Customer Reviews

The Center of the World [VHS]

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Borrowing a part of it's plot from `Indecent Proposal', `The Center Of The World' manages to be a sexually charged, and erotic film, one that may surprise some viewers because it was an American made movie.

The deal is simple...Richard, a computer genius (Peter Sarsgaard) offers Florence, a struggling musician/stripper (Molly Parker) $10,000 to spend the weekend with him in Vegas, but before she says yes he must agree to her terms...no kissing, only meeting between the hours of 10pm and 2am, not getting personal and absolutely no falling in love.

With these rules laid out in front of him Richard agrees even though he plans on making her love him.

The story of Richard and Flo unfolds slowly, but as the characters are developed the viewer realizes the pair are searching for the same thing...love.

Molly Parker gives an intimate performances of a woman looking to find herself, and get past her fear of intimacy, and Peter Sarsgaard does a great job as Richard, an empty young man looking to make his life complete.

Although sexually explicit in spots (the lollipop scene must be seen to be believed) `The Center Of The World' never becomes cheap or porno-ish. And bravo to Ms. Parker and Mr. Sarsgaard for being brave enough to take on roles that required them to be fully nude in several scenes.

Anyone looking for a sex movie should look elsewhere, for the power of this film lies in it's two main characters. Those looking an artsy/erotic movie will enjoy this.

Nick Gonnella

This film is about two people who have compartmentalized their sexuality. At issue is whether they can overcome their neurosis, their alienation from their own humanity. The answer is, no, it can't work, just as the woman (Florence) knows all along but the man (Richard) has to find out.

We never learn what has caused their alienation but it's not important. In the case of Richard, a successful computer geek, it is at least part of what has enabled him to immerse himself in work (some people believe that working long hours away from people have caused his neurosis but that is less likely). In Florence' case it enables her to earn her living performing lap dances for strangers. In both cases their coping mechanism is reinforced by its success.

Florence is more aware of her coping mechanism and therefore realistic about it. Richard, suffering from over work, loneliness, the pressure of an impending IPO and the recent death of his father hasn't got a clue. He meets Florence, learns that she is a stripper and invites her to a weekend in Vegas. After being turned down he offers to pay for her company (!). She is hip and knows nothing can come of this even after she later develops conflicting feelings.

The "exotic" dancing is at least erotic, a lot more than I can say for the films, Exotica, Dancing at the Blue Iguana, Showgirls and Striptease. That's probably because there was at least a psychological connection between the two characters. I did feel sympathetic to them unlike anyone in those other films. The woman is at her sexiest when she is fully clothed and beaming straight into the man's eyes, lending proof to the adage that sex is 90% psychology.

...

A millionaire pays a stripper to spend a weekend with him in Vegas and they eventually (well, sort of) fall in love? If you are thinking "Pretty Woman", you couldn't be more off. "The Center of the World" is more reminiscent of "Leaving Las Vegas" with a hint of "Exotica", "Last Tango in Paris" and even some "In the Mood for Love". This movie starts off slowly and frequent flashback scenes are more than a little annoying at first, but it gets more and more interesting (and disturbing) as the story progresses. The cast is superb and the director Wayne Wang does his best Wong Kar-Wai imitation (and falls short, but hey, there is only one Wong Kar-Wai). The soundtrack is also excellent.

For those of you who are concerned about the film's "unrated" status: yes, it contains a lot of sexually explicit scenes, but it's nothing you haven't seen before, and it's all done quite tastefully.

As a stripper, I expected to relate closely to this movie (even though I would never meet a client outside of the club). I was not disappointed. The role of the female protagonist (stripper) was obviously created with respect for the character, and the film did a good job of making an obvious division between her "real" and "night" lives, which many "stripper movies" fail to reveal. It also does a surprisingly good job of showing the storyline from two, opposite perspectives (without any sort of split-screen narratives): both the stripper and her customer have well-thought-out, dynamic, complex roles.

