Primetime is a Mixture of a Fever Dream and a Biopic

Primetime is one of those films that won’t be for everyone. I wasn’t expecting the movie to be like this, and I realized that Primetime was mostly going for an artsy kind of movie than a biopic. We are following a deeply exaggerated version of Chris Hansen’s old television show that once appeared on NBC. I’m not exactly sure what was actually true when it came to the backstory of Chris Hansen, but what I did learn was that he wasn’t a huge fan of the movie. 

I can see why, because they never consulted him about the production to the film, and they definitely went over the top with so many scenes, but that is Hollywood for you. 

Despite these negatives for the film, I still enjoyed the movie, mostly due to several aspects that the film mostly focused on. The film was shot kind of like an analog horror, along with a bit of found footage. The film was going for the old school feel of Chris Hansen’s old show, and it was one of the few parts of the film I really did appreciate. The acting is pretty good too, and of course, Robert Pattinson never disappoints. 

The movie also did an excellent job tackling the decoys behind Chris Hansen’s operation. 

The Chris Hansen show has always featured decoys, adult actors who pretend to be teenage kids, and I thought the film mostly did a fine job with the story behind the decoys. I have watched several interviews from the old version of the show, and I can see how this show most likely took a toll on the actors at times. 

We followed the backstory of a Decoy named Dan, who was one of the few important decoys back in the old Hansen show. I liked how the film followed Dan’s story. We saw him go through so many emotions when it came to the job. He was determined to stop the predators, but he also felt guilty with taking them down, but I can see how a job like this could affect anyone in some way. Even though they are ruining the lives of these men by featuring them on television, these men chose to be there, and they chose to arrive to the house, knowing that they were going to harm a child. 

Another thing that freaked me out, was when Decoy Dan had his first encounter with a predator. The bastard literally took his pants off to spray whipped cream in a particular part of his body, and yes, this could be seen as an exaggeration, but the decoys did experience insane shit like this with several of these predators. One recent story from the new Chris Hansen show had one predator literally start to remove his clothes once he saw the decoy. This shocked the hell out of me, because these men were truly dangerous if they were willing to go that far upon ENTERING THE HOUSE. 

I get why everyone won’t really enjoy the film, but at the end of the day, Chris Hansen, the production crew, the decoys, and the police departments that teamed up with the crew, are truly defined as heroes that don’t wear capes. 

I wish everyone involved with this tough job, nothing but the best, because they truly did a great service, protecting so many children, keeping them safe from monsters that walk among us. 

And it’s good to know that Chris Hansen is still continuing his job as a protector, along with a new team. 

What did you think of Primetime? 

Thank you for reading!

Emy Quinn