The Girlfriend Experience (2009)

A drama set in the days leading up to the 2008 Presidential election, and centered on a high-end Manhattan call girl meeting the challenges of her boyfriend, her clients, and her work.

Director:

Steven Soderbergh

Writers:

David Levien, Brian Koppelman

Stars:

Sasha Grey, Chris Santos, Philip Eytan

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sasha Grey	...	Chelsea / Christine
Chris Santos	...	Chris
Philip Eytan	...	Phillip
Colby Trane	...	Waiter (as T. Colby Trane)
Peter Zizzo	...	Zizzo
Ron Stein	...	Vegas Buddy #1
Marshall Gilman	...	Vegas Buddy #2
Michael Roberts	...	Vegas Buddy #3
Vincent Dellacera	...	Chelsea's Driver
Jim Kempner	...	Art Gallery Owner
David Levien	...	David
Mark Jacobson	...	Interviewer
Alan Milstein	...	Pete
Sukhdev Singh	...	Chris & Chelsea's Super
Ted Jessup	...	Chatty 'John'

Storyline

Chelsea (Sasha Grey) is a high-priced $2,000-an-hour call girl in Manhattan, offering a 'girlfriend experience': she'll dress with the client in mind, go to dinner and a movie, listen attentively to talk about work and finances, and she'll provide sex. It's October, 2008: a presidential election nears and the economy is in free fall. She has a boyfriend, Chris (Chris Santos), who's a personal trainer. We are shown five non-consecutive days in Chelsea's life. She's working on her Web page, talking to image consultants, and being interviewed by a reporter. She asks clients when their birthdays are and uses that for an astrological prediction. She's drawn to a new client, a writer from L.A. Should she break her rules for him? What if it risks her relationship with Chris? Should she invest in gold?

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Plot Keywords:

presidential election | female nudity | reference to barack obama | call girl | las vegas nevada | 

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Taglines:

See it with someone you ****

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexual content, nudity and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

8 July 2009 (France)

Also Known As:

GfE

Filming Locations:

USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,700,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$204,112, 24 May 2009, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$695,417, 30 August 2009

Company Credits

Production Co:

Magnolia Pictures, 2929 Productions, Extension 765

Technical Specs

Runtime:

77 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

"Girlfriend experience" is a form of sex work (paid-for female companionship) in which a female prostitute behaves like a male client's girlfriend or shows (artificial) emotional intimacy beyond the sex act.

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Quotes

Chelsea: [into a phone] So, what are you looking forward to? Do you have anything specific in mind?
David: [voice] Well... you know, after looking at your web site I'd just really love to get together with you. I'm just kind of feeling stressed out. I should probally see a shrink, but it seems more fun to see you.
Chelsea: Why don't you tell me about yourself? Are you married? Do you have kids? What kind of screenplay are you working on?
David: Yes and yes, and no comment.
Chelsea: How many kids do you have?
David: I have two little girls. ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

After the end credits, there's a brief scene of Chelsea washing a client's hair as he sits in a bathtub and talks about John McCain.

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Connections

Referenced in Brows Held High: W.R.: Mysteries of the Organism (2012)

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Soundtracks

Re-Work
Written and Produced by David Holmes
Courtesy of Universal Songs of Polygram International Inc.

User Reviews

Save your dollars

This film gets a 5/10 from me because mostly it was in focus and not too hostile to the viewer.

That said, let me start at the end, and say that I was at once relieved that the tedium was over, and annoyed that almost no story had been told, no character really developed. It doesn't even qualify as an abstractly artistic experience.

Soderbergh is by no means my favourite director, but he has been responsible for some at least competent film-making in the past, which is why I went to see this film, in addition to the subject sounding interesting.

But I am just shocked not to be able to find anything good to recommend this film except that it's in focus, and you can identify a main character or two. The sound, cinematography, and editing are otherwise among the worst I've ever experienced. The story just barely exists. In a way, the film is worth seeing just to see how not to make a film.

I could go on about what I wish had been different, but really, what's the point? It's beyond repair.

I will say it's better than Last Days by Gus Van Sant. If you liked that, you'll probably love this.