Human Trafficking (2005) User Reviews

Essential docudrama on unexposed nightmare network of monsters

[mkham6 · 8/10 · 21 December 2005]

Kudos to Mira Sorvino (who has become a crusader on this), Lifetime, and producers for making this important expose of this vicious crime. The 4 hour opus charts a single Russian mobster as he kidnaps, rapes, and transports girls into America and around the world. Of course Mira and Donald Sutherland as ICE agents heroically chase the villains, but in reality very little is done to control these vicious predators- police are usually the problem, since they have no understanding or sympathy for the plight of captive "whores", whom they punish and bully for their supposed crimes.

I was a reporter for over 2 years in Russia, and have seen the monstrosity of these criminals and awesome beauty, sweetness, romanticism, and eroticism of the girls there- who are brought up to defer to and please men. In a place where people would make $20 a month, girls would jump at any Western job, which could give them a real life. Lured by an imaginary secretarial or maid job in Europe, they would have documents taken and quickly be raped and broken into total submission. Huge numbers are sent to Israel, where the government ignores problem. But all over the world, Russian girls are wanted by traffickers and johns for their great beauty, literacy, and skills.

An incredible NPR report explained how young girls are shipped to filthy Mexican nightmare brothels where they have to service 30-50 clients a day, then smuggled into America, where they are handed off to other pimps at Disneyland. By this time they are so terrorized and shattered that they don't even try to get away.

A Russian father improbably joins the traffickers to find and rescue his daughter.

If anything this docudrama soft-peddles the horrors- but TV couldn't take the unvarnished truth. It should be mandatory viewing for every American, especially all law enforcement. This hideous crime should be treated as seriously as genocide, since it is. As Sorvino says in the end, the shelve life of these girls before they are used up, killed, or diseased is 4 years, and some 800,000 are trafficked every year- several Darfurs, Bosnias, Kosovos, Iraqs put together.

The painful truth

[julienhuxley · 9/10 · 20 April 2008]

This movie is a surprisingly well orchestrated little show of horrors. The movie does not bring new knowledge to the table but it reminds us, in an utmost graphic way, the most disgusting form of human exploitation: sex slaves.

The movie presents the path of four different young girls to this horrible fate and it will keep your consciousness wriggling in pain knowing that as we speak, these sex crimes are being perpetrated in our cities. A scary film that will make you want to hold your children tightly by your side.

The actors play is good and the performance by Remy Girard accurately pictures the suffering of a parent that has lost a child.

A gruesome yet necessary exposure to the facts of our society. A definite must-see, preferably not alone.

A hard to watch, non-exploitive look at an international shame

[sdod2 · 8/10 · 26 October 2005]

I found the movie very compelling as it followed several different story lines, exposing many different facets to the sex trafficking industry. The fact that all these story lines were linked to one king pin running an international organization was pure Hollywood, but it allowed for drama and suspense as he was tracked by the feds. The wrap up and conclusion was also too easy, but again the mission of this film was to educate and spotlight abuse in an entertaining forum. This movie delivered.

On top of this, I especially appreciated the way the graphic scenes were composed. It was hard to watch, ugly, and grotesque. It wasn't played for sex appeal, or lurid fascination. It was ugly. Completely appropriate to the reality of the women, children, and victims of this abuse.

Excellent film that addresses a global epidemic problem!

[jkotynek · 10/10 · 26 October 2005]

I was blown away by the production value and performances of HUMAN TRAFFICKING. Unlike most Lifetime movies, this one actually hits the viewer between the eyes with its raw, unflinching telling of various women's stories of trafficking across international borders for sex slave labour.

Loosely inspired by actual victims' stories, the women range from 12 years old to late thirties. They are tourists, single moms, women in bad relationships that need help, even a young girl looking for fame and fortune in the modeling industry.

The formula for the traffickers is simple: recruit women and girls that are desperate to get out of their current living situations, desperate to get a better paying job, desperate to go to the U.S. for a better life; make them believe the traffickers can deliver this promise, and submit their passports and papers to them. Once the traffickers have the girls and their documents, they can do anything they want to them. Some get moved around Europe, others end up in the U.S. all as sex slaves.

