MovieChat Forums > Top of the Lake (2013) Discussion > Spoilery question about the barista kids...

Spoilery question about the barista kids.

posted 11 years ago by humblebumble
4 replies | jump to latest

So Al takes these kids back to his house where he roofies them and sells them in a preteen rape ring. Fine.

But why then are the kids so excited about going back to his house time and again? They seem to go most willingly. Isn't waking up sore and with no memory of the previous night except a mean hangover kind of a red flag that you didn't have an awesome innocent time watching DVDs?

Second question. Were there boys passed around in this ring as well, like Jamie? It's unclear to me.

You: I'd like a coke. Waiter: Is pepsi okay? You: Is monopoly money okay?

[–] prettyh-1 11 years ago

I might be wrong in my interpretation here, but I had the notion that the barista kids were only "treated" to a night of pizza and movies by Al when they "graduated" from the program. Which would mean each of them, for the most part, were only used as part of the srx ring once. Now, Tui returning did make me wonder what on earth was happening, so I guess it was a combination of one-timers and willing/unwitting returnee kids...? I'm not sure how they wouldn't be disturbed by waking up groggy and possibly in physical pain every time they went to that house, but maybe Al did the whole "cool guy" routine and let them drink booze, try drugs etc. so they'd think the way they felt was a direct result of their own actions, not abuse by a group of perverts.

I thought about the autopsy of the barista girl who walked in front of the car - the M.E. said she had cocaine in her vagina and if she was raped the guy used a condom - and that made me wonder if these men were using coke as an analgesic so the kids wouldn't feel much upon waking. Just a theory! :)

[–] draugwenL 11 years ago

It's called grooming. It's a technique sexual predators (as well as physical and mental abusers) use to create a kind of Stockholm Syndrome for the victim. The kids are spoiled by Al. Given movies to watch, food to eat, and whatever they want to drink. It wouldn't be too surprising to wake up with a hangover if there had been drinking. And they don't have any memories of being raped, obviously, so why should they associate it with anything negative? Al isn't just their boss, he's a police officer. Why should they be suspicious of him? That's how predators work.

Also, preteen children don't always have the best idea of what's happening in their bodies because so much is changing, and particularly girls are told to assume many things (including fatigue, pain, headaches, and lapses in memory) are hormonal in nature and often signs of an upcoming period. There were many symptoms I experienced as a young teenager that I was told were hormonal, and they turned out to be symptoms of an autoimmune disorder.

It's implied that yes, the boys were passed around as well.

I still believe that peace and plenty and happiness can be worked out some way. I am a fool.

[–] 11 years ago

[deleted]

[–] draugwenL 10 years ago

Yes, that is exactly what I'm saying. There are thousands of accounts of adult survivors of child sexual abuse not recognizing what happened to them, particularly ones who are drugged. Take for instance all the cases we see in the news recently of teenage girls getting blackout drug or getting drugged at parties and not knowing they were raped until they saw pictures or videos of the assaults online.

Pain is only a small factor when it comes to recognizing one was raped. Many 12-year-olds don't know what rape is in the first place. Society has us teaching children about stranger danger and the fact that most rapes are committed by people the victim knows goes unnoticed until older teens or twenties. They were in the home of a trusted adult, and an officer of the law. We teach children that the police are there to help us, to protect us, not to rape us. Why should they have any suspicion? If there was pain (of course, the more often they were raped the less pain they'd feel) it could easily be explained away as growing pains, menstrual or premenstrual cramps, or gastrointestinal distress from the alcohol and junk food.

Even if they did notice something was happening, there might not be a lot of reason for them to want to tell. Outside of the shame rape survivors normally feel, if they knew they were being raped by the police they'd have even less reason to report. Who could they report it to? How could they know a police officer they reported it to wasn't one of the ones who raped them? How could they even trust the law to take care of them? At least 60% of rapes go unreported. Some studies have even estimated as many as 84% of rapes go unreported.

So, yes, a rape survivor might not know something happened, and even if they did know something happened they very well might never say a word.

I still believe that peace and plenty and happiness can be worked out some way. I am a fool.