SCAMMERS are fascinating television fodder.
The audacity, the schemes, the lies!
It’s no wonder the past year has had us glued to our screens, binge watching the exploits of Anna Delvey, Elizabeth Holmes, Sarma Melngailis and Simon Leviev.
From ‘Inventing Anna ‘ to ‘The Dropout ‘, ‘Bad Vegan ‘ and ‘The Tinder Swindler ‘, each has inspired a fictionalised or documentary series chronicling their outrageous rise and, in some cases, epic falls as white privilege, the ability to spin a convincing yarn, and sheer nerve land them bank loans, investor funding and luxurious world travels.
If you haven ‘t tuned into the trend, here are the Cliff Notes.
‘Inventing Anna ‘
Created by Shonda Rimes and starring Julia Garner, ‘Inventing Anna ‘ tells the story of Anna Sorokin, a Russian-born scammer who convinces New York’s elite that she has access to a family fortune that will refund all the money she is borrowing from banks, friends and anyone with two pennies to rub together.
A ludicrous and sometimes incoherent story about a wannabe art mogul, ‘Inventing Anna ‘ gets the Shondaland treatment to erratic and sometimes glorifying effect.
Featuring a game Garner who dons Sorokin’s odd accent with meme-worthy aplomb, the Netflix series is worth a watch if you like stories told in somewhat gossipy tones and with more than a little sympathy for the thief.
‘The Dropout ‘
Disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes takes centre stage in Hulu’s ‘The Dropout ‘.
Charting Holmes ‘ journey from Stanford to Silicon Valley, the series stars an excellent Amanda Seyfried as the enigmatic Holmes alongside Naveen Andrews as her partner, Sunny Balwani.
The seven-episode series is based on ‘The Dropout ‘ podcast hosted by Rebecca Jarvis. An astounding look into the biotechnology company that aimed to revolutionise blood testing while allegedly issuing false or misleading blood tests to real patients and running tests on Siemens tech, the series puts a flabbergasting spin on faking it till you make it.
‘The Tinder Swindler ‘
Love is fertile ground for some epic scamming in Netflix’s ‘The Tinder Swindler ‘, which introduces lawless Israeli bad boy, the so-called Simon Leviev (Shimon Hayut).
Told through the voices of the women he conned, the series breaks down the anatomy of Leviev’s Ponzi scheme from each woman’s first innocuous Tinder match to an incredible first date, and on to their amassing of thousands of dollars in debt as
the swindler’s phantom enemies stay after him.
A wild, globe-trotting ride and a cautionary tale, ‘The Tinder Swindler ‘ is a must for anyone currently swiping right.
‘Bad Vegan ‘
As far as scams go, the one in Netflix’s ‘Bad Vegan: Fame. Fraud. Fugitives. ‘ is pretty bizarre.
Centred around Sarma Melngailis, the once-famed owner of Manhattan’s raw food jewel ‘Pure Food and Wine ‘, the documentary employs Melngailis to tell her own story.
Conned by a man named Anthony Strangis, who promises, among other things, to make her dog Leon immortal, pay off her debts and make her the queen of some divine order, Melngailis narrates her rise and subsequent fall with the humility and retrospect of crushing debt.
A scam as strange as they come, rife with manipulation and peppered with anecdotes about the celebs who visited the New York hotspot, ‘Bad Vegan ‘ will leave you stunned at the underbelly of this once squeaky clean and wholesome vegan eatery.
Each fascinating in its own way and offering some insight into the lengths people will go to for money, success or the appearance of it, this selection is a must for people who enjoy their viewing with a healthy dose of “you ‘ve got to be kidding!”.
– martha@namibian.com.na ; Martha Mukaiwa on Twitter and Instagram; marthamukaiwa.com
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