Robert Carlyle gives a riveting performance as Sergei Karpovich, the kingpin of the trafficking business. He's ruthless and cruel, yet intriguing to watch at the same time. He sets up his "businesses" to look like legitimate ventures, while operating a sex ring behind the scenes.

One thing that makes the character interesting is his smoothness when dealing with his doctor and the I.C.E. agents, while showing a sadistic evil side towards his employees and slaves. Definitely a wolf in sheep's clothing.

Mira Sorvino also gives a gritty performance as Kate Morozov, the I.C.E. agent that pursues Karpovich relentlessly as he builds his sex empire. Sorvino's conviction in getting these people caught and tried almost pushes her over the edge of sanity.

The scenes are gritty and unflinching. The material is difficult to view at times, but is well worth it in the end; in order to understand the universe in which these people operate, and the despair the victims face each day of their lives in captivity.

The film also addresses the problem of the market for these traffickers: they are doctors, lawyers, neighbours, relatives. Regular white-collar people that pay for these slaves' services. As long as there is a market, there will be sex slave traffickers.

See this film in its entirety at least once. It is unlike any Lifetime movie you have ever seen.

I only wish it was theatrically released for more exposure, so those who don't have access to CATV or Lifetime TV can also see it.

John Kotynek

Needs to be seen by every North American

[BeenThere1969 · 10/10 · 29 October 2005]

The statistics are shocking. The story is grim. And the biggest market for women and children sex slaves is the United States, much to our shame. Every person should see this movie. I hope ABC, CBS, or NBC will pick it up and show it so all can see it, not just ones who have cable. Keep in mind, the type of person who can afford to do this are primarily upper middle class professional men who have nefarious appetites to do the worst possible acts of mankind. The last few minutes are the most important of the entire film where Mira Sorvino's character states clearly the facts and why this is allowed to go on, because there is a market for it particularly here in the United States. God have mercy on humankind.

Human trafficking is one of the world's biggest problems

[einohautala · 17 May 2014]

The 2005 made for TV movie, Human Trafficking – featuring Mira Sorvino (now a United Nations good will ambassador for human trafficking, she appeared in the BBC World Debate on human trafficking last fall) and Donald Sutherland – is a fictional story that follows three young women who become involved in an international sex trafficking ring lead by one Sergei Karpovich. In New York City, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) agents – including Chief Bill Meehan (Sutherland) and Kate Morozov (Sorvino) – work to oust the trafficking ring. While the story itself is fictionalized, the themes and much of the experiences of the people involved are very real.

Helena, a single mother in Prague, Czech Republic, is attracted to a handsome young man, Peter (this name needs verification) and travels to Vienna, Austria for a weekend with him. Once in Vienna, Peter brings Helena to a staging house where he takes her passport and sells her to Karpovich. Karpovich's accomplices transport Helena and a group of other trafficked women to New York City where they're kept at one of his "houses" and prostituted. Helena is coerced into submission when her captors threaten her young daughter, Ivanka's life, having shown surveillance pictures of Ivanka and her caretaker back in Prague. Helena is eventually rescued when ICE agents, including Morozov, raid one of Karpovich's houses. After ICE secures Ivanka, Helena reluctantly agrees to help Morozov catch Karpovich, by telling her everything she knew about him and agreeing to testify in court. Karpovich coerces an attorney to attempt to have Helena released from police custody (so Karpovich could have her killed). Helena is placed under protective custody, and arrangements are made to bring Ivanka and the caretaker to the U.S. Helena is shot and killed by a sniper monitoring the safe house where she had been placed.

Nadia, a sixteen-year old in Kiev, Ukraine, responds to a modeling agency's offer for international modeling jobs. When she is selected, she runs away from her father and travels with the agency to the United States with other selected young women. Once in New York City, Nadia's passport is taken from her and she is taken with the same group of women as Helena. Nadia repeatedly tries to escape, but is caught and punished each time. She attempts suicide but does not carry it out. Back in Ukraine, her father, Viktor – a former member of the military – learns about the modeling agency and manages to get hired by Karpovich. He works as a low-level trafficker, bringing a young girl into Mexico and later into the U.S. as he searches for Nadia. Eventually he finds Nadia and after Morozov participates in an undercover operation that leads ICE to Karpovich himself and the house where Nadia and Viktor are, Karpovich is killed and the women are rescued.

