Louis Theroux: Shooting Joe Exotic

'Tiger King', a trashy documentary about decidedly trashy people, was one of the hit television series of last year. It's star, who ended up convicted of attempted murder by the time shooting was finished, called himself Joe Exotic, and had in fact been chasing fame through outrageousness for many years. Louis Theroux, who often makes films about apparent weirdos, had featured him in one of his own efforts way back in 2011 - this was not someone who was ever camera shy. In this film, Theroux revisits his old material, when Joe was crazy but not that crazy, and reflects on the subsequent story. Theroux's style is the opposite of the makers of the later series; he tries to allow people to show themselves in their best light, even though that was never really Joe's brand. Whereas 'Tiger King' never felt fair, this film feels much less exploitative. Ultimately, Exotic was a wild guy, and the rest of the world is probably a better place for his incarceration. But he was a very human sort of monster, and one who can still command the small screen.