Primetime Review: Fascinating Character Study of Chris Hansen Through Pattinson's Eyes
Robert Pattinson steps into the shoes of famous predator-hunter Chris Hansen in Primetime, the newest A24 film directed by Lance Oppenheim.
Synopsis:
"In 2006, To Catch a Predator host Chris Hansen sets out to make television history, turning an undercover investigation into one of the most controversial cultural phenomena of the decade."
Cast:
Robert Pattinson, Merritt Wever, Skyler Gisondo, Phoebe Bridgers, Matthew Maher
Release Date: In Theaters Now
Pattinson Nails The Voice and Mannerisms of Hansen
When telling the story of "To Catch a Predator", there is no figure more important then Chris Hansen himself. He's become somewhat of a cult hero with the newer generations, with the older clips going viral on various social media platforms. His presence is so theatrical in nature and it's hard to imagine there are many actors better than Robert Pattinson to portray that. He really plays into that theatrical performance, performing the predator stings like it is a form of musical theater. But even outside of that, we see the mental struggle he is dealing with due to the powerhouse actor that he is. Although this movie is just as much about the enviorment around Hansen as it is about him, you needed a performance like this to anchor the film. You can see from the trailers that he completely has Hansen's cadence down, from the voice to even the small ways he moves his hands when talking. There's even more subtle details that show another side of this polarizing figure - he answers his phone as "this is Chris Hansen" even when it's his own wife calling. This will definitley make viewers see Hansen in a different light and that's due to the generational actor that Pattinson is.
Frightening Effect of Hansen on Everyone Around Him
What's just as good as the character study of Hansen for me is seeing what his behavior does to those around him. The first part of that would be the people, starting with Skyler Gisondo as one of the many decoys used by the 'Catch a Predator' show. If you've seen the show, you know that these decoys are meant to lure the suspects into a certain area so that Hansen can make his entrance and take them down with the help of the police. Gisondo is really able to emphasize the absurdity and difficulty of being in this position. He starts as a unsung actor auditioning for an unknown role and suddenly is thrust into an incredibly uncomfortable situation. Throughout the film we see him commit more into the role and even taking after many of Hansen's qualities. That's a great performance in its own, but there's also a big emotional swing from him towards the end that is just phenomenally acted out. For me, Gisondo deserves awards praise just as much as Pattinson.
There's also Merrit Wever who plays the television liaison/producer for the show and she's very standout at serving as a POV into Hansen's descent. She also offers a perspective into another big televosion program that came up around that time period and it's a really interesting bridge that I wasn't aware of going into this one. Phoebe Bridgers makes her acting debut in this one and she was so good that I barely even thought of her as a musician turned actor. She's another one of the decoys and her stoic behavior offers another look at what the show is doing to the people involved. I'm highlighting all of this because what the movie really does well is portraying that Hansen is not the only one suffering from the controversy around the show. Everyone involved is taking a major risk and feels an immense amount of pressure, which creates some delightfully uncomfortable situations.
Engaging Style and Plot
Director Lance Oppenheim clearly had a very specific style in mind for this project and I think it worked very well. Honestly, it plays into the fact that this movie wasn't exactly what I expected going into it. I expected more of a slow burn, but the style makes it really fast paced and almost like an uneasy thriller at points. The style is executed well through great visuals and a really standout score. The score can play on the uneasiness in the slower moments, but also get incredibly intense towards the end. I was pretty young in the year the movie is taking place, but it does feel that it paints a really accurate picture of network television at the time. At the same time, the whole idea of the show and its place in society feels like something we can parallel with modern times due to the current age of social media. Obviously Hansen himself is doing a good thing by catching people who are planning to do terrible and illegal things, but is there a moral issue with televising it? Should we be focusing on the positive aspects of real life when making a show like this? It's a plot that feels very engaging because you find yourself a bit unsure of how to react to certain parts. There are plenty of jokes, but my theater wasn't laughing a ton and I assume that was due to this really interesting style.
Hansen's Descent Hampered By Uneven Pacing
One of the main plot details of this film is seeing Hansen slowly go into madness by the end. He becomes a serious problem for the show itself, which is obviously an issue given that he is the face of it. I felt that I could see all the reasons that Hansen may start to lose his grip, you can literally see him reciting lines into the mirror at the very beginning of the film, but I'm not sure that descent was executed perfectly. It all feels very all over the place in terms of his personality - although a sting towards the end feels like the true low for him, there's also moments in the first act that you feel he's reached his breaking point. It just doesn't feel like a natural fall and when that complete breakdown happens towards the end, it sort of feels out of nowhere. Again, not because there was no setup, but more because the setup felt a little all over the place. The pacing isn't 100% solid all the way through and I think that contributed to this as a larger issue. There's some scenes that quickly flash showing his mental struggles, but it goes by too quickly to really feel that loss in real time.
This is also an incredibly minor issue, but there were many points where it was genuinely hard to hear the dialogue. I'm not sure if this was a sound design issue or what, but our theater would be dead silent blasting the audio and we were all struggling to understand what was said. It wasn't a big deal at all times, but there were some scenes that were featuring very pivotal dialogue and it was just hard to make out.
Final Thoughts
I'm really curious to see the general audience reaction to this one because I doubt it's going to be what most people expected. For me that became a big positive, since the movie I saw in the trailers would have been far less interesting. The positives are incredibly clear in the performances and the work it does with the characters. There's problems that may hold this back from awards recognition outside of the acting categories, but this is certainly worth the watch.
Rating: 4/5 Stars
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