Spoiler alert and all that.

I watched Peeping Tom a couple of weeks ago. It is now or never I should write-down what I thought about it.

Key points

• many things at once is how I see it
• the idea that fear is the scariest thing is liberating
• lots of visual language, some just makes you puzzled, some is obvious
• it succeeded at confusing me at points surely
• effect: not scared but puzzled (which is good, scaredness would inhibit analysis)
• high contrast movie: hilarious/odd/interesting scenes, different personalities, direct contrast and directors tools can be seen or you just feel their presence even if not sure what exactly is there;
• fearless desensitized vs fearless normal
• magic camera aspect I have not resolved - some positive vision probably
• topic of desensitization by the industry
• enjoyed accents

Quality

• all this baits you in for partial-rewatch even though there is some empuzzlement and repulsion present as a general feeling but the director did his work by quality in all regards to cover for the theme effect;
• the movie is like a shopping stall of goods about directing things and producing effects, “things perceptable and the general level is not distracting your from products”, so there should be rewatch value from that for sure;
• it is not at all an ADHD fast-paced salad so you have your time to think about stuff, I liked that for sure, yet it leaves an impresson of being filled with quality material;

Exceprts

That “he is the director” I understood it (but not at that moment) as both:

• some interesting humor about the way the director says “action!” in a way confusable with sneezing
• that the director is not recognized (see part about the initial sequence)

One key scene: breaking window and cops hiding say: “- It is just a camera. - Is it?”. (I think aggressiveness of camera mentioned by Scorsese stems from this scene and the question asked by the director directly)

Ending Interpretation

In the end he found a new subject of interest for him, but in order to acheive perfect focus and stillness he uses his camera again to finish the picture.

Another life traded for the right effect produced, collected at extremes, screaming for attention, focused and amplified by cameras.

Public

After watching it I got to check comments on a popular site and they can’t be reacted upon other than by the phrase “this is hopeless!”. Also given that the movie was initilly taken-down by public and how that affected director’s career. I like to think that the director reserved the honorable place of the initial sequence for them:

• the standards of public are not different from ones of that prosutitute: how much cash is in it?
• public is incapable to recollect what they have seen and unable to recognize the director like the grimacing lady on the stairs;
• the trash bin where director throws packaging form the used film is where public opinions belong;

In this light it would be actually scary for public to see themselves through mirrors in the directors camera.