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Before I begin, I should mention that Catfish is a film perhaps best explored without absolutely
zero knowledge about its plot. But, if you've already heard something about it, or had the
ending spoiled for you - it doesn't diminish from its impact or effectiveness anyway. Either
way, I will do my best to avoid any major spoilers... Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman
take us along for an adventure in the life of Ariel's brother Nev - a young photographer
in New York City. It is a startlingly honest and exposing tale, we are witness to a series
of events as they unfold in real-time. We watch as Nev begins to develop a friendship
with Abby, an eight-year-old child prodigy artist from rural Michigan, after she starts
sending him paintings of Nev's published photographs. Eventually, Nev begins talking to Abby's oldest
sister Megan - whom he starts to form a long-distance relationship with... exclusively through phone
calls, and Facebook. Where our trio of documentary-makers take us from here is both exciting, surprising,
and emotional - but it is most certainly not a "horror-thriller' as some trailers have
made it out to be. The filmmaking from brother Ariel is deliberate here... in some instances
almost prodding into his brother's life, but it's these techniques that bring us that much
closer to Nev's private thought-process, and the feelings he develops for Megan. It's in
these scenes of brutal honesty where we see these people feeling nervous, uncomfortable,
and vulnerable that we truly appreciate and emphasize with their respective situations.
"Catfish" is an exemplarily in it's ability to completely immerse it's audience in it's
world for a thought-provoking, and captivating 86-minutes... all of which truly feel like
you're experiencing these moments right alongside Nev, Henry, and Ariel. Even if you believe
you've had the film spoiled for you, this film is poignant reflection of the human character,
and how some of us act in extreme situations, and is definitely worth watching. Much has
been said about this movie's "supposed" authenticity, but in my opinion, it is 100% genuine, and
surprisingly suspenseful. "Catfish", "An amazingly honest character study." Well, that's what
I thought about "Catfish", now see what you had to say in the YouTube comments.
Some varying opinions there, so let's bring in the rate-o-matic to see how we rated, "Catfish'...
an EIGHT and a SEVEN. While this moving may not have been a true "thriller", it was a
brazen exanimation of human relationships, and truly captivating, I thought it was GREAT.
Enjoying it for its engrossing nature, and suspense, but perhaps being turned-off by
some the misleading hype surrounding the film, you scored it a COOL.