable of expressing only what is necessary, making it clear that we are not only facing a sexual film starring by youngsters.

In what there could be greater consensus is in relation to the failed result of many of the turns that the film presents. In its purpose to offer us much more than the story of two snoopers involved in a criminal event, “The Voyeurs” stumbles. Thus, Thomas practically disappears for two-thirds of the film, only to ‘reappear’ later. The neighbor who dazzled Pippa is unable to articulate a flirtation consistent with her age and, finally, the circumstances surrounding the crime turned out to be totally different from those imagined. These and other reasons make Mohan’s film fade in the middle of its weak argument, saved, yes, by a remarkable performance by Sweeney, an actress to watch closely in the future.

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Original title: “The Voyeurs”.

Synopsis: A young couple (Sydney Sweeney and Justice Smith) become interested in the sex lives of their neighbors across the street (Ben Hardy and Natasha Liu Bordizzo). What starts out as an innocent curiosity turns into an unhealthy obsession, after they discover a neighbor is cheating on them. Temptation and desire cause their lives to become entangled and lead to deadly consequences.

Platform: Prime Video.

Duration: 2 hours.

Director: Michael Mohan.

Classification: +18.

Rating: ★★.

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