Lilja 4-Ever is an excellent example of Swedish hypocrisy and condescension at its very worst. This film is a revolting mix of kiddie porn and holier-than-thou sentimentalism, for people who want to feel aware, concerned and superior, but also want to get the secret thrills of the rape scenes. The scenes with Lilja and Volodna with angel wings on their backs, on the other hand, were simply beyond ridiculous.
Another thing about this film that drives me up the wall is the borderline-racist way it depicts all Russians: greedy, uncaring and alcoholic. And I don't speak Russian, but I know several people who do (some of them native speakers) and those of them who've seen this film say that the Russian dialogue is totally unrealistic. I've been told that especially teenagers would never in reality talk the way they do in this movie.
The problem of child trafficking is real, of course, and something should be done about it. Watching this film and feeling like you've become a better person for,however, it is not the answer.
One final related note: the director of this film, Lucas Moodysson, was among the figureheads of a movement for outlawing patronizing protitutes. In other words, in Sweden prostitutes are allowed by law to offer their services, but the men who hire them are committing a crime. I suppose it's possible that the people who supported the law partially believed their own claims about how it was supposed to help sex workers, especially immigrants. However, as anyone with half a brain can guess, the results were exactly the opposite: prostitution went even further underground and ruthless pimps, such as the one in Lilja 4-Ever, now have more power than ever. Prostitutes, on the other hand, are in a desperate situation: they are paid less, cannot decide for themselves the conditions in which they work and are unable to choose their own customers. The idea that someone would have the gall to make a film supposedly calling your attention to a problem, and at the same time advocating a law that makes that very problem much worse makes me sick.
Another thing about this film that drives me up the wall is the borderline-racist way it depicts all Russians: greedy, uncaring and alcoholic. And I don't speak Russian, but I know several people who do (some of them native speakers) and those of them who've seen this film say that the Russian dialogue is totally unrealistic. I've been told that especially teenagers would never in reality talk the way they do in this movie.
The problem of child trafficking is real, of course, and something should be done about it. Watching this film and feeling like you've become a better person for,however, it is not the answer.
One final related note: the director of this film, Lucas Moodysson, was among the figureheads of a movement for outlawing patronizing protitutes. In other words, in Sweden prostitutes are allowed by law to offer their services, but the men who hire them are committing a crime. I suppose it's possible that the people who supported the law partially believed their own claims about how it was supposed to help sex workers, especially immigrants. However, as anyone with half a brain can guess, the results were exactly the opposite: prostitution went even further underground and ruthless pimps, such as the one in Lilja 4-Ever, now have more power than ever. Prostitutes, on the other hand, are in a desperate situation: they are paid less, cannot decide for themselves the conditions in which they work and are unable to choose their own customers. The idea that someone would have the gall to make a film supposedly calling your attention to a problem, and at the same time advocating a law that makes that very problem much worse makes me sick.