Annie Grey, a twelve-year old American tourist, is abducted while in Manila, Philippines with her parents. She is taken to a brothel where men from around the world, including the U.S., travel on "sex tourism" trips. Annie and a group of other children are kept in a filthy room when they aren't with clients. As international attention begins to crack down on Manila, searching for Annie, her captors make arrangements to transport the children to the United Arab Emirates (this destination needs verification). They're drugged and concealed in a cargo container behind stacks of rice. One of the brothel owner's accomplices regrets what he helped do to the children and calls in a tip that leads police officials in Manila to the shipyard before the cargo container is shipped. The children, including Annie, are rescued.

There are different ways women are brought into the world of human trafficking, and the cases in this films represents three of these archetypes: - Helena represented one archetype where an attractive young man seduces women, pretending to be a lover, and after getting her to travel away from her home region and relative security, he takes her passport and sells her into a trafficking ring. - Nadia represented another archetype where trafficking rings pose as organizations hiring young women for attractive, well paying jobs abroad, and after transporting them outside of their home region and relative security, they hold them captive and prostitute them or sell them to other trafficking rings. - Annie represented a third archetype, where young women and often children are kidnapped by either traffickers or brothel owners, sometimes as tourists, and sold/exploited.

How close the stories depicted in this film mirror reality is up for argument. There is certainly some aspects that don't seem very realistic. One glaring instance is whether Nadia's father, Viktor, would be able to join Karpovich's organization and find Nadia on the other side of the world. To add insult to injury Viktor also managed to befriend ICE's Morozov; so when Karpovich was ultimately ousted, Viktor wasn't charged with the rest of Karpovich's accomplices.

Taking the "Hollywood" fabrication aspect into consideration – one of the main reasons films such as this cannot be used as primary sources – the film still offers a visual depiction into how devastating is the world of human trafficking.

After watching this film, which I highly recommend or I wouldn't have bothered to feature it, I wonder how many Helenas and Nadias and Annies are out there? How many of them have a father who was in the Russian military and can track his daughter across the globe to rescue her? How many of them have Mira Sorvino to fight for them? How many of them have a movie ending, where they at least get some mention in their death or at best are rescued?

After you take out the Hollywood in a story like this, you catch a glimpse of how vast is the criminal network behind today's human trafficking network.

I would say that it's worse than any of use can imagine.

disturbing dark movie

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 18 September 2015]

An eastern European girl forced into prostitution commits suicide and NYPD Detective Kate Morozov (Mira Sorvino) investigates. She goes to see I.C.E. agent Bill Meehan (Donald Sutherland) and become an agent herself. In Prague, single mom Helena (Isabelle Blais) is lured by a handsome guy to Vienna and kidnapped. In Kiev, Nadia (Laurence Leboeuf) enters a modeling competition run by Sergei Karpovich (Robert Carlyle) which turns out to be a front for a sex trafficking ring. Her father Viktor (Rémy Girard) is tracking her relentlessly. In Manila, 12 year old American tourist Annie Gray is abducted for the sex trade joining other little children.

This is a horrifying movie. It doesn't go easy on anything although it is a TV show with certain limits. The Manila story may be scattering the movie too much. I understand the need to expand and encompass as much of the problem as possible in this movie. It probably would make more dramatic sense to have the girl kidnapped by one of Karpovich's man in America. It would tie everything up much easier. Leboeuf and Blais are amazing as the victims. I don't really buy Sorvino as the hardened cop but she's good enough with Sutherland as her boss. This is a really disturbing movie that goes into some dark places.

...leess good more wrong??

