Excuse me if I sound a little disoriented. This may be a weird review. But I just had my head batted around for the past few hours. Not that this was a three hour movie, but when I was done watching Georg Koszulinski’s “Silent Voyeur”, I had to immediately check it out again. This is a rare occurrence and a very pleasant surprise, but there were was a lot going on this film that I don’t think can be fully captured with one viewing. And I think that says a lot about a film when it inspires you to want to see it again right away.
Here’s the lowdown. A naked man wakes up in the middle of the Florida Everglades. He has a wound on his head and is suffering from amnesia. He wanders around for a while, wondering what it is that happened that landed him in this situation, when he stumbles upon an old house. This is when he kinda starts to remember things. He remembers the truck parked outside as his. But when he takes a peek inside the house, he has no idea why a distraught couple is pointing a shotgun at a chained up man. Entering the house and seizing the shotgun, it is now up to our amnesiac to figure out just what the hell is going on here. And welcome to the bulk of our film. It’s a classic he said, she said conundrum as the distraught couple swear up and down that they are his friends and that they were all captured by the now chained man and his buddy who has already been shot dead. Their tale involves the three of them being brought back to the house where they were forced to perform disgusting acts before a videocamera with the threat of death hanging before them. But the chained man has a different story. He claims that the amnesiac was the conductor of this whole sordid affair as he was hired by three very powerful and wealthy men to make a snuff film for them. So the viewer is bombarded with these two conflicting stories that can change detail within a single shot. But in the end, all is made clear, it’s just one helluva trip getting there.
Apart from the gripping storytelling, “Silent Voyeur”, which was shot on film, looks amazing. From moment one you’re drawn in, opening you up for this sick tale if you’re able to stomach it. The cast also does a great job of selling these twisted scenarios. “Silent Voyeur” is an experience and it’s one that’s not likely to be forgotten easily. I hope I haven’t been too vague here as I wouldn’t want to ruin anything for you, but I do hope that this review has made you curious enough to check out “Silent Voyeur” when it plays a festival near you.
