Review of Girlfriend Experience (2008) by Adam K — 10 Oct 2009

Though I have a love/hate experience with Roger Ebert, I must admit that he is the source for where I read about this film. Until then, I had never even heard of it, not to mention I only like Soderbergh films about 50% of the time. That said, I was plreasantly surprised with this film, although not blown off my feet. All in all, it seemed passable for a straightforward story about an upscale escort and the conflicts she has with herself and her relationships.

At first I felt that the film's format comes off as a bit jilted, due perhaps to its "experimental" nature. For the first few minutes I had to get adjusted to the part fake documentary/expose/diary feel mixed with the Tarantino-like chopped up plot. However, some of that initial "mystery" made me keep watching, and after a few minutes, I quickly got used to this.

The cast is made up largely of actors whom I've never really seen before, or rather, some guys that seem familiar but I'm not sure from where. However, basically any young male will undoubtedly recognize the female lead who, for all the women out there, is not a newcomer to film; she's just new to non-adult film.

Surprisingly, Sasha Grey succeeded in playing a fairly distant and driven young woman. Although some critics felt as though her performance was flat, I think she did quite a job portraying how a woman in such a field might be: fairly cool and calm, brutally honest, and at times quite vulnerable. Luckily, the film focuses very little on graphic sex, and for the most part, doesn't even focus on the sex at all, which is obviously a 180 degree turn to Grey's prior experiences.

Speaking of her experiences, it's interesting to see an adult film start break out in a role where she plays a character in the sex industry. It's also interesting to note how quickly I forgot about her prior experiences while watching her perform in this drama, and I was pleased that it didn't ruin the feel at all, nor did Soderbergh in any way exploit that angle.

The film plays more like an intimate portrait of an unconventional occupation than it does a straightforward, plot-driven film. We are here to watch the character of Chelsea during several days of her life, and that's that.

The end, though... I'm not sure about the end, and if my feelings about the end are right, then I think Soderbergh definitely thought it out well. In the end, we felt shocked, confused, perhaps even disappointed. We lacked closure, and no pun intended, it ended too soon.

How's that for an cinematic analogy of Chelsea's internal conflicts?