The Jammed

Just been to see this film. F&*^! talk about confronting. I have been bawling my eyes out. If you go see it you won't enjoy it but you will experience it.

Movie length
99 minutes

Cast & crew
Emma Lung, Saskia Burmeister, Veronica Sywak, Sun Park, Andrew S. Gilbert Director: Dee McLachlanDirector: Dee McLachlan

The Jammed ((MA15+))



Synopsis
THE JAMMED is a deeply powerful Australian film that journeys to the flip side of the Australian dream, unearthing a dark world of sex slavery that few know about or dare to mention. Inspired by actual events and court transcripts, director Dee McLachlan presents a horrifying story about slavery, debt bondage and sexual servitude. THE JAMMED highlights the contrast of Melbourne as a sophisticated, cultured city – with the constant human tragedy and abuse that is the reality for the victims of illegal trafficking into sexual slavery in Australia - then deportation. This story is relevant, contemporary, gutsy, entertaining and surprising.

Crystal, a young Indonesian girl, is in an Immigration office being questioned about her false papers and illegal refugee application. About to be sent to a Detention Centre and deported, her allegations of multiple rape and appalling captive conditions seem to make little difference to the Immigration Officer. Brought in by human trafficking syndicates to work as prostitutes, she is one of the many modern sex slaves in Australia that are conveniently deported when they hit their ‘used by date’. Meanwhile a young Melbourne woman, Ashley Hudson, reluctantly agrees to help a Chinese mother search for her missing daughter. Hooked on caffeine and bored with her job and loveless life, Ashley is unwittingly drawn into the darker edges of this sophisticated cityscape and soon becomes fearful for her own life.

“4 ½ stars. A low budget, locally made shock of electricity that restores ones faith in just how good Australian social-realist films can be… A prime example of how a factually based story about a hot-button topic can be morphed into compelling fiction… An engrossing dramatic thriller – contemporary, immediate, vital, controversial and enthralling to behold” Jim Schembri, THE AGE

“4 stars. A fine thriller on a serious theme. Skilfully made in every department and all of the actors are remarkable; it’s better than many more heavily publicised Australian films and it deserves to be widely seen.” David Stratton, AT THE MOVIES

“4 stars. A fabulous taut thriller with this sort of like social underbelly that's absolutely shocking... Very impressively directed - everything comes together so well in this film… And the fact that this is happening in this country, because a lot of it is based on court transcripts. This is all stuff that's happening in our country and we ought to be ashamed.” Margaret Pomeranz, AT THE MOVIES