'Primetime' Reveals the Real Predators
Get ready to sit down for a film that reveals the evil behind both sides of the lens. Primetime is not only a gripping thriller, but it’s also a movie that goes after the darker side of humanity that we don’t like to talk about. Watching Dateline NBC’s To Catch a Predator is some of the most riveting television ever aired. Society shared in an ancient, ritualistic shaming to compensate for its own insecurities. Did Chris Hanson really care about saving young children from pedophiles, or was he just in it for the fame? The movie leaves the answer two-sided, as it’s up to the audience to judge the man.
Chris Hanson isn’t a fan of this film. If I were him, I’d change my mind, because it makes him look far more human than he may be. Last year’s documentary Predators goes deeper than this movie, yet shows a much more malicious Hanson than you see here. The fact that Chris Hanson is opposing this movie on Fox News, the number one advertiser of the world’s most dangerous predator, should reveal enough about his true intentions. In Primetime, Chris Hanson acts like a predator by getting into their mindset.
When we first see him, he’s shirtless in his dressing room, quietly reading the transcripts from a pervert’s chat with a decoy posing as a minor. When Hanson then confronts his prey, he comes from behind the curtains on the upper floor of a house, looking down on his victim. He appears like a Roman Emperor choosing life or death, always picking death.
Chris Hansen presents himself on the show as cool and professional. Yet you can’t help but notice that, with his little wise cracks, he’s enjoying himself a little bit. Robert Pattinson plays Hansen with deep-seated scorn. He loses some composure when getting right in the perv’s face, uttering back to his victim, “It’s not just CHAT though, is it?” When the cameras cut, Hansen morphs back into Pattenson. His serious face drops; he gives his producer a goofy “we got it?” look, laughs, then breaks character when he calls cut. Continually, Hansen loses his composure; something deep from the past is haunting him. Catching the predators wasn’t just fame for him. But a deep-rooted evil he wants to cleanse. His misguided self-righteousness is conflated with his vanity. Hansen doesn’t seem to really care about anyone but himself. He’s distant from his family. While his kids don’t care about his ratings, Hansen finds a son-like figure in one of his actors. Dan Plumb, AKA Decoy Dan (Skyler Gisondo).
Dan’s a guy in his 20’s who wants to just get his Screen Actors Guild card. He was hardly fully told about the decoy job. His disgust with the pedophiles motivates him to immediately power through whatever trauma the confrontations may be giving him. Eventually, the gentle young man that he is becomes corrupted by Hansen’s charisma. Nobody on the set can really reach out to Dan but Chris. The two share an unspoken connection of hatred and fame. What they are doing is indeed saving young kids from being molested. There’s no question about it. All pedophiles must pay. Both want to become celebrities while scorching people along the way.
The most disturbing thing about this movie is not the exposed male genitalia or perverted chats. It’s the real darkness inside of us. Chris Hansen isn’t a monster or a saint. He’s a deeply flawed person who’s like most of society. We all want to be famous. Whether it's as an actor or an influencer, people want fame. What better way to represent that than in a movie that’s essentially about the acting process? Hansens gets into character for his interviews, having to maintain his composure, like how Dan has to pretend he doesn't want to throw up when the cameras roll. When our characters get what they want in the film, it doesn’t make them as happy as they think it will.
The things we should value, like family or friendship is replaced by narcissism. Narcissism doesn’t make people happy. Maybe for small moments when those ratings returns come in, or you’re recognized as an actor instead of “the decoy.” But essentially, when we lose connection with each other, we don’t operate as a society. When television shifted in the mid-2000s from scripted dramas to reality TV, humanity became more isolated. Instead of watching wholesome variety shows, sitcoms, or weekly dramas, the family could turn their TV on during primetime to see rapists get their lives ruined through unintentional comedy. Twenty years later, we’re shaming each other in TikTok Shorts and Facebook comment sections because it draws us clicks, like how Hanson drew his ratings.
Robert Pattinson is phenomenal in this film. Without a doubt, he’ll be nominated for a golden statue. He vilifies Hansen, yet also humanizes him, offering an incredible glimpse into our own inadequacies as a species. Skyler Gisondo is wonderfully cast too. He’s terrified. His freckled face shows how much it hurt to be part of that production. Merritt Wever, as Hansen’s producer, Andie Bender, delivers a great, conflicted performance, too. Everyone is torn about the morality of their profession. Is it really about catching a predator, or catching attention? Director Lance Oppenheim respects his audience's intelligence, asking them to reflect on themselves rather than cast judgment if they’re capable of it.
