Mateus (Christian Malheiros) lives in the Brazilian countryside with his mother and sister. Because of his family’s poor economic status, the 18-year-old farm hand decides to leave for São Paulo in search of better opportunities. A local agent picks Mateus up, promising him a decent paying job at a junkyard in São Paulo. In his journey to the big city, Mateus is joined by Isaque (Lucas Oranmian), Exequiel (Vitor Julian) and Samuel (Bruno Rocha), all young boys of his age from the countryside who are driven out by poverty to go find jobs in the city. 

When the boys arrive at the junkyard, they are greeted warmly by their boss Luca (Rodrigo Santoro). The young men, hungry to work and earn, start laboring at the junkyard immediately, hoping to get paid as promised so that they can send money home. At the time, little do they know that they are actually prisoners to Luca who has ‘bought’ the boys through trickery. 

As the days pass and the boys see no pay, Mateus, the most educated of the group who has studied till grade eight, questions Luca on their remuneration. For that, he is beaten up and that’s when the realization hits them. They are now prisoners at the junkyard, forced to live in inhuman conditions, with no chance of help from outside, not even from the police who they find are already in Luca’s payroll. With the help of the police, Luca not only terrorizes the boys but also threatens to harm their families back home.

Recently released on Netflix, “7 Prisoners” is a harrowing tale of modern-day slavery and human trafficking directed by Alexandre Moratto from a screenplay by Moratto and Thayná Mantesso. The Brazilian film chronicles the illegal confinement of hired laborers and their attempts to escape. 

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As a micro-budget independent film, 7 Prisoners does not have the lavish suavity offered by most mainstream industrial movies. Instead, the film is dark, heavy and applies the musical concept of “less is more” throughout. João Gabriel de Queiroz’s cinematography is artfully gloomy, visually representing the life stories and conditions of the characters in the film. The background music too is subtly sad, adding to our characters’ despairing situation.

But the driving force for the movie are its storyline and screenplay that carry a whirlwind of ideas and emotions, especially around the main character of Mateus. As the smartest of the group, Mateus plans an escape from Luca’s grasp for which he has to join him first. But as Mateus takes Lucas into confidence with his enterprising skills and Lucas begins to show a liking for him, Mateus struggles with the choices before him.

On the one hand, he could betray Lucas and try to escape from the junkyard with his friends—now seven in total with the addition of three. But this means he would be putting everyone at risk and also forfeiting the luxurious life with money and power Lucas has shown him a glimpse of. On the other hand, Mateus could succumb to Lucas’s offer and become a boss on his own. That way, he would be disappointing his friends and damning them to the Hell of slavery for time unknown.

Mateus’s battle with morality, friendship, trust and loyalty make up for an interesting plot in 7 Prisoners. Actor Christian Malheiros, in his role as a naive teenager hardened in no time by violence and despair, puts up a brilliant performance: he is expressive, with both his words and body language, and never fails to make the best of the situations given to his character. Actor Rodrigo Santoro, playing the formidable Luca— cold, unrelenting and malicious—is an antagonist who sends shivers down the audience’s spine. But again, his interactions with Mateus show glimpses of his softer side which is easy to empathize with. The grey areas of the main characters and their effortless acting are the main assets of the film that surpass the need of a big budget or fancy storytelling.

Who should watch it?

By now, it should be a no-brainer that “7 Prisoners” is a highly recommended film for anyone interested in intelligent movies that not only entertain but also inform and leave us asking many questions. 

7 Prisoners 

Rating: 4 stars
Cast: Rodrigo Santoro, Christian Malheiros
Director: Alexandre Moratto
Run time: 1hr 33mins