Inspired by a true story, the 2012 film Eden tells the survival tale of a Korean-American girl kidnapped by a prostitution ring in 1994.
After a night out with friends, Hyun Jae (Jamie Chung) accepts a late night ride home from a young fire fighter. What begins as a night of promise quickly turns into a nightmare when she is abducted and imprisoned outside Las Vegas as a sex slave. Renamed “Eden”, she learns she must build the trust of her captors led by Bob (Beau Bridges) and Vaughan (Matt O’Leary) and sacrifice everything in a desperate plea to survive.
Awards
- Won SXSW Film Festival Audience Award, Best Narrative Feature (2012)
- Won Milan International Film Festival Awards for: Best Film & Best Director (2013)
- Won San Diego Asian Film Festival Audience Award (2012)
- Won Seattle International Film Festival Awards for: Best Actress Jamie Chung, 2nd Place Best Film (2012)
Eden Movie Reviews
“Engaging, sharply focussed and pointedly non-exploitative sex trafficking drama with a strong script, assured direction and a terrific central performance from Jamie Chung.” ViewLondon
“..Eden takes what many filmmakers would have turned into generic thriller material and captured something truly unsettling, getting at the core of a crime that is as prevalent today, in the United States, as it has ever been. Its goals are not to preach about prevention, but to spotlight the terrible decision facing the victims, to make the viewer uncomfortable at the very thought of what a victim would have to go through. In this regard, it is incredibly successful, thanks to Griffiths' direction and performances by a strong cast…highly recommended.” DVD Talk
“Eden is never less than suspenseful, but rather than sentimentally pander to easy outrage, or indulge in icky women-in-distress titillation, the movie…zeros in on the details of how dignity can be stripped like bark from a tree, and the queasy determination it takes to stay alive in a living hell.” LA Times
“Scrupulously avoiding salaciousness and overstatement, "Eden” translates a true-life tale of human trafficking into an effectively low-key, arrestingly suspenseful drama." Variety