To Catch a Predator is one of the most influential television programs of all time. Though it ran for only three years, its legacy is still felt over two decades later. Predators is a documentary that looks at the long shadow cast by the series. It also attempts to delve deeper into the deeper meaning behind it.
Broken into chapters, Predators gets off to a strong start. Showing clips for the program’s run, it reminds members of the audiences what made it such a fascinating watch. Those who were not there to see the original run will see how it paved the way for today’s influencers. It is funny, frightening, and satisfying.
The documentary begins to lose its focus towards the end of the first section. In an odd tonal decision Predators begins to subtly defend the men who were caught trying to commit sexual acts with children. This includes using heavily slanted words like “alleged” when “potential” is much more accurate.
To be clear, Predators never tries to justify the abuse of children. It seems like it is trying to humanize the people who get stopped before they can do anything. There is a story to be told here. The idea of crime as entertainment, and the exploitative nature of To Catch a Predator are two possible topics that could have been covered at length. Both are touched on, but neither to a degree that feels relevant. The film even teases that it will delve into a faulty justice system before quickly backing off.
Where filmmaker David Osit does his best work is in the second act, aptly titled ‘Copycats’. The segment opens with a montage of people confronting sexual predators they have caught. This involves lots of shouting and aggression and quickly points out what may be the biggest negative impact of To Catch a Predator. With today’s technology, everybody thinks they can do what the Dateline show once did.
Of course, this is not the case and very quickly Predators shows how dangerous of an idea this is. The most interesting part of the documentary is when it takes an in-depth look at a YouTuber that wants to be like Chris Hansen. From their tatted up decoy to the awful name of their show (Protip: if you catch a predator, do not tell them, “You have been skeeted.”), the whole thing comes off as bush league. It all climaxes when the host tells the person they have caught they will “pull strings” to make sure nothing happens to them. The problem is when they call the police, they are told the cops will not be there soon. It ends up being a two hour wait.
The final part has a powerful title that it is unable to live up to. Much of the time is spent trying to paint Hansen as an uncaring person. While there may be some truth to this, Predators never has that “gotcha” moment that it is trying so hard to get. There are moments where Hansen looks fatigued, but he seems to genuinely care about the work he has done. Again, there is no way of knowing how true that is, but nothing here paints him in a horrible light.
Predators is a good documentary that is unsure of what it wants to say. When it highlights the negative influence of To Catch a Predator, it is an engaging watch. It is funny watching a YouTuber talk about how he edits his videos with police light overlays and uses fake badges while explaining how important his work is. It is less impactful when the documentary tries searching for answers that are not there. While it does not always successfully navigate the difficult tightrope it attempts to walk, it is worth watching.
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