There is no doubt the message is strong in Rape For Profit. It lets abused women share their brutal stories and allows the viewer to share in a small part of their pain. The movie is shot well and sends a pretty clear message that the problem has many reasons this "profession" continues.
However, I must admit that I found it strange the writer/director is so involved in confronting the women and men involved in this story. Standing along side police, he forcefully confronts the characters, at times, roughly and intensely sharing his view. I have always believed that a great documentary allows the footage and interviews to get the message across, rather than the writer him or herself interjecting their personal views so loudly.
This of course leads me to my disapproval of his position. The movie clearly states that powerful men or men desiring that power are the key abusers of women, yet the director in his powerful role often finds himself alone with a abused minor basically telling her what she should be feeling, rather than asking her what SHE is feeling. "You are happier here now!" "This is much better for you!" While he may be correct in his assessment, I think it would have been a smarter move to have a female, who is educated in counseling abused women to speak with these girls, rather than potentially exploit them for, what appears to be, camera time.
I want to stress that I believe the movie and this particular directors' heart appear to be in the right place. I just wish he would have stepped out of the frame more often to allow the actual story to be told by those who lived it.
However, I must admit that I found it strange the writer/director is so involved in confronting the women and men involved in this story. Standing along side police, he forcefully confronts the characters, at times, roughly and intensely sharing his view. I have always believed that a great documentary allows the footage and interviews to get the message across, rather than the writer him or herself interjecting their personal views so loudly.
This of course leads me to my disapproval of his position. The movie clearly states that powerful men or men desiring that power are the key abusers of women, yet the director in his powerful role often finds himself alone with a abused minor basically telling her what she should be feeling, rather than asking her what SHE is feeling. "You are happier here now!" "This is much better for you!" While he may be correct in his assessment, I think it would have been a smarter move to have a female, who is educated in counseling abused women to speak with these girls, rather than potentially exploit them for, what appears to be, camera time.
I want to stress that I believe the movie and this particular directors' heart appear to be in the right place. I just wish he would have stepped out of the frame more often to allow the actual story to be told by those who lived it.