The female protagonist does a fantastic job of showing the dichotomy between her "real" and "stripper" lives, and the director was smart to include a transformative scene where the actress changes herself in order to fit a different role (by applying make-up). Too often, strippers are portrayed as sex objects who are always "on," rather than the normal people we (often) are. This was refreshing.

So it's a pretty short movie, but the acting is very good, and the director/writer seems to have been informed about the industry, for I found it to be relatively authentic compared to most representations out there. Stripper-movie-junkies will find that this is not the typical stripper movie where women are scaling poles in the background at all times.

As a side note, you might wonder, upon viewing the film, if something is wrong with your TV screen, but you will quickly get used to the unique, grainy look of the movie. In my opinion, it actually adds to the authenticity the director is attempting to portray.

Think the premise of "Pretty Woman," but more firmly grounded in the real world, and you might get close to what "The Center of the World" is all about. This film abandons the glamourized Hollywood notions of sex workers, and doesn't engage in the pat, happy ending that we saw in "Pretty Woman"... and it is a far better film for it. Furthermore, Molly Parker is far more exotically lovely than Julia Roberts could even hope to be, and a better actress to boot.

In short, if you're looking for a romantic escapist fantasy about a sex worker redeemed by the love of a good man, look elsewhere -- this film is far more complex than that.

Comparisons to "Pretty Woman" do seem inevitable however, to the point that I wonder if the director and writers weren't crafting this film as a direct response to that one, a way of saying, "Whoa boy, reality check!" The premise is familiar at least. Richard (Peter Saarsgard) is wealthy but lonely after a breakup with his girlfriend two years before. He meets Florence (Molly Parker) in a coffee shop and finds out that she is a stripper. He visits her at the strip club where she works (nicely named Pandora's Box), and is so intrigued by her that he offers her $10,000 to spend three days with him in Las Vegas. She agrees, with a number of strict conditions, including limiting the number of hours she is required to "work," and limiting the acts she will perform. "No kissing on the mouth" (sounds familiar, no?) and "no penetration" are among her limitations.

From this familiar territory, though, the film explores new ground. Richard and Florence get to know one another as they spend more time together, and Florence finds out that Richard isn't such a bad guy, just lonely. "Why do you have to be so nice?" she asks him at one point, partially angry and partially not. Richard, in the meantime, is becoming more and more deeply entranced by this woman he has hired, which becomes part of the conflict.

Given the subject of the film, there is of course a great deal of sexuality portrayed in it. It is handled pretty tastefully, and none of it is there for its own sake. It is partially through their sexual relationship that we see the growth and the limitations of the characters' relationship in general. The sex scenes are handsomely shot and are not the typical sort of scenes one might expect from an erotic film; nevertheless (perhaps because they are unique), they are extremely erotic.

The acting is quite good. We spend most of the film only seeing Richard and Florence interacting together, with just a few other characters showing up here and there, but the two lead actors have the chops to sustain the film from beginning to end. Peter Saarsgard plays a "nice guy" well, and it's good to see that he doesn't overplay it at all. He's a very real nice guy, with flaws and points where he stops being nice out of frustration or anger. Molly Parker, as Florence, lends a similar depth to her role. From the first moment you see her you can see why Richard becomes infatuated with her: she is ethereally lovely, with a husky voice that is simply enthralling. But it is her personality that Richard really falls for, and that too is portrayed believably. She is played with a genuine warmth and likeability that is often missing from erotic films, but not overly sweet like "Pretty Woman" and many other Hollywood attempts at a similar story. I suspect that Molly Parker will be a talent to watch carefully in the next few years.

The nature and limitations of the relationship between these two people -- in one sense employer and employee and in another far more intimate than that -- becomes the main subject of the film as it progresses. How much of what Florence is giving to Richard is real, and how much is an act? How does the aspect of money change what happens over that three days? Are his feelings based in reality? Are hers?

Some of these questions are answered at the end, others are left open to the viewer's interpretation. There is nothing about the end, however, that is trite or simple, and as in life, there is a great deal that will depend on the perspective of the person watching the story unfold. This is a film very much grounded in reality, dealing with real people in a realistic (if unique) situation, and in the end it avoids the typical Hollywood fantasy notions that are so common.

