I just started writing and unexpectedly have written a complete review.
It was free on HD cable for 1 night last week and I watched it with interest. Soderberberg has been involved in some great movies (Solaris, Erin Brokovich, Ocean's, Sex Lies Video Tape) so I expected something fun or at the very least thought provoking, and I guess it was thought provoking, but dry.
An entire thread could be dedicated to the idea of GFE. From my understanding of how the TERB/MERB boards operate GFE means friendly service with a bunch of acronyms, in the movie it means really loaded guys paying to have real dates that include dinner, movies, and art galleries, and long conversations. Is it at all possible that that is the norm and the boards don't reflect it?
Sasha Grey does great porn, but I think she does have a "disaffected" facial look as was critically stated by the asshole in the movie. Her facial look through out the movie was stoic, marginal emotion. Maybe that is what was called for by the director. I found it odd that they often shot the film not facing her, you would hear her talk and not see her face, she would be behind furniture, or at a distance. I think in porn she may actually be more at ease and natural than as she was in this picture.
There was discussion about sex in the movie, the character seemed to enjoy it and not mind the business of the actual act. Yes they didn't show it. The truth is we all don't look like Brad Pitt and if they were going to show it I'm sure it would not have been pretty, and it wasn't what they did show.
There were many things that left me thinking, the movie did not wrap things up enough, or maybe it was suppose to be ambiguous just enough for pontificators to ponder. The boyfriend is a personal trainer. He has to hustle to sell sessions, things don't seem to go well for him. Is he just like his escort girlfriend or is he actually different/opposite of her. He's selling something that is arguably good for ppl, health, fitness, hope, and he struggles doing so. She is not selling that, some might say she is selling the complete opposite, and business is good. He has an animosity/disrespect for his clients and the process, she has respect and appreciation of it. The boyfriend has an honest grasp on reality, she does not seem to have it, and yet she is successful, he is not.
The escort has nontraditional values, kinda flighty, she has a care free attitude about her personal relationships. Are these qualities that are required to be an escort? Perhaps. Personally I have known civilian women, some married with families, who were just as crazy and nontraditional in their values. You would think that ppl with legit jobs and responsibilities would not seriously put 100% blind trust into something that has to be taken sight unseen, but they do. Ive known experienced SP's whom are extremely sound and grounded, we have them here on the board, I would say even in this very thread. I began to wonder if this is really a movie about escorting? Possibly not.
The escort is being interviewed by a reporter. He has been asking her a series of questions, the questions are culminating in his push to really understand the kind of person that does this business, he wants to get deep in side her personality, she evades, she turns her head, she changes the subject. He wants in, she will not let him in. It dawns on me, what if there is nothing there, maybe deep conscientious thought is absent, maybe that's what it takes . . maybe that just what she is.
The clients, despite their money and intellect, arguably come off just as lacking. Except perhaps the last client where the business at hand gets done very quickly, and I mean quickly. His worship of her is evident, her respect for him seems likewise. His advise to her is to buy gold, "gold has a resale value, unfortunately its a myth, diamonds really don't". Suck that in for a while and contemplate. Hmm.
If you want to see a real porn star act in an independent/hollywood movie that has somewhat of a provoking script then see The GFE. If you want to see movie stars fuck in a hollywood movie then see the first 10 minutes of Before the Devil Knows You're Dead. Perhaps Sacha Grey and Marisa Tomei will pair up in an upcoming feature, one can only hope.
Ultimately I believe The GFE is not so much a movie about the escort business as it is about the idiosyncrasies and uneven handedness of life itself. Your own escort encounters should not be the reference point from which you judge The GFE, you would be better served by reviewing your cliff note's to Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment.
This is not a great movie, Sacha Grey will have to stick to the AVN awards for her recognition, but I found more interesting and thought provoking material here than you will find in all of the summer block busters.
. (High class SP makes calls to the back doors of grungy factories)
