Matroesjka's

It's strange, but while the crime genre exhausts countless variations of certain topics - such as the drug scene or terrorism - screenwriters consistently avoid others. Among them is the potentially attractive world of white meat trade. Besides the British series The Vice and the British film Sex Traffic, my memory cannot offer anything else. Belgian television has decided to fill this gap with an extensive project called Matrioshki, which follows the destinies of Eastern European girls lured under the pretext of working as dancers in Western Europe. The hall turns into a bar, the stage into space around the pole, and the dance into a provocative strip show, where work commitment is expected along with a wide range of sexual pleasures and the constant risk that, in case of weaker performance, the girls will end up in a substandard brothel with aggressive clients and with the prospect of the worst kind of sexual exploitation. The destinies of the girls and members of the criminal gang twist and turn; some manage to escape in time, while others do not survive until the end of the ride. But everyone ultimately pays a price. Matrioshki presents a well-executed suspenseful series with a realistic tone and without cheap screenwriting tricks or gimmicks, featuring appropriately repulsive yet believable villains and not entirely unblemished heroes on the other side. It is a shame that some characters disappear as the episodes progress. It would be interesting to follow the side storylines and develop the stories of supporting characters. Overall impression: 75%. (12.06.2014)