Comparisons to "Pretty Woman" may well be inevitable for this film, but in such comparisons "The Center of the World" comes out ahead in every category. It's not a perfect film, but it is an excellent one. It is both sexier and more realistic, and that makes it well worth watching in my book.

This movie was totally not what I was expecting but I just loved it. It examines the meaning of relationship (at least that's how I understood it) and does it with such delicacy and subtlety that it's very rare in american movies (it rather characteristic for french movies). The movie is very erotic and sensual even without (or almost without) nudity. The acting by Peter Sargaard and Molly Parker was superb. Highly recommended to all fans of european cinema that can accept a movie without much outside action.

Take all of "Hollywood" out of Pretty Women and this is the movie you get. It show what would really happen when a man hires a women for 3 days. Not that "here's my credit card, go shopping fluff." If you are sicken my mainstream Hollywood watch this movie. If you aren't sure about spending the $$$, RENT it.

If this film had a rating it would, at best, be NC17. It is not a polite movie. Though both of the protagonists are very polite with each other.

Quick plot summary: Nerd gets rich on software development. Meets a lap dancer. Pays her $10,000 to spend a weekend with him in Vegas. She lays down certain rules, but then accepts.

The visual style of the film is wonderful. There are images that are close to unforgettable. There are images that are close to Mapplethorpian. The story is a wonderful pendulum between reality and fantasy, between what is and what might be.

The title is explained early in the film. I leave it there for you to discover. But like the rest of the film it is both polite and raunchy.

You see the illusion. Vegas is a perfect place to watch the illusion being created. But then you see shots of Vegas that you never see. A roller coaster in downtown Vegas? For adults?

Wang directs a wonderful film. If you aren't afraid of sex, if psychological violence doesn't make you crawl, you won't be disappointed. If you can understand that illusion is the center of the universe, this is a film that will go into your permenant collection.

This is what Florence (Molly Parker) shows Richard (Peter Sarsgaard) at the end of the movie. The full magnitude and sensation of a woman's orgasm. But this movie isn't about sex or money;although, the viewer will find this movie intensely erotic and with the power struggle of money and privation. This movie is a jarring look at the difference between sexual addiction used by Richard to cover up the pain over his father's death and numb the anxiety over his inadequate way of coping with his responsibilities in his business. Florence is a working girl, a lap dancer in a strip club, using sex and fantasy to entice a man's attention and money. However, there are moments in the movie where you can see and feel the void and hollowness left when sexual intimacy is without real love. That is something to be learned in another movie or writing; although not here, this movie does hand out valuable lessons on the avoidance of pain and the search for real love....

I [agree] that "Peter Sarsgaard is WONDERFUL." [H]e plays the main character, not Balthazar Getty, who is barely in the film but is listed on top of the credits. I thought Sarsgaard was so great that I went over to IMDB to look up his other film credits. Much to my surprise, he apparently played a super bad guy in "Boys Don't Cry." I didn't even recognize him from that film to this film and that is the hallmark of great acting ability. He reminds me a great deal of Colin Firth, from a decade ago, as a leading man except that he's American. I picked the film because I generally admire Wayne Wang's work and have followed his career from its start with "Dim Sum." Wang has moved away from using solely Japanese American characters but has not moved away from his independent, edgy roots. I don't think this is a porn film, by the way, as others do. I think it is an American romance through and through. Sarsgaard is a wealthy cyber geek who is not a bad guy but his long suite is not the social graces. Shane Edelman plays the woman who comes into his life. She plays in a rock and roll band and also strips to support herself until she "makes it" as a drummer. This is actually about as American as you can get and is a far cry from the woman waiting for a man to rescue her from a life of stripping cliche. These two really match up quite well because they have a lot in common and in many ways are similar souls. It may not look that way on the surface but this is a deeply layered work and much becomes apparent to the patient viewer. Shane Edelman also does a nice job of showing how a "regular" woman can range all over the place in both her appearance and her emotions. Personally, I don't see how you can go wrong with this one.