The film begins in 1969, with FBI agent Carl Hanratty Jr. arriving at a French prison to meet the sick Frank Abagnale Jr, who attempts to escape from the prison. The scene flashes back to six years earlier. Frank’s father cons a woman into lending him a suit for Frank Jr., who later acts as a driver for Frank Sr. in a ruse to get a loan from Chase Manhattan Bank. When the loan is denied (due to a series of IRS tax frauds by Frank Sr.), the family is forced to move from their grand home to a small apartment, with tension building within the family.