By 2014, hundreds of young women had been lured by recruiters of the Islamic State on social media platforms to find new friends, change their names, and leave Europe to join ISIS. Amy Whittaker (Valene Kane, The Fall) is a British investigative journalist who decides to go undercover to infiltrate the network and learn about how these recruitment channels prey on young women and ultimately transport them to Syria. Along with the help of her editor Vick (Christine Adams, Black Lightning) and IT guy Lou (Amir Rahimzadeh), Amy creates a new Facebook profile under the name Melody Nelson, and starts posting so pro-Islamic State propaganda. It isn’t long before she is contacted by recruiter Abu Bilel Al-Britani (Shazad Latif, Departure, Star Trek: Discovery) and the two start having conversations over Skype. Both Bilel and Amy are playing games with one another, each believing they have the upper hand. Amy must lure Bilel in with Melody’s vulnerability and desire to convert, and get him to reveal details of how the recruitment operation works.

Initially Amy is terrified about the assignment, as this terrorist organization has resources everywhere, and any wrong move could lead to a deadly mistake and the truth being discovered. She is even paranoid when she learns that Lou’s mother is Syrian, fearing that she could tell someone, who tells someone, and so on. However, as the operation goes on, Amy starts to let her guard down, and becomes more and more sucked in by her recruiter and the role she is playing. She lets her emotions get the best of her, the lines between fantasy and reality start to blur, and she starts to get reckless. This obsession also starts to affect her personal life with boyfriend Matthew (Morgan Watkins, The Hour)—with whom she has been planning to move into a new apartment—and with best friend Kathy (Emma Cater).

Profile is inspired by a true story, based on the book “In the Skin of a Jihadist: A Young Journalist Enters the ISIS Recruitment Network” by Anna Erell. The film is shot in a unique way, presenting everything through Amy’s computer recordings of her Skype and Facetime conversations, Google searches, and Facebook posts. The viewer is put into Amy’s POV as she watches ISIS recruitment videos or researches the stories of women who have been successfully mobilized by the Islamic State so she can learn what to say when she is recruited, or as she seeks out tutorials on things like how to wear a hajib or make herself look younger. She is also constantly googling or facetiming Lou to help her translate Arabic phrases or understand what is considered halal, so that she behaves properly for the recruiter. While this may not sound that exciting, the film does an excellent job of building up the tension. Amy is constantly multitasking, switching around between apps and conversations, and receiving interruptions from her boyfriend, best friend, or coworkers while she is on calls with Bilel. There is this constant tension that in all the chaos she is going to accidentally say or post the wrong information to Bilel or in the wrong profile that will not only ruin her story, but could lead to deadly consequences. It was sometimes so nerve-wracking to watch her bouncing around between the apps and calls! As the film goes on, Amy also becomes more and more unhinged, taking unnecessary risks as she starts to get sucked in by Bilel’s charms and her obsession to see the story through no matter what the cost. Has she become too close to her target, and can she still remain objective enough to break the story? I found this film to be quite thrilling and captivating, and it held my interest the whole time.

Universal’s Blu-ray release looks and sounds quite good, but it’s hard to exactly qualify it as the film takes place through internet conversations, and there are some intentional sound and picture issues, like choppy video and unclear or echoing conversations. However, the video that is meant to be clear looks very clean and detailed. While you’re looking at a computer screen pretty much the whole time, the film does still make use of the surround channel to make the audio feel more immersive. The Blu-ray comes packed in a standard HD keepcase with a slipcover and includes a slip with redemption instructions for an HD Movies Anywhere-compatible digital copy of the film, plus a bonus Universal All-Access Rewards points code that can be used for a free digital movie or towards other rewards. However, there is absolutely no bonus material included, not even the trailer. I wish there had at least been some sort of featurette or interview about the true story on which the film was inspired.

What’s Included:

Film: (1:45:51)

Blu-ray:
• 1080p / Widescreen 1.78:1
• Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, English DVS (Descriptive Video Service)
• Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French

Digital (code may not be valid after 9/30/2022):

• HD digital copy redeemable via Movies Anywhere or Vudu
• Universal All-Access Rewards Code (Offer may not be valid after 12/31/2025)
  Code can be redeemed for points towards a free digital movie or other items in the Universal All-Access Rewards program. The selection of five free digital titles usually changes around the first of the month.

Extras:

There is no bonus material included on this release.

Final Thoughts:

Profile is told in a very unique way, entirely through Skype/Facetime calls and computer recordings, but still manages to be a captivating and tense thriller. I had missed the note that this was based on a true story until after I had finished the film, but I found this notion to be quite surprising and made me appreciate the story even more. Universal’s Blu-ray looks and sounds great, but unfortunately doesn’t include any bonus material. The film is definitely worth checking out for an exciting and intense thriller told in an unusual way.