Dances With Films Reviews: Nick Laurant’s THE GIRL IN THE BACKSEAT gives a real and gritty view of human trafficking with a surprising heroine.

The dating world is difficult enough in the days of Tinder and other apps. Catfishing and attempted fraud are the norm. However, Nick Laurant’s The Girl in the Back Seat adds one more thing for women to worry about when dating–trafficking. The film is written by its stars Kika Magalhães (who plays Sofia) and Chris Marrone (who plays Ryan).

Sofia goes on a date with Ryan, and they seem like a cute couple. The next thing we know, Sofia is in the back seat of a car driven by Ryan and something is not right. Ryan works for a trafficking ring that gathers girls to be sold to the highest bidder.

Sofia’s date night suddenly becomes a deep dive into a nightmare. She struggles to get away, but we find out that Ryan is not a newb. The only thing that seems to throw him off is her diabetes, Sofia needs insulin injections. Ryan needs her in tip top shape for his boss. The struggle to keep her alive gets wild when Sofia figures out that her life and death condition may be the way she survives this ordeal.

The Girl in the Back Seat is a thriller that some will find horrifying as the film gets deeper into Ryan’s world. Every person that Sofia believes will help her, cannot because they work for the same person who employs Ryan: the sinister Mom played by Helen Day. Ryan isn’t moving Sofia through the inner city and through underground tunnels. He’s driving a busy freeway and operating in a regular suburb that has families and kids in it. Everyone here is somehow connected to Mom. Sofia finds out quickly that even if she gets away, any of these people can bring her right back. The horror is that feeling that she is trapped, in broad daylight and surrounded by people who are supposed to help, yet will not.

One of the most tragic characters is a woman who must have been with Ryan for quite some time. Bella, played by Jasmine Akakpo is a bubbly Black woman who seems to survive by seeing the bright side in her situation. She tries to help Sofia do the same and fails. Sofia is only interested in getting out. Bella does help Sofia get through much of the process to prep her for the “sale”. The most tragic part of Bella’s story is how they keep her working. The audience soon finds that the women aren’t the only people trafficked by Mom.

Sofia has grit and determination that Ryan and Mom picked the wrong one today. Once again, they are all blindsided by the woman’s condition, which no one knows a thing about. Sofia uses this and her knowledge of her own body to make a harrowing escape attempt that will leave the audience on the edge of their seats.

The Girl in the Back Seat is a dive into trafficking that will have many women rethinking their dating habits. The film recently screened at Dances With Films.