‘American Sweatshop’ review: Maybe the internet really was a mistake

It is difficult to argue that the internet has not necessarily been the best place, especially with the rise of social media in the last decade. People are less afraid to post things online, and the concept of “getting content” has not helped. That is where American Sweatshop’s Daisy (Lili Reinhart) comes in.

Though we have bots and coding to hide and regulate most things, humans are more reliable for moderating content. In American Sweatshop, Daisy works in a center doing just that: Spending day after day as a content moderator, clicking from one flagged post to the next and forced to witness some of the utter depravity of humankind.

The weight of the job and the things she’s seen wear not just on her but also on her coworkers, especially Bob (Joel Fry). Everybody has coping mechanisms, and though Daisy tries to deal with the pressure, she isn’t always successful. Once she stumbles across a particular video that gets flagged, she quickly becomes consumed with figuring out where the video came from.

Her coworker and friend, Ava (Daniela Melchior), tells her that the video has been flagged and removed several times in the past few years. That does little to deter Daisy as the film begins to pop in and out of her consciousness. She becomes determined to track down its origin and take matters into her own hands.

Though the film’s concept is unique and holds potential, the audience is not given much room to root for Daisy. Reinhart does a great job with the material she is given, but there comes a point during the film where it does not feel like Daisy’s actions can be justified.

Telling rather than showing can be just as powerful

One of the things this movie does well is to insinuate rather than explicitly tell. We are not shown any of the videos, but rather allusions to them that let our brain fill in the gaps. There is one particularly upsetting video and reactionary scene that left me sobbing in the theatre during the premiere because it was something I would do in that situation.

We ultimately still root for Daisy—mostly. She tries to do what she thinks is right, but how it consumes her does not always allow it to be seen that way. She makes several decisions, including going to where the video was originally filmed, that are downright dangerous. Despite her intentions, her choices were at times frustrating and almost incomprehensible, making it hard to relate to her.

For the most part, American Sweatshop is a strong offering from noted TV director Ute Briesewitz, especially for a theatrical debut. You can see her Severance influence in how the film is shot. It is not without its flaws, though, and while I’m certain people will enjoy the tension and the action of the story, they may also feel like something is missing.