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by Laura Thornley

It’s not like it hasn’t been a hot topic for a while – who are you actually talking to when you are online? It’s a problem, right? It is the subject of laws, police enquiries and of course has maximised the need for the parental lock. Some internet sites let you give it up (your identity that is) with no pretences, be who you want, be someone else – I’m thinking Second Life – whereas other forums are there to (in theory) translate your real life self into the virtual world, let's say for instance, Facebook.

And so it is that the primary subject of this loveable, cleverly constructed documentary is the unravelling of a presumed innocent, Facebook friendship. It’s not an easy task to talk about this doc without letting the proverbial cat - or catfish in this case - out of the bag but safe to say it is a gentle look at the point where the projected virtual self and the actual self meet… without getting too existential.

The story starts with Nev Schulman, a photographer, receiving painted copies of his work from an eight year old. He begins an online friendship with the artist prodigy and her family, and eventually an online romance with her older sister; all documented by Ariel ‘Rel’ Schulman and Henry Joost. And as if this isn’t unusual enough, I’m pleased to tell you, for the purposes of your entertainment, it is only the tip of the iceberg.

The doc is low on budget, but that only adds to the intimate experience of it all. We’re welcomed to the bosom of the brothers and friend as they joke, develop and share the news of the new found friendships online, all propped with the omnipresent digital devices, Iphone, Facebook, Youtube. The documentary’s unfolding narrative gives it the quality of a drama narrative. This fact caused its American release to be shrouded in public cries over its truth claim, all strongly denied, of course. But I guess it wouldn’t be serving its subject matter correctly if there wasn’t a little question mark over its authenticity.

The doc has received press for being produced by Andrew Jarecki (Capturing the Friedmans), but the fact is he only came in at post – production stage. It shares elements with Friedmans in the sense of the story unravelling as a happy accident; the film is the one leading the filmmakers. But you wouldn’t want to detract from what Schulman and Joost have made independently. They have created a documentary that is funny, emotionally charged and should receive great success, particularly with younger audiences. It delves into the pit of the human condition and what we are all expecting from our new social media vehicles. But it also doesn’t take itself too seriously, there’s no finger wagging, just a drive to get at least some version of the truth unstuck from the proteinaceous silk of the World Wide Web. And the truth, whatever that is, may be just a little bit sadder than you expect.

Dir. Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost, USA 2010, 86 mins

Comments

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  Posted by Kerry McLeod on 06-01-11

  DFG Members: Win a copy of Catfish on DVD! Find out more here http://thedfg.org/news/details/880/catfish-on-dvd-giveaway-for-dfg-members

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