Based on true events, The Whistleblower is an indictment on a system that covered up sex trafficking in post-war Bosnia yet is ultimately undone by clunky storytelling and crudely realised supporting characters.

The film relies on a strong performance by Rachel Weisz as the international police officer trying to uncover the truth about the sex slave industry that her own people are a part of. She is the centre of the story and Weisz delivers one of her best performances to date but she is also the only person in the entire film afforded any sort of development. Given the subject matter this is an unsurprisingly depressing watch yet it never hits the emotional heights it strives for because everybody else is either a cartoon villain or used solely to move the plot forward (it is all the more galling when the supporting cast is made up of great actors). It is a shame because there is undoubtedly a compelling story here that deserves to be told but the execution is disappointingly flat and the issues simplified.

Both Lilya 4-Ever and the David Yates film, Sex Traffic are superior examples of films exploring the devastating and harrowing effects of human trafficking.