[mwiktoria · 10/10 · 3 January 2006]

Hardly ever do movies make me cry but this one definitely did. All I hear on the TV is how police are trying to catch pedophiles and other sick people who abuse women and children sexually. Unfortunately, rarely do we hear about arresting people in so called 'high society" who can afford to buy "pleasures" (I guess that's what they feel which makes me sick). This movie gave me mixed feelings about life and sense of believing in good in this world...less good and more wrong? I think everyone should see this movie and get a view of what's going on in a real life: how an innocent sign up for a modeling agency can be actually a ticket to hell and how much can a mother sacrifice to see her child.

human trafficking

[magsymou · 7/10 · 11 June 2006]

This is loosely based on the British two-part TV drama released in 2004 entitled "Sex Traffic". I highly recommend those who are currently enjoying "Human Trafficking" to watch the original adaptation which is much grittier and realistic than this polished Hollywood version. Although the current TV drama is convincing and well-done, like Steven Soderbergh's re-make of "Traffic" (another British TV drama), it lacks the gravitas and shock factor of the original. The familiar actors used in the series (Sutherland & Sorvino) detract from the importance of the subject matter and all the hi-tech machinery in the police station makes it look like another episode of CSI. Nonetheless, this important subject is being addressed - it is shocking that this is really happening in our world!

Human Trafficking

[Cypressk · 9/10 · 26 October 2005]

I watched this movie on Lifetime, and was completely devastated! It was a terrible movie, and what I mean by terrible was that it was such an emotional train of events. It was really hard to watch, especially being a female. I am not sure how any person, people, trafficking business can go on...it is so disgusting, but this world is filled with so much hate and disgust. The sad thing is, what this movie portrays is happening right now this very minute, anywhere, possibly even in a house near me, which is extremely hard to fathom.

As i watched this movie, my heart broke for Nadia (well it broke for every girl involved in this hateful crime) but for Nadia specifically. It was hard to watch a young girl at the age of 16 wish for so much expectations in her life, only to have them completely stripped away. Watching her father and her re-unite was one of the hardest things, it was so sad and unconsciously you try to put yourself in that situation and you just can't, i can't imagine any parent having to go through with that, not to mention I don't know how these girls feel having to live with this every day, my heart goes out to them.

Thanks to this movie, the public should have a much better understanding and awareness of what is truly going on in the reality of this world which we live day by day in.

*Kelly Hannagan -N.H.*

A real problem treated with dummy cliché

[dragosRO · 6/10 · 23 March 2011]

First of all, this problem is really serious, women (and not only) are trafficked by the thousands each year. It is a very sad fact of life and this should be paid attention more closely by everyone, especially men who .. consume this kind of services. However, this movie/TV series, whatever it is a piece of crap. It takes a very serious problem and instead of treating it right, providing a story with a beginning and an end and maybe a believable one, it's filled up with stupid TV cliché's: the dad who does not believe his daughter when she says she's been raped by her uncle (and actually blames her), the dad who leaves home after his daughter is kidnapped in a foreign country (and pressures the mum to forget about the lost child and save their marriage), the victims who are so afraid of their captors they do not testify even after the longest time they are in the custody of authorities. This is a LIE!!! Except for hillbillies, have you actually heard of such a dad, who would not believe his daughter over her uncle, who would forget about a child, or how do you think trafficking networks are caught these days? Out of these two hours , half was full of cheap paper-back clichés. The worst of them all was the mother letting the bad guy know about her daughter's phone call by yelling hollow threats over to him (something about killing him when she finds him, very americano, I admit), although this would most certainly bring her daughter a death-sentence?! I mean, how stupid of a writer do you have to be not to realize what a big hole this is? I gave this a 6 because the issue at the heart of this is very tragic and unfortunately real, and because Robert Carlyle is his usual self, that is very good.

The most excellent and saddest movie I have ever seen!

