Catfish—a documentary, spun as a mystery/thriller, about a
cross-country romantic relationship built on Facebook—generated
lots of buzz, but also criticism over its honesty, exploitative
nature, and general, well, fishiness. 20/20 investigated,
interviewing the stars and filmmakers. (Spoilers ahead.)
Catfish is the story of 24-year-old New York photographer Nev
Schulman, who begins an online friendship with an 8-year-old
Michigan artist named Abby after she painted one of his
published photographs. He sends her more photos which she turns
into more paintings. Over the next few months, Nev eventually
befriends her entire family and some of her friends—her mother
Angela, her brother Alex, her babysitter Joelle, etc.—on
Facebook, including Abby's attractive 19-year-old half-sister
Megan, with whom he embarks on a long-distance romantic
relationship. Nev's brother Ariel and friend Henry Joost—both
filmmakers—decide to document this love affair. But once they
realize that something is amiss with this family, the