"Catfish"

There are very films that talk about the issues that the "Millenial" Generation (Those who are born or grew up after the year 200) have had to deal with. The only film that truly comes to mind is "The Social Network", a film about the origins of Facebook. In that film, and this one, our protagonist is consumed by social networking and the way they deal with how their online profile should reflect their actual lifestyles. In "The Social Network", Mark Zuckerberg wanted to be portrayed as the Citizen Kane of Social Networking, when in fact he was just a young, nebbish college drop-out. In the pseudo-documentary "Catfish", Yaniv Schulman is a twenty-something living in New York who develops an online relationship with a woman living in Michigan. As the romance blossoms, questions begin to arise. Where does she live? Why does she lie about pawn off other people's music and takes the credit for it? Who is this girl really? As you watch this film, you will undoubtedly pose many hypothesis' and come to your own judgement. The true charm of the film lies in the amount of surrealist suspense developed by first-time directors, Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, who make you question reality as much as cyber-reality. The film's surprising and fascinating final act will leave you reeling but, in a way, also a bit disappointed as the pacing of the film changes like the drop of a hat into a saccharine expose on repressed American existance. This film is an interesing critique on how the new generation of facebook-junkies are developing another reality far from their own to horrifying effect but I could only wonder (SPOILER ALERT) if the relationship developed between the two main characters could have been at some level true? Even though the characters were a victim of false reality, they must've shared some intimate moments. Even though the follies of social networking brought them apart, It was the only way to bring these two people together.