This Endless Night

Description

In a tale that could be described as Witness meets Leaving Las Vegas, a rogue officer, Ezra, seeks refuge within an illegal brothel after discovering police involvement with prostitutes and becoming the subject of a manhunt. Under the guise of an interested client, he encounters Rachel who too has been ostracized by society. His plan? To hide out at her quarters long enough to catch officers in the act. Ezra pays Rachel to sit with him and talk, igniting a spark between the two. However, chaos ensues when he’s recognised as law enforcement by one of the girls. Rachel turns on him and they threaten his life. As conflict grows Ezra learns that many of them are mothers and many of them desperate, just like him. His prejudices begin to lift and offers them help and protection in exchange for theirs. Suddenly there is a knock at the door. It’s a raid. Ezra had been tailed all along. Rachel has a moment of clarity and decides to let him escape through a window… with no knowledge of whether he survived the fall, they head toward a deadly climax as the corrupt officers turn their rage onto the women.

Biblical Connection

This story is an adaptation of the tale of Rahab in the book of Joshua, Chapter Two. Rahab, a courtesan, houses two spies at her lodgings in the pagan land of Jericho and helps them escape persecution, thus saving herself and family. I found resonance in the representation of Rahab's character for it is not Rahab’s occupation that defines her, but her righteousness. Rahab knows that what’s at stake is bigger than her and fearlessly abides by her own belief. This results in her gaining heroine status in the Bible and being one of five women listed as part of Jesus’s lineage. I would parallel this by conveying a powerful message of female autonomy in order to invite discourse surrounding the protection of young women who are made vulnerable by being criminalised for choices that are often beyond their control. This is a story of faith, not judgement, in circumstances that may seem futile. Rahab manages to save herself and those she loves by holding steady to what she believes to be right, and this film would demonstrate this whilst also being a catalyst for bringing more visibility to a topic that an audience is rarely given insight into.