Review of Catfish (2010) by Cristopher A — 17 May 2011

Catfish the film is named for the stimulus that keeps things interesting. (I'm not sure that catfish really qualify, but that's another story) Its not a suspense picture, although there is some, and its not a typical docu-drama either. Its a documentary, although I wasn't sure it was all true and these weren't actors until the end. Confused yet? Can you take this film at face value? Possibly not, but the issues remain vivid nonetheless.

The story begins as sweet, then develops into something strange, weird, and perplexing. What begins as appreciation between a photographer and an 8yr old "artist" progresses into very sexual messages between Nev, the photographer and Megan, the 19 yr old sister of the artist. It climaxes in a face to face meeting or confrontation between Nev, the 2 filmakers, and Abby(the artist's) Michigan family. As usual, online relationships do not translate into genuine personal relationships. Someone has been lying.

I won't reveal any details; since you've read this far, you owe it to yourself to discover this on your own. The whole thing seems too bizarre to be true, yet I have no doubt these things go on every day. I cannot comprehend how people live these lies; maybe someone with a psychology background could explain it to me. Who is being manipulated, Nev? the audience? I feel a profound sadness.