The Girlfriend Experience is the new Soderbergh movie which premiered at Sundance.
The movie is definitely low-budget (rumor puts it at less than two million) and some of the scenes can be improved with better lighting or better camera locations.
One of the most talked about “features” is the lead character, a high-end escort by the nickname Chelsea, who is played by real-life pornstar Sasha Grey.
Now, I can understand the attraction of a A-star shooting a hot, sex scene. But I don’t think it works the other way around. Sasha’s face is flat, her tone is monotonous… and frankly, she’s not even sexy.
Shockingly, Sascha is the only professional actress in the movie … the others could be people from the street (or Soderbergh’s less-known friends).
The majority of the scenes deal with Sasha Grey listening to a confession from a “boyfriend” paying for the girlfriend experience. It’s incredibly boring and doing it over and over again doesn’t make it better.
In short, the movie could only be viewed as a sort of an exercise for Soderbergh. If you’re interested in Sasha, there are better “titles” out there. If you’re interested in a coherent movie with at least one professional actor, same thing applies.
I read about this movie in Ad Busters last month and then forgot about it. I didn’t know it was so low budget. Some interesting reviews on IMDB. It sounds like a love it or hate it film. I’ll check this out. Thanks for sharing.
Movies often portray sex-workers, but their customers remain well hidden – faceless and nameless. “As a filmmaker, I simply wanted to reveal what is hidden – the john”. So says Pietrobruno – the director of GFE: GIRLFRIEND EXPERIENCE. An entertaining peek into the world of prostitution from the client’s point of view, Pietrobruno’s GFE: GIRLFRIEND EXPERIENCE follows a man obsessed with prostitutes who discovers that love is a lot more expensive than sex.
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Good review. I read article about this film on IMDB. Movie about the world of prostitution. I will wait when movie appears on DVD. Thank you for review.