Abolitionist at the Movies: Reviews of Taken, The Wrestler, Slumdog Millionaire

by Amanda Kloer · 2009-02-09 12:00:00 +0000
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When there's one film commercially available that has themes associated with human trafficking, I'm in awe.  When there are three films, two of which have received some acclaim, and all of which are sticking around for more than a week, well, I feel I have to review them.

Taken

While human trafficking rings in Europe are a central plot-generator for this film, the plausibility of what actually occurs is tenuous at best.  Liam Neeson's attractive, white, mostly well-behaved daughter is kidnapped by traffickers while studying abroad in Paris.  Basically, the traffickers target the well-connected daughter of a CIA agent when there are plenty of unprotected vulnerable immigrants entering Paris every day.  Yeah, right.  From one recorded phone call, Neeson figures out who the traffickers are where they're from. He's even told he has 96 hours to find her, "or she'll be gone forever." Albanian sex-slave kidnapping rings don't usually work on such tight deadlines.  Go see it if you're into action films or being saved by your father, but don't expect to learn much about trafficking.

The Wrestler

The Wrestler features 0 human trafficking victims and never uses the word trafficking, but the heart-breaking new release tells a story that is seldom told: how the commercial sex industry chews up and spits out women, even those who choose to be there.  Marissa Tomei plays Pam/"Cassidy", a mother trying to support her son by dancing topless, even though she's not as young as she used to be.  While audiences are supposed to (and do) love and sympathize with Mickey Rourke's unapologetic, well-intentioned screw-up character of Randy "The Ram", it's Tomei's eyes as she's alternately used and rejected by men which really break your heart.  Go see it with someone you can talk to about the heavy themes.

Slumdog Millionaire

While it's more about love, India, corruption and love again, child trafficking features prominently in Slumdog Millionaire.  The plight of street children trafficked for begging in India fits as seamlessly into the film as the children themselves do into the landscape of Mumbai.  Out of the three, this one by far portrays trafficking in its most real-to-life form- painful, hidden, affecting those who have no one to reach out to for help.  It's not an activist film, but it has a true activist heart.

Amanda Kloer is a Change.org Editor and has been a full-time abolitionist in several capacities for seven years. Follow her on Twitter @endhumantraffic
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