[criminologist_32 · 10/10 · 29 October 2005]

I am so glad I seen this movie. As much as it sickened me it also made me realize just how bad this problem is because I never knew. It saddens me a lot that we protect our country from terrorists and they are always in the news, but we do not seem to be doing nearly enough to stop human trafficking and never hear of it in the media, my thanks to Lifetime for opening our eyes. If we are going to fight the war on terrorism then we should also be fighting the war on human trafficking. Our own daughters and friends and teachers are being taken from their lives and being forced to be sex slaves to men that we thought we could trust: Doctors, lawyers,etc. It is our duty in this country to protect our citizens! So why aren't we? I pray that these women and children from our country and all over the world will be rescued from this hell on earth and that these pigs causing this hell will be brought to justice! And a final word advise, whatever you do, PLEASE DO NOT try to find love on the internet, it could cost you your freedom!

the truth is probably a lot filthier

[widescreenguy · 6/10 · 7 January 2008]

not so many happy endings in the real world for starters.

the resurgence of human trafficking, ie slavery, is yet another unanticipated consequence of the world wide web.

those splashy headlines about the dude that had his face 'unswirled' are just the tiniest minuscule pinpoint tip of the iceberg. just enough to let some complacency slip into the equation.

in the mean time like all vices, new players emerge to take the place of those taken out of action by authorities. and why is that? DEMAND. if there wasn't a demand, there would be no economic incentive to create the supply.

I saw this miniseries when it was first broadcast. the tension was less 2nd time around on DVD, but still quite watchable. typically in this condensed version, there were points of gross implausibility esp. when the lead character lets the Russian get away onto the train with a great look of sincerity.

800,000 per year. 2,000 per day. thats a lot of humans being trafficked. how accurate are those numbers? it could be even worse considering these things have a way of getting streamlined. the ones I hold the most contempt for are the corrupt officials who accept bribes to look the other way and tip off the masterminds when raids are about to happen.

follow the money.

Interesting subject but not a very good movie

[dmajkowski · 3/10 · 31 October 2005]

This movie touches on a terrible problem but presents it in such an unrealistic manner that it is impossible to take it seriously. Anyone with any common sense even if you had no knowledge of how human trafficking works would understand that the way the movie presents the subject is absurd. Mira Sorvino is terribly miscast and not at all believable as a Russian. Actually the only part of the movie that is believable is when she is immediately detected as a fraud by her by the traffickers although their reason - that a mail order bride would lie about her age (which is probably the case 80% of the time) was also ridiculous. Nadia's father infiltrating the group and ending up immediately in America with her daughter but not immediately contacting the police for help or walking away with his daughter when he easily could have was also ridiculous. It just goes on and on... You would have to live an incredibly sheltered life to believe this movie resembles anything close to reality and it does a horrible injustice to it's subject matter.

The Profitable Slavery of the Twentieth-First Century

[claudio_carvalho · 9/10 · 30 June 2007]

In Prague, Czech Republic, the single mother Helena (Isabelle Blais) is seduced by a successful handsome man and travels with him to spend a weekend in Vienna, Austria; in Kiev, Ukraine, the sixteen-year-old Nadia (Laurence Leboeuf) is selected by a model agency and travels to the United States with the other selected candidates; in Manila, Philippines, the twelve-year-old American tourist Annie Gray (Sarah-Jeanne Labrosse) is abducted in front of her parents. In common, the girls become victims of a powerful international network of sex traffickers leaded by the powerful Sergei Karpovich (Robert Carlyle). In New York, after the third death of young Eastern European prostitutes, the obstinate Russian-American NYPD agent Kate Morozov (Mira Sorvino) convinces the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Chief Bill Meehan (Donald Sutherland) to hire her, promising him that she would fight against this type of crime and that he would not regret.

"Human Trafficking" is the third great movie that I have watched about this sad reality. "Lilja 4-ever" and "Anjos do Sol" are extremely pessimist and realistic, but focused in the life of only one character. "Human Trafficking" gives a big picture how these gangs operate, following the drama of three lead characters. Mira Sorvino is wonderful, as usual, and her final speech about this profitable slavery of the Twentieth-First Century and the sexual tourism is very realistic and touching. The direction is excellent, the screenplay is very well written and the whole cast deserves to be congratulated for their magnificent performances. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Tráfico Humano" ("Human Traficking")

Excellent Presentation of Child Sex Salvery !

