A fishy tale

CATFISH can be considered the other, lesser-known Facebook movie, opposite the nerdy blockbuster The Social Network.
Part romantic comedy and part reality thriller, the documentary keeps you guessing all the way through about its truth but nevertheless serves as a slap in the face about the nature of our virtual social lives.
The documentary follows the story of New York photographer Yaniv Schulman, who forged a Facebook ‘friendship’ with eight-year-old Abby after she sent him a painting based on one of his photographs.
Impressed by the quality of Abby’s paintings, Yaniv got in touch with Abby’s mother and eventually became romantically involved with Abby’s older sister Megan, all without having ever met any of the people mentioned. This love story unfolded entirely via Facebook and through lovesick text messages and phone calls.
The trailer warns viewers to avoid spoiling the ending, promising a shocking twist in the end. And a shock it certainly is, as we are pulled into waves of tension and awkwardness as the story unfolds.
Suspicions about Schulman’s online friends and lover spill over onto the actual premise of the documentary, that many have described as a ‘mockumentary’.
Whether or not Catfish is a documentary is not important, however, as it makes us question the way modern communication works today and how it has changed the way we deal with people.
– Delima Shanti