"Trade" is the story of a young boy from Mexico City, Jorge (Cesar Ramos), who is tracking down his kidnapped sister, Adriana (Paulina Gaitan), as she is sold through a human trafficking ring throughout the United States. Along the way, he meets Ray (Kevin Kline), a police officer who lives in El Paso, Texas, and the two travel to New Jersey to find Adriana.
This movie deals with its very serious subject matter in a mixed way. At times we are shown the truly dirty and disgusting side of the whole thing. There were times when I shuddered and felt genuinely shocked at what I was seeing. But when these moments do occur, the very next scene often gives us awkward banter that tries to connect us more with Ray and Jorge, who are just uncharismatic characters and lack a real chemistry with each other. The whole idea of it being revolved around a road trip between the two feels kind of disrespectful to the entire topic that the movie is based around. Bizarre attempts at humor just come off as really out of place. I also wish that the movie had more scenes focused around the women themselves. We are shown a little bit in terms of the filthy vans and motel rooms that they are forced to stay in, but I would have rather seen an in-depth look at their lives and the psychological horrors of human trafficking than the generic buddy road trip thriller that we are given.
The movie also just has this odd brown tint and it looks unappealing. I don't know if that was the intent of the filmmakers, but something just feels wrong with the color pallet. Performances are okay, but Kevin Kline sometimes just comes off as a discount Bryan Cranston. There's this weird subplot involving Ray's wife and his cat that never really goes anywhere. The ending wraps up everything in such a nice little Hollywood bow, which I normally wouldn't have that much of an issue with. But again, considering the subject at hand and the real world fact that the majority of humans trafficked are never redeemed in such a movie-esque fashion, it comes off as really insensitive. Maybe that can be spun into an even deeper critique on the way that movies of any kind are normally wrapped up in general, but that's a topic for another day.
In all, this movie should be commended for at least being mildly competent and showing a modicum of respect for the world that it is attempting to bring light to. Perhaps given a more focused script, characters and actors that the audience can truly bond with, and some better production, this would have made for a very good movie. As it stands, "Trade" will have a very mild affect on the viewer who wishes to learn more about this evil that plagues modern society. I would recommend finding a good documentary or book on the subject instead.
This movie deals with its very serious subject matter in a mixed way. At times we are shown the truly dirty and disgusting side of the whole thing. There were times when I shuddered and felt genuinely shocked at what I was seeing. But when these moments do occur, the very next scene often gives us awkward banter that tries to connect us more with Ray and Jorge, who are just uncharismatic characters and lack a real chemistry with each other. The whole idea of it being revolved around a road trip between the two feels kind of disrespectful to the entire topic that the movie is based around. Bizarre attempts at humor just come off as really out of place. I also wish that the movie had more scenes focused around the women themselves. We are shown a little bit in terms of the filthy vans and motel rooms that they are forced to stay in, but I would have rather seen an in-depth look at their lives and the psychological horrors of human trafficking than the generic buddy road trip thriller that we are given.
The movie also just has this odd brown tint and it looks unappealing. I don't know if that was the intent of the filmmakers, but something just feels wrong with the color pallet. Performances are okay, but Kevin Kline sometimes just comes off as a discount Bryan Cranston. There's this weird subplot involving Ray's wife and his cat that never really goes anywhere. The ending wraps up everything in such a nice little Hollywood bow, which I normally wouldn't have that much of an issue with. But again, considering the subject at hand and the real world fact that the majority of humans trafficked are never redeemed in such a movie-esque fashion, it comes off as really insensitive. Maybe that can be spun into an even deeper critique on the way that movies of any kind are normally wrapped up in general, but that's a topic for another day.
In all, this movie should be commended for at least being mildly competent and showing a modicum of respect for the world that it is attempting to bring light to. Perhaps given a more focused script, characters and actors that the audience can truly bond with, and some better production, this would have made for a very good movie. As it stands, "Trade" will have a very mild affect on the viewer who wishes to learn more about this evil that plagues modern society. I would recommend finding a good documentary or book on the subject instead.