Catfish (2010) Reviews

• Fishing Scam

  colinrgeorge2010-10-11

  "Catfish" is a difficult film to talk about without spoiling. The sensationalist trailer gives a deliberately one-sided peek at a film which is ultimately defined by its ending. Expectations should probably be mediated, however—"Catfish" isn't going to blow your mind. In fact, the outcome of this social networking mystery is rather straightforward, but no less brilliant for it. This is a film where palpable suspense cedes way to an unconventional and thought- provoking character study. Maybe the best introduction I can offer is that I really liked it. Arriving in a market practically gorged with tongue-in-cheek faux documentaries, it's initially difficult to take "Catfish" at face value. The story begins innocuously enough; Yaniv "Nev" Schulman has just had his first picture published in the New York Times when a package arrives at his office containing a painted replica of the photo. The artist is a 12 year- old admirer, and her correspondence begets a peculiar Facebook friendship. As Nev becomes involved with her and her family, however, he begins to notice certain inconsistencies with the perfect lives they lead online. Much of the build-up feels stagey, and surely something is amiss, because either filmmakers Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman are considerably more talented directors than they portray themselves as, or they are not being entirely forthcoming. The prevalence of the camera during seemingly random moments that become key scenes seems perhaps a bit too fortuitous, and the placement and framing of the shots themselves seem too precisely calculated to have been captured on the fly for this amateur guerrilla venture. Yet it doesn't matter in the slightest. "Catfish" is about calling our willingness to accept unsubstantiated information into question, and thus encourages a skepticism and natural inquisitiveness towards itself. The entire thing could be fabricated, and its creators have a built-in ace in the hole. Falsifying a non-fiction film about false identity could add a brilliant meta layer to the puzzle. That being said, I don't believe that Joost and Schulman invented the whole thing. Somebody get these guys a pen and paper if they did. Rather, I tend to identify with the prevailing online rumor that suggests the ending was shot first, with some or most of the first half consisting of retroactive reenactments. But though I question the authenticity of certain moments, whether or not they are genuine seems beside the point—"Catfish" is an effective film. The foundation of that success lies in its solid technique. The gradual rationing of information and the introduction and unraveling of the central mystery is surprisingly well handled. The plot is obtuse and intense when it needs to be, and the suspense is so potent that some have even been let down that it never becomes an all-out thriller. But suspense has the tendency to be undervalued in an of itself, and the suspense in "Catfish" is an exceptionally executed, integral part of the ride. The film, on the whole, works not only because of its moments of seizing, visceral tension, but because of the greater message it evokes. In hindsight, scenes like those exploited in the trailer featuring Nev and his buddies arriving at a quiet farm in the dead of night seem downright silly when compared to where they eventually end up. "Catfish" has been getting a ton of very positive press recently, and it deserves much of the praise it's received. But backlash follows hype like a shadow, and I have a feeling that those swayed into seeing the film who might not have otherwise will enter with unrealistic expectations. It is a fascinating, offbeat experiment, but it still appeals to niche interests. The extent to which we let ourselves believe that the internet is a direct extension of our preceptory senses can be dangerous—But I'll say no more. I don't want to spoil anything.

• Taking something most of us have done a bit further

  wilderblue20052011-01-05

  I remember in the very late 90's discovering the world of Yahoo chatrooms ... talking this way and that way with total strangers, sometimes being myself, sometimes lying through my teeth. Creating new usernames as a female to talk to lesbians every once in a while seemed a fun thing to do as an 18yr old lad, never succeeding to convince any to talk dirty to me. HA! The things we do. And that is where this movie comes in. Meeting people online ... checking out their profiles and thinking ... "yeah ... not bad", talking more online and getting to know them and developing feelings for this entity, god knows where on the planet, typing their words to you and maybe, just maybe feeling the same way. And how much of it is true ... ? This was an intriguing watch, playful and suspenseful and by the end, full of heart that is a far cry from the gripping thriller documentary style movie portrayed in the trailer (which I saw after at one reviewers request) but none the less, I enjoyed the movie for piecing together something many of us have done ... but just not to these extremes. Give it a go ... =]

• A documentary about meeting someone on face-book and wondering if they really are who they say they are. Surprisingly Gripping.

