The Scream

Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare

Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare documentary poster
Image courtesy of TMDB. Used under license.

“Almost too strange to be true ”

Kirat Assi spent nearly a decade in love with a man she met online. Bobby was a charming, devout cardiologist who messaged her every day — and who she never once met in person. Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare documents what happened when the truth finally surfaced, and the reality is stranger and more disturbing than anything she could have imagined.

The film's greatest strength is Kirat herself. Her willingness to relive every humiliating detail gives the documentary an intimacy that dramatisations of similar cases never achieve, and the slow unravelling of who Bobby really was is genuinely jaw-dropping.

Where it falters is pacing. The story is stretched across a runtime that saps its momentum, and viewers who clock the twist early may find the middle section repetitive. For a tale this unbelievable, it sometimes tells it too slowly.

Still, as a portrait of how a charming voice on the other end of a phone can dismantle a life, Sweet Bobby is a sobering watch.

What to know before you watch

Is Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare worth watching?

An astonishing catfishing story stretched a little too thin — incredible, but told slowly. 5.5/10.

What is Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare about?

The true story of Kirat Assi, who spent nearly ten years in an online relationship with a man who did not exist, and the shocking identity behind the deception.

What should I watch after Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare?

  • Love Con Revenge
  • The Tinder Swindler
  • Unknown Number: The High School Catfish
See more shows like this.

The verdict

5.5/10