In 7 Prisoners, director Alexandre Moratto exposes the brutal machinery of modern slavery through the eyes of Mateus, a young man from the Brazilian countryside who travels to São Paulo chasing a better future. What he finds instead is a system of labor exploitation that traps him and other young men in a junkyard run like a prison, under the control of a boss who is himself both a victim and perpetrator of the cycle.

The film operates in a grey zone of morality, showing how survival in the margins sometimes requires complicity. Christian Malheiros delivers a haunting performance, his internal conflict quietly echoing the dehumanizing weight of economic oppression. Rodrigo Santoro’s portrayal of Luca is equally complex, moving beyond villainy to suggest how the system corrupts everyone it touches.

7 Prisoners is not only a harrowing social thriller, but also a powerful political film that exposes the underbelly of Brazil’s economic progress. It navigates themes of power, poverty, and moral compromise, resonating with global realities often kept out of sight. The cinematography’s muted tones and claustrophobic spaces emphasize the characters’ lack of escape, while the slow unraveling of Mateus’s transformation leaves a lasting discomfort.

Moratto doesn’t offer easy answers. Instead, he challenges viewers to witness and reflect, and to consider how exploitation persists under capitalism’s shadows. The result is a tightly controlled, emotionally charged film that stands as one of the most urgent Latin American dramas in recent years.