Eden (2012)

However, the movie is not true. In 2014 a non profit organization called Breaking Out reported Kim's story false and accused her of defrauding organizations out of contributions. She was convicted of swindling a human trafficking survivor and activist and was ordered to pay back the money. $15,000 as reported. The movie was really great though and had me going until I checked it out on the internet. My husband and I were sitting on the edge of our seat the entire time in this movie and we wanted so much for her to escape and get back with her parents. We wanted all the other girls to be saved as well and was hoping for a happy ending. Finding out it was not a true story for me and my husband made this just a great well made movie!

This film is one of the worst I have seen for a very, very long time! I saw another dreadful film just before this one but of the two this is worse! There is absolutely totally nothing good about this film and I don't mean that in a way! Gee what a surprise that a person that appeared in a reality television program and has no drama training from drama school whatsoever should get acting parts ahead of someone that actually has been to drama school! he fact that Jamie Chung has not been to acting school and done the full however many years it is training shows as she is completely wooden! The film itself doesn't make any sense. After being kidnapped the girls are all given kittens to look after. Why?!?! There is absolutely no reason for it and none is given! The girls are holed up in what looks like a prison corridor with their cells all along one side of it. The cells have a corrugated door that slides up and down like a garage door. There is nowhere for the cats to get out. As no litter trays, litter scooper or anything else that would be needed were given to the girls ....yes, you can see where this is going can't you?....what happened to all of the cats' urine and faeces! Then here are the numerous points in the film where she had ample opportunities and time to escape and go to the police but just didn't take up on any of them. Maybe she actually loved being a prostitute and actually loved this way of living but just didn't want to show it! Then there was this whole injecting the prostitutes with something that was supposed to make them compliant but the acting was so bad you never got the feeling that the prostitutes ever really were. Oh, and where were her parents and the police? Absolutely nowhere to be seen! It was as if the parents couldn't care and couldn't be bothered to even try and find her and so therefor hadn't even be bothered to contact the police over the fact that their daughter had gone missing! And because they couldn't be bothered or care the police did nothing! But then the should have been doing something anyway and they weren't! Surely some investigating would have started as to where and why two police officers have suddenly disappeared to after they had been killed in the desert by the corrupt sheriff in charge of the prostitution ring but nope nothing happened! That was pretty much it for the whole film....nothing happened!

Human trafficking is a recurring subject and it deserves to be told and retold however many ways it can. I've watched many of those movies and two stand out for me, Trade, the 2007 brilliant and powerful work by Marco Kreuzpaintner starring Kevin Kline (you need to see it) and Eden, the real story of a survivor like few others. In 2012, Jamie Chung had a supporting role in Premium Rush, which should have helped boost her starring role in this drama directed by Indi writer/producer/director Megan Griffiths.Chung was as good as can be in the role of Eden (that's the character's name); such type of character is never easy to play and make believable, but I feel she pulled it off. If you can get passed the fact that it is subject that has been exploited, pun intended but not in jest, the story of Eden makes for a good thriller as well as a good drama.I enjoyed seeing Beau Bridges in a villainous role; he played that part like the pro that he is. You won't see his demise coming the way it does; I'll say no more for I don't wish to spoil one of the good things about the movie, or the plot. I recommend it if you want to see a rising star by the name Jamie Chung.

As you've probably surmised, EDEN is not entirely "fun" to watch, but it's no more disturbing than it has to be. It's also rewarding in its revelation of an often-ignored problem in this country via a well-detailed and riveting story-line. Director Megan Griffiths did an outstanding job of treading a very thin line, making the film as tasteful as possible considering the subject matter--i.e., no gratuitous nudity--without sugar-coating the story. The level of empathy the audience attains with these poor girls is most acute. EDEN is quite convincing despite several stretches and unlikelihoods. While the plot of this film may appear predictable at first glance, there are some truly unexpected developments here.Though a bit larger-than-life in places, Jamie Chung is just hypnotic as victim-heroine "Eden." The script is similarly believable and carries a lot of weight in developing Eden and the other characters. The mistrustful alliance she builds with one of her abductors (well-played by Matt O'Leary) is as immediate as everything else in this film and is one of its realest aspects. The supporting cast who play characters we never get to know that well, particularly Tantoo Cardinal as "The Nurse," also contribute a great deal to EDEN's success.The "Behind the Scenes" Special Feature should not be missed after watching the film itself.