"Back to selectionIn , three-time Emmy-winning filmmaker David Osit's new documentary, the titular descriptor applies to multiple people: the pedophiles who found themselves the target of popular NBC sting series To Catch A Predator (2004-07) but also the makers of a show which packaged disturbing subject matter into mass entertainment while feigning moral superiority, the slapdash copycat series that have sprung up in its wake and the undiscerning audience for all of these."
"The first uses To Catch A Predator clips, chat logs and phone calls to build an introduction to the show, in which men who've been talking to "minors" online-actually baby-faced young-adult decoys hired by the production-arrive at a house to meet them, only to be ambushed by host Chris Hansen inside, and police waiting outside. The chapter culminates with unnerving unaired footage of the series' final episode, during which one of its targets, a Texas district attorney, committed suicide following a 2006 sting."
The film divides into three chapters. The first reconstructs To Catch A Predator stings using clips, chat logs and phone calls, showing baby-faced decoys, Chris Hansen confrontations and police arrests, and includes unaired footage of a target's 2006 suicide. The second examines modern imitators such as YouTuber Skeeter Jean, highlighting ethical lapses, cash-driven promises, and public humiliation through catchphrases like "You've been skeeted." The third centers on an interview with Chris Hansen and exposes a stark gap between his self-image and public perception. Personal motivations and the director's multiple production roles add wrenching clarity and emotional complexity.
Read at Filmmaker Magazine
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