NBC’s “To Catch A Predator” stunned a nation in 2004 by showing how easily men could find and sexually abuse children on the internet. The show’s goal was unquestionably pure and righteous, right? How could a show trying to stop child sexual abuse be anything but good? But after an episode ended in tragedy in 2006, NBC canceled the mega-successful hit show.
Now, a new film, Predators, directed by David Osit, asks us to reconsider the true nature of seemingly righteous stories told in the name of justice. When I saw it last June at DC/Dox, it stood out to me immediately as one of the best documentaries of the last few years. (Pro Tip: Go to boutique festivals like the excellent DC/DOX for easy access to the best films of the year and the documentary community!)
The “success” of any story—whether in a newspaper, book, magazine, cinema, or on a streaming platform like Netflix or YouTube—is judged by the size of its audience.
Fundamentally, journalists, documentarians, and even true-crime podcast hosts aim to find justice. But even when you are trying to do the right thing, that doesn’t mean you are not also doing something wrong.
Does the pursuit of an audience pervert the pursuit of justice?
Can entertaining stories about evil people protect anyone from evil?
The film won’t answer these questions for you, but it will provoke you.
It’s also the rare film that is honest about itself.
It simultaneously interrogates “To Catch a Predator” and a new YouTube spin-off while also examining its own premise. By the end, you will understand the human motivations that led to the making of this film, but that revelation does anything but make the film easier to understand. It does, however, make it an incredible work of art. Do not miss this film.
The film is on a theatrical run through New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles this weekend, then expanding nationwide through MTV Documentary Films.
Watch my live conversation with director David Osit on ‘PREDATORS’ here!
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