The Girlfriend Experience

In The Girlfriend Experie, Sasha Grey, a retired pornographic actress, plays Christine Brown, a Manhattan high-end escort who manages her own business [1]. When the film was first released, it was deemed edgy given the realist element of an actress that was involved in sex work, much like the realism of Parent DuChatalet who talked to many prostitutes [2]. In featuring Sasha Grey, a real sex worker, one can observe that contemporary sex workers are more empowered to be open about their work, unlike 19th century lorettes who kept the occupation hidden.  

Throughout the film, Christine sheds light on her typical routine when meeting with clients as well as the challenges that come withe being a committed girlfriend. 

Christine is portrayed as a youthful person, who is primarily occupied in maintaining her beauty. She is preoccupied in consuming clothing that will accentuate her body, consequently making her more marketable to high end clients. Due to the simplification of obstacles, the film, to an extent, romanticizes the escort narrative to someone who solely deals with materialistic related issues rather than genuine, mature problems.

However, the film also incorporates another side to the experiences of an escort. Christine is positively portrayed as a savvy business woman that ensures her continuous success in the escort business by engaging in tactics that make her a popular choice for clients. For example, she hired a webmaster to make her website receive more traffic [3]. Additionally, she met with an erotic connoisseur who provided a contact and advice on how to reach high end clients. Through these methods Christine demonstrates her aptitude and intelligence.

Christine is also presented as a regular human that displays emotions in certain intimate encounters. She attempts to separate her work and relationship by adopting a work name, Chelsea, that secures her privacy. However, she develops strong emotions for her married client, who reciprocates those feelings. Her jealous, betrayed boyfriend warns her that as soon as the client grows bored, he will abandon her. The client eventually ends up returning to his family, leaving Christine completely isolated [4]. Christine is momentarily presented as a trickster that disguised her true emotions from a transparent, innocent boyfriend. Since her breakup, Christine is still working. She is seen as an unfortunate girl that will have to sacrifice her emotional life for the sake of her business. She will face difficulties in relationships because either she will not be the priority in her relationship, or will be facing jealousy from partners.

The still from the film, The Girlfriend Experience, is a close up shot of the escort, Christine, riding in a car. The image is composed of primarily dark colors as Christine is clothed in a black shirt and a pair of heavily shaded sunglasses. The left side of Christine’s face is clouded in shadow, giving her a mysterious and ominous quality as if to indicate something darker at play. This shadow is enhanced further by the overall darkness of the shot. Christine’s lips are the brightest color in the shot drawing attention to them and sugesting a romantic component to the image. Christine’s face lacks any immediate facial expression, rather appearing to be emotionless as she sits in the car. The emotionless expression is enhanced by the sunglasses which prevent the viewer from seeing where she’s looking, whether it down or straight out at the audience. The use of the glasses suggests a secretive or guarded aspect to this woman, again building the surrounding mystery. This depiction of Christine builds upon the pre-established mythology of escorts as exotic and mysterious beings. Although she is seemingly fully clothed, the attention to her lips still suggests a sexual nature to her otherwise conservative appearance. Christine's image demonstrates an evolvement away from a voyeuristic view in which lorettes were depicted. Instead of a woman being watched, Christine's ability to control her gaze and become the voyeur rather than the viewed speaks to her autonomy. However, the image does contain some reflection of lorettes as it manufactures an ominous component to Christine's personality, suffesting she may not be a force for good.   

In this examination, one was able to see how Christine embodies remnants of lorettes. She lives in up and coming parts of New York City, is invested in her client’s personal life while on the job, wears expensive clothing to demonstrate her classiness as well as her financial stability [5]. She is still a mysterious figure, however the modern lorette also has more facets to her than just her sexuality. She is an astute yet emotional being that needs to manage both her business and emotions. Likewise, Christine demonstrates that modern lorettes do not wait for their clients to visit their apartment but rather visit in a previously agreed upon area, such as a restaurant or a movie theatre. Once united, they publicly converse like a typical modern couple, thus continuing the illusion of an entertaining, beautiful girl.

[1] Sodenbergh, Steven. 2009. The Girlfriend Experience. US: Magnolia Home Entertainment.

[2] Scott, A. O. 2009. “’Tis Pity She’s a Brand.” The New York Times, May 21. Retrieved (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/22/movies/22girl.html).

[3] Sodenbergh, Steven. 2009. The Girlfriend Experience. US: Magnolia Home Entertainment.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Cabin, Chris. 2016. “Role Playing: Steven Soderbergh Considers The Economy, Performance in ‘The Girlfriend Experience’.” Collider , April 7. Retrieved (http://collider.com/the-girlfriend-experience-steven-soderbergh-sasha-grey/).