  cosmo_tiger2011-01-06

  A documentary about a man (Nev) who starts a relationship with a woman he meets on face-book, and starts to wonder how truthful this person is. If you watch the trailer for this movie it is very misleading, not to say its a bad movie but it's not at all what I expected. This is a true life account that I'm sure has happened to many people. An 8 year old girl named Abby starts to send Nev paintings she has done after seeing a picture Nev took in a newspaper. Out of that Nev begins to talk with Angela (Abby's mom) and it carries over to Megan (Abby's sister). After quickly falling in love with Megan, Nev soon discovers Megan may not be who she says she is and plans a trip to visit her and find out the truth. Every once in a while a movie comes along that you just have to keep watching and your not sure why, and when it's over your not sure why it had this grip on you, this is one of those movies. This is not for everyone, being that it is a documentary and slow in parts, but it is very interesting and has an ending that sneaks up on you and affects you in a way you can't explain. At least it did to me. I give it a B-

• Draws you in all the way to the end

  jch_0312412011-09-20

  Don't be put off by the jumpy, seemingly disconnected scenes at the beginning of this film. I nearly hit the eject button thinking that this was nothing more than an amateurish attempt at an 'artsy' film. Just stay with it and you will soon be drawn into an intriguing real life story with a surprisingly emotional twist at the end. The film stirs up a range of emotions that you rarely experience in todays high budget, digitized action flicks. I wish that I could tell you more but that would spoil the whole thing! I will only say this; the film could not have been done prior to the days of social networking where "friends' can pour out their innermost thoughts for the world to read. A very humanistic portrayal of the strengths, talent and weaknesses behind the faces that you see every day at the grocery store or walking down the street. See it and resist the temptation to 'tell all' when you recommend this excellent documentary film to others.

• "Catfish," I Can't Tell You What It Is

  jgregg422010-09-24

  "A shattering conclusion." "The best Hitchcock film Hitchcock never directed." These are a couple of the tag line quotes that appear in the trailer for "Catfish." The movie poster tells us "Don't let anyone tell you what it is." Watch the trailer and it seems like this is going to be the next "The Blair Witch Project." Really, go to You Tube and watch it right now. I'll wait … What do you think? It looks suspenseful and frightening, doesn't it? Well, it ain't, sister. The marketing department for "Hit the Ground Running Films" did a number on twisting this two-minute trailer around to make it seem like you are going to see the next big documentary thriller. What you will see is a study in social media and the human psyche that is using modern technology (such as Google Earth, Facebook and texting) to bring the story together. "Catfish" is a documentary by three aspiring filmmakers. The story begins by introducing us to Nev Schulman who is the main focus of the story that his brother, Rel Schulman, and friend, Henry Joost, are producing and directing. Nev is a young, charismatic photographer in New York City. One of his photos he had published made it all the way to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. This is where an 8-year-old girl named Abby sees the photograph; she draws a painting of it and sends it to Nev. As having been the father of an 8 year old myself, I could tell something was rotten in Denmark from the quality of work this child was producing. Nev and Abby start a pen pal relationship via Facebook. Nev befriends Abby's entire family on Facebook and even talks to her mom on the phone. He becomes close to Abby's older, attractive sister, Megan, and starts having feelings for her over the phone. Hey, it happens. There is an accurate scene where a nervous Nev calls Megan for the first time. Within today's culture of meeting people online, it is exactly how these phone calls play out. People meet online and text and e-mail back and forth until the day comes where they exchange phone numbers and there is an awkward human connection. It's a norm for this generation and they will easily relate to Nev's nervous behavior while tripping over his words when he is speaking to Megan. Nev and the filmmakers start putting the clues together from Megan's e-mails. Through some detective work on You Tube and other various sites they are slowly realizing that someone is playing them like a squeezebox. They get the bright idea to drive to Michigan to confront Abby, Megan and the rest of the family. This is where the movie trailer leaves us hanging. After a long trip, the trio of filmmakers arrives at the barn by Megan's house in the middle of the night. They peer inside the barn...and... and…sorry I can't tell you what it is. I have an agreement with a movie poster. But, what I can tell you is that it's not some 20 year old standing in the corner of a basement in an abandoned house in the woods. That has been done before. It's not even startling, not in the sense that I would expect it to be. The rest of the film spends its time explaining how Nev and his mystery solving team react to their findings. If you pay attention (and, it's pretty easy to do) you can pick up on where the movie was going. There was no big "wow" moment nor was there "a shattering conclusion." It was simply people explaining their actions on why they did what they did. At the end the audience is rewarded because the film's title is explained. Trust me — the end does not justify the means. Should you see this movie? Only if you want a movie that has a lot of build up and very little climax. It would fare better in a small, independent movie theater rather than on Megaplex screens. In fact, I could see a professor using this as a teaching tool in a Psychology 101 or Sociology 101 classroom. It made some valid points about how people can manipulate one another on the Internet. The point is well taken, because I certainly felt manipulated by the movie trailer.