Anybody who has read any of my other reviews for for example individual episodes of the 'Law and Order' shows, am slowly working my way through writing reviews for all the episodes of 'Law and Order, 'Special Victims Unit' and 'Criminal Intent' with a long way to go, will know already how much admiration there is from me for anything that tackles difficult and controversial themes and issues. The topic here did sound interesting and quite brave.
"Smut" however is one of those episodes that could have handled its difficult topic a lot better than it did, it succeeds at being uncompromising which is good and the perpetrator effectively gives one the creeps. But the execution in "Smut" too often didn't come over as particularly tasteful, and neither did some of the character attitudes. Is it one of the worst episodes of Season 10? No. One of the best? Again no, this is another somewhere in between effort where its efforts were appreciated but with issues had.
There are plenty of good things here. It is well made, intimately photographed and slick with no signs of under-budget or anything. The music didn't sound melodramatic or too constant and the direction is accomodating while still having pulse. Much of the script is tight and intelligent, with Lutz's making one's skin crawl and it did give me chills later.
The story here is very dark and disturbing, doing nothing to sugar coat a disturbing subject and holds nothing back (though admittedly at times it goes a little too far). Did enjoy the character interaction within the SVU, namely the tensions between Stabler and Olivia, and Fin has a few great lines, such as the choirboy one. Can't fault the performances on the whole, with Michael Trucco being legitimately frightening.
However, "Smut" to me could have been a good deal better. Parts of the story don't quite add up, such as the access to the server which is never really explained. The big reveal at the end could have been revealed earlier, like at the trial, and could have been explored more. It is clever and unexpected but the way it's introduced and placed just felt too late.
While there is the disturbingly uncompromising shock value with the videos (and they are definitely enough to make one squirm), they are for my liking used rather too much and felt more of a cheap way of getting to the truth and of remembering. Really did not like how unsympathetic and tactless Stabler was throughout, like his confrontation with the husband. Greylek and Micaela McManus' wooden acting are still deadweights.
Concluding, definitely worth a look but not an essential. 6/10.
