Film Analysis: Catch Me If You Can

“Catch Me If You Can” is a film about the main character, Frank Abagnale Jr., who manages to successfully present himself as a teacher, pilot, doctor, and prosecutor in order to perform cons worth millions of dollars all before the age of nineteen. Frank is doing so by primarily cashing fraud cheques which help make him one of the youngest con artists to ever exist in the U.S. Though Frank uses many forms of deceptions in the film, Frank mainly lies using facades, delusions, and deflections to achieve his status which ultimately hinders him throughout his life. First and foremost, Frank uses facades throughout his whole criminal career in order to cover up for who he actually is. As Frank impersonates to be a sub teacher for his class, an airline pilot, a doctor named Dr. Frank Connors, or a lawyer, he disables himself from having any kind of relationship with the

Frank chooses women he can charm and easily manipulate so that he can make them provide him information about how the banks handle the cheques. When Frank is telling those young women that they have beautiful eyes and asks them out for dinner, Frank redirects their attention from the information they are providing him. Frank manages to gain valuable knowledge which helps him become an expert cheque forger and continue to steal millions of dollars while he is on the run. Frank becomes even more advantageous with his knowledge when he is rewarded with an FBI job and serves only four years in prison instead of twelve years. The skills Frank develops help him later on in his life as he helps catch some of the world’s most known money forgers and makes millions of dollars for the unforgeable cheques he has created. All in all, the film demonstrates that while lying may seem beneficial in some ways, it is essentially causing more harm than good. This is specifically shown when Frank uses his deceptions and lies throughout his