So is it really all that hard out
there for a pimp? Late in the powerful documentary Very Young Girls, Rachel Lloyd, a former prostitute
and founder of a NYC non-profit that helps young streetwalkers regain control
of their lives, receives an award for her efforts shortly after Three 6 Mafia
collected an Academy Award for Best Song for Hustle & Flow. It's a sobering moment: The Three
6 Mafia song (and the movie it represents) seems harmless enough, but that
harmlessness points to a softened public perception of pimps that doesn't jibe
with the real deal. And that's one of the many obstacles Lloyd has to face as
she tries to wrest these damaged girls not just from their pimps, but also from
a justice system and a culture that's rigged against them.
Why is Lloyd's scrappy little
organization the only voice speaking for these girls? This documentary doesn't
get around to that question, and though its narrow focus is disappointing, its
moving testimonials from underage prostitutes are enough to rattle the
conscience. The film opens with the startling fact that the average age of
girls entering the commercial sex industry in New York is 13, then proceeds to
show the cruel logic of it. Most of the subjects in Very Young Girls come from broken homes, and pimps
are expert at preying on their vulnerability, whether that means playing their
lover or father, getting them addicted to drugs, or simply beating them into
submission.
Along with straightforward
interviews with former prostitutes on the mend, Schisgall weaves in startling
home-video footage from two pimps who imagined their exploits might be used as
fodder for a reality television show. While their fantasies of TV stardom are
hilariously misguided, they're scarily assured in the art of manipulating the bruised
psyches of the 100 or so girls under their employ. Seeing Lloyd and her tiny
organization GEMS (Girls Educational & Mentoring Services) attempt to
compete for hearts and minds is a tragic David and Goliath match-up. And with
so few resources at their disposal, they can only claim small victories in a
much larger war.