A gritty thriller about an American attorney going undercover to build a case against a notorious, Bangkok-based human trafficker, She Has a Name benefits from a driven cast. Giovanni Mocibob plays Jason, who is enlisted by Marta (Deborah Fennelly)—a handler from U.S. intelligence—to act like a repeat customer at a brothel full of underaged girls. Jason slowly cultivates a bond of trust with a girl known only as Number 18 (Teresa Ting). But as he’s not trained to be a dispassionate cog in the slow-turning wheel of international justice, his paternal rage kicks in, and he becomes determined to save 18. When a trafficker-godfather type (Will Yun Lee) begins to suspect that there’s a U.S. plot against him, Jason’s rogue plans ratchet up. There’s a by-the-numbers feel to the story, with only so many directions that the script’s cyclical action can take and make sense. And a subplot involving a rescued girl describing her experiences on video repeatedly stops the narrative’s momentum. But the film is carried by some memorable performances, especially from a charismatic Lee and adventurous Ting. A strong optional purchase. (T. Keogh)
She Has a Name
Vision, 107 min., not rated, DVD: $14.99 Volume 34, Issue 3
She Has a Name
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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