[whpratt1 · 10/10 · 27 October 2005]

It is great that Lifetime is allowing the presentation of what is going on through out the entire world and very little is mentioned in our local newspapers. However, we do hear about an occasional girl or boy that is missing and is never heard from and I can imagine the police files must be over flowing with plenty of Cold Cases. This film clearly depicts the horrible PIGS and Sex Offenders who thrive on young innocent children. These poor human beings with a spiritual soul are required to perform degrading services, which hurts their chances to live normal lives or even want to be married to any man in their future lives !

I applaud the showing of this type of material, but making this a regular program with all these type of cases is more than my stomach can handle. Enough is Enough !

Feel like I want to cut some people's balls.

[l_glass · 23 January 2007]

Thank you for your comments. I feel exactly the same. I have watched this movie last nite. It took me few ours as I needed to stop few times. I ended up at this website because I needed to see the actress as not real characters. I been raped my self and I feel like it was nothing compare to it. The movie shows how hard is to get this bustards because the people whom are into power are mostly males and they don't care as long there is no murder or big money involved. Don't get me wrong that I am trying to criticize guys, I have a great boyfriend my self however it feels like they don't find is as terrible. I got on the train today morning and I could see a number of potential child molesters, I swear and I know that nothing will ever happen to most of them. I don't know how to explain to myself that it was a movie and the real world is not that bad

More disinformation

[simonbaush · 6/10 · 24 April 2011]

This movie basically attempts to make the American public think that this social problem comes from isolated, foreign criminal groups. Wrong! There are countless reports of such activities within high-ranking government officials and above. (Yes, above) Remember the Boys town cover-up?

Such operations are rarely ever disrupted, because of the very fact that law enforcement agencies are themselves part of the umbrella. Perhaps children education is once again the only solution, trying to address the problem from the bottom up. This is obviously not an easy subject to discuss with children and i'm not sure how this could be done. But one thing is for sure, people shouldn't expect anything from high authorities, other than disinformation like such TV-series.

Disturbing and brilliantly made...this may have changed my life

[Robert_duder · 9/10 · 30 January 2008]

I have always known in the back of my mind, the issue of Human Trafficking especially from news stories about girls disappearing in the Caribbean but it wasn't until I saw this movie recently that it simply blew my mind and awoke me to something completely different. This film is made for entertainment purposes but also done in such a way that you will forever be mindful of the issue that they are putting forth in this movie. The film is disturbing and lengthy in details without being too gratuitous with the content keeping it clean enough to not capitalize on the crime but vivid enough to bring home the point in a jolting manner. The story focuses on two victims in particular but also all the other victims around them and the people who perpetrate this crime. It also focuses very much on the North America side of this trade and how close to home it can be. While the film isn't perfect and has moments you just can't believe would be the way things would happen, for the most part its one of the smartest and moving films I have seen in a long time. It will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Oscar winner Mira Sorvino headlines the cast as a Government agent who becomes obsessed with the cases revolving around human trafficking. Sorvino is kind of a low point in the cast. Sometimes she does alright and other times she seems almost campy in her performance and this film is far too serious for that to happen. She looks lovely and very young in this film but doesn't give the best performance. Emmy nominated for his role in this film Donald Sutherland is the class of the cast. I honestly didn't think he showed anything truly outstanding but he does a decent job and definitely improves the cast just by being part of it. He also seems to get the most out of Sorvino's performance. Also nominated for an Emmy for this film is Robert Carlyle who plays viscous head of the trafficking crew Sergei Karpovich. Carlyle is one of the truly brilliant performances. I've seen him in roles that are the complete opposite of this and he really does scare you to the very core. He is sleazy and despicable and perfect for the villain role. Laurence Leboeuf is excellent in her disturbing role as the kidnapped and violated Nadia Tagarov who becomes something of a mother figure to the other kidnapped girls. Sarah-Jeanne Labrosse is the young American girl caught in all this. For a young actress she does a truly amazing job of showing strength and a tiny ray of hope in this horrible circumstance. Rémy Girard is Nadia's father who goes to no end to under cover and find his daughter and bring her home. He is more subtle in his performance and not quite as stand out as the girls but still a great character and a hero.

