in Caught in the Web: The Murders Behind the Zone DayFilmmakers Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez trace the harrowing story of women who were lured to Mexico with the promise of work, only to fall victim to an extensive and violent sex-trafficking operation. Four-episode docuseries, also dubbed in Spanish PortalEstablishes how a website called Zona Divas controlled people contracted for sex work, forced them into dangerous and unsafe situations against their will and retaliated when they fought back or tried to escape, ultimately leading to the deaths of six foreign women. is “Suspect in Her Murder Walks Out of Hotel”
Caught in the Web – The Murders Behind Zo’s Divas: Stream it or skip it?Â
Opening shot: On footage of Mexico City at night, we hear the voice of Kenny Finol. “Look girl, in Mexico, they make a lot of money. I managed to save and send money to my family in Venezuela.
Summary: Finol fled the dire economic situation in her hometown of Maracaibo, Venezuela, to Mexico to work as an escort. And she actually sent some cash home to her starving family and sick mother. But by 2018 Finol was dead, a victim of the violence surrounding Zoe Day after she tried to escape the clutches of the site’s founder and his accomplices.
Caught in the Web: The Murders Behind the Zone Day Kenny Finoll and other women involved with the site track the stories of women from South American countries such as Venezuela, Argentina and Colombia who were promised work as models or “escorts” by Zona Diva before their passports were confiscated and under limited conditions. . Their supposed legal agreements have been completely ignored. While one woman who found work with the site takes a pragmatic view and says she has not been abused – “where there are men, there is prostitution, it’s that simple” – Zone Two Columbia also interviews Candice Miller, whose testimony is voiced by the actress who plays her. “The reason I’ve requested to hide my identity is because in Mexico, women are not protected by law. Basically, I’m scared. And the Venezuelan mother of another Zona Divas victim can only cry when she loves the photo of her late daughter. is
In an archival radio interview with Mexico City news-talk station MVS Noticias, Zona Divas CEO Ignacio Antonio Santoyo Cervantes, aka “Sonny,” denies any wrongdoing. But women interviewed for the docuseries say Sonny was their main recruiter, and that he controlled every aspect of the operation, including the use of sexual violence as a means of control. Later episodes of Caught in the Web: The Murders Behind the Zone Day will explore the history of the site, its rise to influence and the continuing story of Kenny Fino, who gathered incriminating video and audio evidence before his attempt to escape the website’s dangerous orbit once and for all.
What show does it remind you of? dirtyMexican crime drama written and directed by Zone Two Filmmakers Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez won the World Cinema Dramatic Grand Jury Award at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. And Netflix also offers features Ã’lòtÅ«ré: The JourneyA series about a journalist’s investigation of sex trafficking in Nigeria.
Our Tech: “Out of 100 people, if you come across one dangerous person, you’ve already messed up.” Interviews with Candice Miller Caught in the Web: The Murders Behind the Zone Day Illuminating — and disturbing — as she describes an environment that revolves around sex work that would already be extremely dangerous, even if the organization that trapped her inside it were not a notorious international sex-trafficking ring. It points to the stories of the women interviewed here, the similarity of their circumstances, and how the larger forces of grinding poverty and social unrest in South America were the real drivers who put everyone in these impossible situations. first place
necessarily, Zone Two Relying heavily on reenactments and dramatizations, and aesthetically, some of these sections of the document are more effective than others. But this approach also emphasizes the emotional power of his interviews. With the women taken in the zone divas, with family members and loved ones of those killed, and even with someone like Kenny Finol, one of the women who was killed, whose own voice and social media feeds become significant. Part of the emotional conduit that runs through the entire series.
Sex and Skin: Zone Two Includes shots of website pages, showing racy images of advertised escorts, as well as explicit reenactments of sexual acts.
Farewell Shot: The first episode ends with a description of a chilling encounter with the founder of Zona Divas. “When she refused to serve him, he said, “You know who I am? I am the king, Ignacio Antonio Santoyo. I am Sony
Sleeper Star: Voice notes, selfies and videos recovered from Kenny Phenol’s phone paint a harrowing portrait of a young woman forced into uncertainty by circumstances. “Imagine how badly I need money to work as a prostitute. Imagine that. If I didn’t need money, I wouldn’t do this job. I’d work in the mall like girls my age usually do.
The most pilot-y line: “We knew we would come to work as escorts,” says one woman Zone TwoHis face contorted in fear for his life. “But not in a way that we would be forced. As soon as we got here, we were made to record a video, like a contract that we would work for them for three months. They took our documents, our passports. Until We can’t go out unless it’s with the driver. They told us, ‘You’re here to be our whore.’
Our Call: Stream it. Caught in the Web: The Murders Behind the Zone Day Amplifies and strengthens the voices of the victims of an international sex-trafficking ring that, from its founder on down, seemed able to destroy lives and spill blood with complete impunity.
Johnny Loftus (@glenngangs) is a freelance writer and editor based largely in Chicagoland. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media and Nicki Swift.
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