Content Advisory: Rape and Sexual Assault
A young woman recently released from juvenile detention believes a powerful God targets her in The Protector. Evelyn (Chelsea Clark) is a juvenile delinquent on probation release in the town of Wilfrid under the care of Dr. Flora (Rebecca Jenkins). On her 21st birthday, Evelyn is gifted a book speaking of the powerful Indian God Bhairava (Pras Lingam), who has been protecting the town of Wilfrid from crime, for a price. Believing that her life is in danger, Evelyn and her co-worker Eloah (Munro Chambers) prepare to fight back against The Protector.
The Protector is a thriller by writer/director Lenin M. Sivam. The film has set in the town of Wilfrid, which hasn’t experienced any crime since a horrible massacre from a decade prior, where 57 murders occurred on the same day. The protagonist, Evelyn, believes this is The Protector’s work, with Wilfrid remaining crime-free as long as he is present. However, when Evelyn learns that a sacrifice must be made to keep The Protector around, she believes she is the target.
While The Protector is a generally well-made film, I found the film’s ultimate message to be disturbing. Evelyn has always done things for others, and she now how to do something for herself to ensure that she lives. However, the film leaves you questioning whether the person Evelyn becomes is worse than who she starts as, especially as The Protector‘s final act leads her down a dark path.