Canadian director Christian Duguay had a huge project on his hands here. He had to rely on creating something watchable, entertaining but not disgusting or offensive and still get his powerful message home and he does exactly that on a TV Mini-Series budget. There are still plenty of really disturbing things happening but done in a tasteful way if that is possible. Regardless of how they did it the film makes an impact by creating those characters both bad and good that you won't soon forget and it honestly changed my life. Now I feel as though I want to involve myself in this cause and I think its something pretty spectacular when a film can make you feel that way. I encourage anyone to see this film, because it has a powerful message with some really terrific performances. 9/10

www.stophumantraffic.com/index.html

Possibly misleading

[dgwyn · 6/10 · 20 March 2007]

I saw it on DVD this weekend. Not an easy movie to watch. It could have been better written. Too many clichés and stereotypes. The Johns and pimps that the movie dwells on are too obvious monsters. It might have worked better if some time had been spent on some of the less reprehensible "bad" characters. Part of the problem of real slave sex trade is that the victimizers are too often average Joes and indeed Janes, such as Carlyle's female assistant. The mini-series also largely avoids the issue that some of the victims get trapped into the trade knowing they are going to become prostitutes. That is to say they know they are going to be prostitutes, they just don't realize just how horrific the conditions are going to be.

As far as why the series was shot in Montreal, not New York, well, the movie business is a business after: it is cheaper to film in Montreal than New York. A scene not included on the DVD was shot a few blocks from my apartment. The train station where Sorvino lets Girard go is very likely the Montreal West AMT station. Montreal is used as location for New York City, Washington, D.C. (the brothel), Newark, and Manila (the port scenes at the end at least).

excellent

[KrazyKaz708 · 10/10 · 19 May 2006]

i watched this movie last night and feel compelled to give my opinion. having read and watched numerous documentaries on the subject of the human sex slave trade, i thought the movie was spot on, it was distressing in its content, but the truth usually is very confronting, but turning a blind eye to these things only makes it easier for these scummy criminals to keep doing what they're doing, they have absolutely no compassion or regard for human life at all. and the fact that even small children arouse not an ounce of feeling in these people just compounds the fact that they are beyond redemption in anyway shape or form, and they should be punished with the same lack of compassion they show to those poor kids..any person that finds something sexually arousing in a child, are just totally depraved and disgusting, and those that act upon it deserve NOTHING from society or the legal profession, and the traders that deliver people to them are just as bad, i don't care if they don't actually sexually abuse the people or children they steal, they knowingly deliver them to there captors in full knowledge of whats about to take place, i hope they all get they're just deserts, and i hope everyone watches movies like this to create more awareness,,

Montreal disguised in a New York

[bouguam · 7/10 · 25 July 2006]

The movie was produced in Montreal. The Federal Building of New York City in the movie is clearly the Place Ville-Marie in Montreal. When Kate and Helena growth on a building top, we can view the Place Ville-Marie, the Mont Royal, the CN building and the St. Lawrence River of Montreal. In an other scene, we view that indications are writing in French. It had to say in the movie that Federal Building is in Montreal and not in New York City. Many actors in the Movie are Canadians, why the producers did an story that take place in USA and not Canada when the actors are Canadians and when the most important landmarks of Montreal (like Place Ville-Marie, Mount Royal and St. Lawrence River) are shown ?

I am still unstill

[djmasterfrog · 9/10 · 21 June 2006]

Unfortunately I could not rate a 10, the word excellent thru me off. From about the first ten minutes in, this movie made me sick, sad, terrified and left me feeling helpless. I never could have imagined what I was about to see...or feel. My mind went for days and I could not sleep for more than twenty mins. at a time the night after I watched the first part. I waited two days to watch the 2nd, knowing that I needed to be undisturbed and aware of how I would feel while watching. It's true that I would have never thought this to be a TV movie, as I have never felt so much sickness. This movie is an eye opener as well as a motivator...in my attempt to learn even more, I had to check out the actresses and actors of this film to see them out of character, of course to make myself feel better to go to sleep in my safe little bed. But, to serve the purpose of rating the movie, it was more than I think I have ever "had." It hit real hard in every way possible, and I am thankful at least for the knowledge. But so sad. The crew did a great job, acting, directing, etc. The truth, alone, is horrific.

