Many people, Americans and foreigners alike, consider Florida the most temperamental, divisive state in the union. It is a place of sandy beaches, Disneyland, gators and space shuttle launches. It has huge communities of immigrants and retirees, and wild disparities between the rich and the poor. It is, in short, exactly the sort of place you’d expect Louis Theroux to head.
Theroux’s brand of investigative documentary filmmaking works best in this crucible of opposing forces. Here in a programme titled Rap’s New Frontline, Theroux challenges the narratives around gun crime and drugs as they intersect with Florida’s rap scene. It is the perfect subject for Theroux, who made his name with Weird Weekends and is always most at home when the subject has a hint of farce. His documentaries have at times struggled to toe that line, grappling with overly bleak subject matter (such as LA Stories: Edge of Life, looking at critical care in a Los Angeles hospital) or lack of access, which hamstrung his feature film, My Scientology Movie.
