Common Sense Media Review
By Andrea Beach
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Compelling docu about catfish victim; some strong language.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 12+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
SWEET BOBBY: MY CATFISH NIGHTMARE is a documentary about Kirat (Hemma Gulhane), a London woman in her early 30s who accepts a friend request on Facebook from Bobby (Anurag Mehra), a prominent member of the small Kenyan-Punjabi community their families are both part of. Over the course of 10 years, what starts as a light friendship deepens over time, until it becomes romantic. They make plans to marry, say "I love you," plan their wedding, and imagine a future together. All after only having met in real life once for a few minutes. As Kirat becomes more and more excited, and then anxious, about finally being with Bobby in person, excuse after excuse starts to roll in as to why he can't make it to London to meet Kirat. Kirat's mental health and professional life start a downward spiral, and it isn't until she's finally able to get to the truth that she's able to start rebuilding her life after a decade-long nightmare.
Is It Any Good?
This is a compelling documentary about a woman's 10-year nightmare with a catfishing Facebook account. Although Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare starts when Kirat is in her early 30s, there's a lot of teen appeal in the story about online friendship and romance, and how you can tell who's real and who isn't, or if you can ever tell. It's a good starting point for conversations with family and friends about online safety, what we can do to protect ourselves, internet regulation, and whether we need laws that can offer justice to victims of catfishing.
Although there are pictures of social media posts, footage re-creating some of the events, and lots of footage of text exchanges, the movie slows in places, with a still camera on a seated person talking for extended lengths of time. The villain catfisher declined to be interviewed for the movie, so the point of view is almost entirely Kirat's. The movie does a good job of unfolding Kirat's story and building a lot of suspense toward learning the truth of what's going on.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about online safety in Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare. How can we protect ourselves from getting into a similar situation?
Have you ever identified a catfisher on social media, or do you think you could? How? What did you do, or how would you handle it?
How does Kirat demonstrate courage and perseverance? Why are these important character strengths?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : October 16, 2024
- Cast : Hemma Gulhane , Anurag Mehra
- Director : Lyttanya Shannon
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Director(s) , Female Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Netflix
- Genre : Documentary
- Character Strengths : Courage , Perseverance
- Run time : 82 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : November 5, 2024
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate