Review: Watching a documentary about Jeffrey Epstein is like watching a monster movie

Jeffrey Epstein worked his way into friendships with powerful people. Photo: Associated Press 2017

That Jeffrey Epstein was a horrible person is hardly breaking news. The news in “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich,” a four-part Netflix documentary, is just how horrible he was and in how many ways.

He was a liar and a crook. Though he looked smooth, he was thuggish in manner. He was a fraud and a poseur, and he was not only a sex criminal, but also a versatile sex criminal. He was even something like a cult leader, in terms of his ability to find, manipulate and dominate vulnerable girls and women.

The tone of “Filthy Rich” is measured. Its assertions are documented. But in essence, this is a monster movie, where you wait for somebody to kill the monster, except here the climax is not so satisfying. Here the monster dies offstage — he allegedly hangs himself in prison, though a number of experts dispute the suicide conclusion.

One big element in support of the suicide hypothesis is that two days before his death, Epstein transferred all his assets offshore, to make it harder for his victims to get at his money. Assuming he knew he was going to kill himself, that would be an action consistent with his pattern: spiteful, remorseless and — yes, let’s just use the word — evil.

It must be admitted that part of the success of this documentary is that Epstein makes such a satisfying villain. There’s no ambiguity here. There’s no feeling sorry for him, no other side to the story, no other side to the character. It’s a study in a distinct case of wickedness, someone with no conscience and no morals, who was armed with an uncanny ability to manipulate people.

He cheated and scammed his way to a fortune — the documentary supplies the details — and seemed to devote the rest of his life to satisfying his destructive sexual perversity. Along the way, he makes sure to work his way into friendships with people in power, so as to insulate himself from prosecution.

“Filthy Rich” includes interviews with many of his victims, now women in their 30s, 40s and 50s. His method was to find underage girls from tortured backgrounds and have them come to his house in Florida. He would promise them things and then ask them to give him a massage, for which they’d have to take off all their clothes. Usually, they’d say yes. Over time, he created a kind of pyramid scheme, where girls would bring in other girls and be rewarded with a $200 finder’s fee.

He also victimized young women in their early 20s. Several women talk about being raped by Epstein and then trafficked to his wealthy friends. One moment leaps out in particular. One of his accusers, Sarah Ronsome, says that, while she was being assaulted, she soon realized that the more upset and anguished she became, the happier Epstein got.  

Sarah Ronsome, a victim of Jeffrey Epstein, in “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich.” Photo: Netflix

“Filthy Rich” deals with the long, long process of bringing Epstein to some form of justice. It tells how he was able to subvert and derail investigations and devotes considerable time to the plea deal his lawyers were able to negotiate with Florida federal prosecutor Alexander Acosta, who later became secretary of labor in the Trump administration.

Several women talk on camera about having sex, at Epstein’s urging, with famous people in his social circle, including Epstein’s lawyer Alan Dershowitz and Prince Andrew of Great Britain. Both men deny these allegations. Interestingly, though people say on camera that they saw Bill Clinton visiting Epstein at his estate, no one claims that Clinton had anything to do with the women. Clinton is portrayed as just one more of the wealthy, powerful people that Epstein courted.

The movie leaves no doubt as to the damage that Epstein caused. One woman says, “Before Epstein, I was someone else. The way I saw myself was like a flower opening up. Someone took that flower, plucked it from its roots, stepped on it and stomped on it.” 

“Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich” becomes available on Netflix on Wednesday, May 27.

M“Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich”: Documentary. Directed by Lisa Bryant. (Unrated. 200 minutes. At Netflix.)





  • Mick LaSalle