Film

The Tinder Swindler

Name: The Tinder Swindler
Genre: Documentary, Crime
Released: 2022
Cast: Shimon Yehuda Hayut, Cecilie Fjellhøy, Pernilla Sjöholm, Ayleen Charlotte, Kristoffer Kumar

A slick, infuriating documentary that reconstructs how one man used luxury and charm to systematically drain women of their savings. Told largely through the voices of the women he targeted, it's part thriller, part cautionary tale, and part rage-inducing character study. Compulsively watchable, and unexpectedly moving once the anger settles into grief.

TMDb rating

7.0

If you liked this

The Puppet Master: Hunting the Ultimate Conman2022

A British serial con man who used psychological control rather than just wealth to bind his victims for years. Structurally almost identical to Simon's story, but colder and longer-running.

But It's slower and more disturbing in a coercive-control way rather than a glamorous-scam way.

The Puppet Master: Hunting the Ultimate Conman poster

Dirty John2018

A scripted dramatisation of a real romance con, following a smart woman getting pulled in against every instinct. Great performances make the manipulation feel plausible rather than stupid.

But Knowing it's dramatised rather than documentary footage takes away some of the queasy realism.

Catfish2010

The original online-dating-deception format, now a long-running series. Lighter and more varied than Tinder Swindler, but built on the exact same anatomy of a lie.

But Wildly uneven in quality across episodes, and rarely reaches the same financial or emotional stakes.

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Gaslight1944

Same psychological playbook as the swindler — isolate, disorient, control the narrative of reality — just moved from Tinder to a Victorian townhouse.

The film that gave manipulation its modern name: a husband methodically convinces his wife she's losing her mind to control her and her money. Elegant, chilling, decades ahead of its subject.

But Slow by modern pacing standards, and its

Inventing Anna2022

Anna Delvey's fake-heiress grift for the social-media age, told with the same mix of disbelief and dark comedy. Julia Garner is mesmerising as the con artist you can't look away from.

But It's scripted and stylised, more fascinated by Anna's audacity than sympathetic to her victims.

Abducted in Plain Sight2017

A jaw-dropping documentary about a family manipulated by a predator over years, told with the same disbelieving talking-head style. Genuinely one of the most bizarre true stories on film.

But Much darker subject matter involving a child; the tone is far less satisfying and far more upsetting.

Fyre2019

Same charismatic-fraudster engine, different costume: a festival instead of a romance, promises instead of diamonds. Enjoyably enraging in the same way.

But The victims here are largely wealthy influencers rather than everyday people, so the sympathy hits differently.

American Animals2018

A hybrid heist film that interviews the real perpetrators alongside dramatised reenactment, questioning memory and self-justification the way con documentaries often quietly do.

But It's about young men's boredom and ego rather than romantic exploitation, so the emotional register is cooler.

F for Fake1973

Both films are fascinated by charming liars and by how documentary itself can be seduced and manipulated, not just its subjects.

Orson Welles's essay-film about a real art forger, narrated by Welles himself, a self-confessed charlatan. Playful, strange, and unlike any documentary you've seen.

But It's deliberately slippery and half-fictional, more interested in interrogating truth than delivering a clean, satisfying story.

Nights of Cabiria1957no page yet

Strips away the true-crime thrill entirely and sits with the victim's hope and humiliation, the emotional core Tinder Swindler only glimpses between reveals.

Fellini's Italian drama follows a hopeful, naive woman repeatedly exploited by men who promise her love and security. Devastating, tender, and quietly one of cinema's great performances.

But Subtitled, mid-century pacing, and offers no revenge arc or satisfaction — just heartbreak and resilience.