Tonight, on a very special 'Saved by an ICE Agent'...

[aliceboy · 2/10 · 14 June 2006]

I have to comment on this piece of unmitigated rubbish if only because there are three pages of reviews praising it for MUCH more than it is. My wife and I watched this over the past two nights (it just aired here in Sweden) mainly because it sounded interesting, but also because so many people had so much good to say about it, as well as it having a decent cast with Sorvino, Sutherland and Carlyle. The subject matter is something that demands greater attention, especially among American audiences who tend to be mislead so often by a napping media. The manner in which the creators dealt with the stories -- interweaving them in an effort to portray the global nature of the dilemma -- would probably have served the concept well...in better hands. Additionally, I have to assume that the 'reviewers' who so enjoyed this miniseries are mainly accustomed to watching Lifetime films rather than actual films, because nearly everything about this was wrong! The script was WEAK beyond bearing, with characters of less density than onion skin and dialogue cribbed from the lowest rung of cop-drama movie-making. And the cast? Well, personally, I don't expect much of Sorvino. She's been good in her place, but I don't think of her as a great actress by any stretch and she was fairly miscast in this role. Sutherland I expect better from, but he was clearly only in this for the paycheque and I could almost feel his embarrassment at spouting lines like, 'You're a loose cannon' to his not-at-all-out-of-control subordinate of only a few weeks (presumably -- time is hard to gauge in this flick). And Robert Carlyle (who has taken me into many a bad movie by now) was well over the brink of cartoon super-villainy this time, and with an accent that lapsed in and out of Russian pretty regularly. Beyond these unfulfilled expectations, there were the demands that were placed on my suspension of belief. For example, are we really meant to believe that cellphone reception is SO good in back-alley brothels in the Phillippines that a mother could hear the pervert drooling over her 12-year-old daughter while his phone is UNDER A PILLOW and she's OUT IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE?! And would any mother in her right mind hear this situation and think the sensible thing to do would be to scream into the phone, immediately jeopardizing her daughter's safety, AND then not think at all about the likelihood she's just signed her kid's death sentence? And that's just ONE scene! I won't even go into mum then recognising the guy's voice later off the videotape her child's rights advocate friend made...with the difference between him whispering in one situation and yelling in another, both times for only a few words. But at least we can take comfort in knowing that human trafficking is all handled by one mastermind who, if we could just shoot him MANY times...and then shoot him again...would singlehandedly cause the collapse of the industry. Okay, end of rant and end of 'spoilers.' This movie was such a bunch of garbage. The creators should be ashamed of themselves, the actors should be embarrassed and Lifetime should be lambasted for taking a serious issue and turning it into a program so sappy and contemptible it's not even worthy of Hallmark Theatre.

Sense-numbing masterpiece

[carlesmiquel · 10/10 · 16 October 2012]

It's not that frequent to face a film that really can't let you sleep. I love horror films. Yesterday I watched Alex Aja's "Mirrors". He says that his most terrible scenes and the flick as a whole will stay with you forever and you won't be able to sleep. I slept like an angel. Today, I simply can't. I'm numbed. I'm scared. And I'm feeling terrible. Human Trafficking may be "just" a miniseries for Canadian TV. Well. This may be one of the best TV films I've ever seen. And you must try to endure it in its whole. It's difficult to watch and you may be outraged by what you'll see. It goes all the way through one of those issues "we simply ignore". A reality that may be much worse than what is depicted here. The "Modern Slavery". Be warned: it's brutal to the extreme. If you can't stand it, just scrub to the last five minutes. You'll learn the reason why this film was made and why it was made in Canada. Sometimes, the truth is the hardest to swallow. And I will say no more: watch it, please. You'll never regret it.