Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends

1998
Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends

Seasons & Episodes

  • 3
  • 2
  • 1
  • 0

EP1 Self-Fulfilment Sep 25, 2000

Louis infiltrates the American self-empowerment movement to see if he too can use trance technique to unlock the secret to personal wealth and sexual attractiveness . But is it possible to be too good at picking up strange women, even if you wear glasses?

EP2 India: Enlightenment Oct 02, 2000

Louis travels to India to witness Westerners seeking enlightenment. In Goa he meets 57-year old American astrologer Deepak who studies meditation. He moves on to meet Mike, who is a follower of Swami Ganapathi Sachchidananda, and Amma who claims spiritual powers through hugging people. He joins Amma on a pilgrimage with 400 believers on their three-month tour of India. He also meets Swami Ganapathi Sachchidananda, but is not convinced that the Swami's techniques differ from those of magician David Copperfield, whose stage show the Swami once enjoyed while visiting Las Vegas.

EP3 Whites Oct 09, 2000

Louis visits the whites-only communities that want nothing to do with a multi-racial South Africa and discovers a world of fire-breathing Boers ("Don't get cocky with me, my friend!") and unrepentant German Nazis.

EP4 Body Building Oct 16, 2000

Louis travels to California, home of the body beautiful, to see if he can join the world of extreme body building. After working out with Guy Grundy, a leading amateur, he soon realises he is not cut out to be a muscle man and goes off in search of another role in the bodybuilding world. Theroux travels to Charles Peeple's farm in Connecticut, where Peeple's has transformed his farm into a playboy mansion for female body builders. While here, Theroux gets a part in a female muscle film being made at the farm.

EP5 Looking for Love Oct 23, 2000

Louis visits a Bangkok marriage agency where Western men meet Thai brides.

EP6 Rap Oct 30, 2000

Louis storms the Ghettos of the Dirty South with his own unique Gangsta Rap Flava. But how will the real-life players and pimps take to a rapper who enjoys fine wine and playing with kittens? And when they talk about "slapping bitches," that's a joke, right?
8.5| 0h30m| en| More Info
Released: 15 January 1998 Ended
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Country: United Kingdom
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006w7gn
Synopsis

Louis Theroux which delves into the weirder fringes of American society.

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otrebmuh I am a big fan of Penn and Teller's Bulls**t! but now that I have discovered Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends, I believe that Penn and Teller may have gotten some ideas for their show from Theroux's. One thing that I kind of like better about Louis's show is that when he interacts with "unusual" people, he doesn't really judge them or treat them as idiots or other names as P&T do. Also, P&T often focus too much on libertarianism which sometimes can be a bit annoying, and Louis does not seem to have a particular political agenda. Something interesting too is that Louis really gets involved with his subjects, and since he has a good attitude, it seems they like him and tend to be open about their beliefs. It's a shame that he only did relatively few episodes...
satanenterprises This show is a unique and highly enjoyable experience. His interviewing style is not only hilarious to watch, but very effective at getting people to expose their most blunt and inner secrets. This means that each episode is not only a learning experience but laugh out loud funny.This also often results in some pretty intense scenes where people reflect on their often sad lives. At this point they either get mad at him, dismiss him, or take it on board. Usually they will simply dismiss or get mad which can make the show a little depressing at points. I would say this makes the humour more appealing to fans of shows like The Office and other British comedies, but also funny for and American audience because of Louis naive character.
frankiehudson Anyone who hasn't seen Louis Theroux in his Weird Weekends series is in for a massive treat. I've just been through two four-hour DVDs from the video shop and it's a delight from start to finish. The weirdest thing was the episode with Jimmy Saville, who really is weird. That's Weird with a capital W.Louis Theroux is such a charming, disarming sort of guy that you can't help but love him. He has this naïve, simplistic manner and way of asking questions, like a five year old set free into a world of adults, none more so than the Swingers episode. And the South Africa episode… and the Survivalists episode… and so on.My favourite is the Gangsta Rap Weird Weekend where Louis tries to become mean and nasty, a ghetto gangsta rapper; somehow, it just doesn't fit, although it's great fun doing his best to be angry, thinking up rap songs on the cuff. He explains how, in the shower, he thought up some lyrics for his rap debut: 'Jiggle, Jiggle, I like you more than a little… do you maybe want to fiddle?' Can a gangsta rappa drive a Fiat? We get loads of questions like that.In the weekend with the Hamiltons, Louis stumbles upon the bizarre rape allegations arrest of Neil and Christine Hamilton, a major scoop for the show as Louis lands up filming the Hamiltons being filmed by the press and TV. He becomes news himself in his role as a documentary reporter/journalist.I'm not sure about Jimmy Saville. I think he is definitely too weird even for Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends series.
Ducktape-2 I'm really surprised that nobody has left any comments on here yet. Really, this show is one of the best ones on T.V. right now. He gets involved with the most outrageous American situations and exposes their stupidity. I know, nothing new, right? But the way he does it is amazing! Unlike Tom Green or any other comedian going out for laughs, he doesn't make himself look stupid. He adapts to his environment and makes the people in it look idiotic without letting them know that they're being portrayed in a bad light. He can do one episode on a White Supremacy camp one day and another about a Black Power group in New York City the next. He really must be one of the best and most interesting reporters in world today.