La madre de las estafas

Very good documentary.

I was asking myself, if everyone in this documentary are the real protagonists, or if they are impersonated by actors.. the reason is that there is so many documents footage, and they appeared to be in superior quality, i know that phones can produce very good stuff, but here, you got more the impression of watching a movie than any stuff through Tik-tok... I mean, we see all along the movie shots of the (horrible) mother that are in a very good quality... Well, however, watch this documentary, it's very well made, and i feel very sorry for this man and his awful mum. This kind of reminded me the novel of John Waters "liar mouth" , about a con artist, except in this documentary , the mum is even worst than the awful woman described by John Waters. Being WORST than a John Waters's character ... WOW!

Well. This is a toe-curlingly agonising watch!

Con Mum is an above average con story documentary.

A vulnerable man and his partner are expecting a baby, when an old woman comes into their lives seemingly out of nowhere. What unfolds is a story of mind-boggling amoral manipulation, greed and financial destruction. No spoilers.

The power of this show comes from the honesty of the real-life protagonists in front of the cameras. All of them, except one. We really feel for those on the receiving end, especially and particularly the vulnerable man and his family. It's appalling to watch. Shredding. Chilling.

Even so - we learn a whole lot about one of our human conditions: the need we have to want to believe. Once a scammer knows this vulnerability about us - they have us.... That's what's happened here in Con Mum.

Recommended.

We are used to seeing Romance scams and other types of scams but this, is different. You have to put yourself in Graham's shoes just as one would for people who were given up for adoption and yearning for that missing part of them. Unlike romance, this, is biological and hard to understand unless, you have grown up without one or both biological parent(s).

Cannot believe that woman at that age is still scamming. Certain, has done so all her life. Poor Graham.

As for those wondering why Graham seemed so non-chalant narrating the story, he has been through a lot and i wish him and family well.

Graham and Heather are excited about the imminent birth of their child, but their world it rocked, when Graham gets a message from Dionne,who claims to be his long lost mother, and a relative of The Sultan of Brunei, a woman who's apparently hugely wealthy. Dionne is quick to buy gifts for Graham and Heather, but bizarrely she's soon asking for money.

It is a very well made and fascinating documentary, in this day and age where there isn't a single day where there isn't a story about some sort of scam or dodgy scheme, it seems so odd that it can still be happening, but it continues to happen.

The way Dionne manipulated poor Graham was cruel, she really took advantage of that need in him to find love, to find a place of belonging. It took Graham some time to realise what was going on.

I don't know why, but when I think of scammers, I think of attractive, younger people, I don't often think of old ladies, it just goes to show, you should never trust anyone on face value.

It's so incredibly sad to learn that the couple split, they seemed so much in love, so happy, Graham man you should have gone to your wife and new born at Christmas, you can understand why Heather got so angry, mum or not.

What an evil woman, Dionne has done nothing but take from Graham, from start to finish, karma, one can only hope.

It's a fascinating watch.

9/10.

While the villain here is obviously the mum, the real villain to me is the son. Like his mum, Graham exhibits no real joy or anger or any genuine emotion. His cold retelling the story, his limp excuses, his emotionless expression, his negligence of his wife and son are all that needs to be told. Like so many people bordering on sociopathy, Graham tells a good tale and the doc makes it seems like he's a good guy, a victim. But he's not. Heather and his son are the real victims.

While the documentary on the surface is kind to Graham, underneath you being to feel the creepiness of the man. It's not just that he and his mum look alike, they are alike in most ways. And that's the true value of the documentary. Unfortunately, not everyone will see through Graham and that's the shame.

(Same could be said for the woeful Peng. He shows this documentary is also a story of the toll of avarice coupled with naivete has on people who put themselves first.)