The Girlfriend Experience (2009)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:90
Fresh:55
Rotten:35
Average Rating:6.3/10
Consensus: Steven Soderbergh's latest lo-fi production is strikingly crafted but emotionally vague.
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Reviews for The Girlfriend Experience
| Tomatometer | Critic | Review | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
 C |
An interesting low-budget cinematic experiment, but I just couldn't work up much enthusiasm for it. The experiment may have been a success, but the subject is dead. Full Review |
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Despite the lack of fanfare, this is a much better offering from Soderbergh than "The Informant", not to speak of its deeper critique of bourgeois society. Full Review |
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2.5/5 |
His techniques are so alienating that it's difficult to decide whether we're supposed to feel something for his pretty plastic people. Full Review |
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B- |
Seems more like a sociologist's case study than anything dramatic. Full Review |
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7/10 |
A curious snapshot of urban America during a particular pressured time; it doesn't have a generally nice view of people, but a frankness about the film's subject drives it -- when the chips are down, it's all about business. Full Review |
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B+ |
A successful experiment. Soderbergh's timing couldn't be better with the economic downturn and celebrity downfalls so much in the news these days. Good job! Full Review |
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4/5 |
The film is only marginally about sex; it's real subject is business. One can argue cynically that all human relationships are a form of transaction. Full Review |
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4/5 |
The low-budget digital drama The Girlfriend Experience is one of [Soderbergh's] most successful experiments Full Review |
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The rich client characters nearly ruin it, but the leading lady manages to shoulder the weight of this short but sharp effort from a fascinating filmmaker. Full Review |
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3.5/5 |
Soderbergh likes to switch between large-scale films and minimalist dramas, with this very small, but most intriguing film. Full Review |
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3/5 |
Soderbergh is always interesting when he strips it back, but his intriguing artful essay on buying intimacy won't get you off. Full Review |
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3/4 |
The Girlfriend Experience is a fascinating character study that sheds new light on the tumultuous times in which we live. Full Review |
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It's a bit like an unsatisfying sexual encounter %u2013full of anticipation but not complete. One thing that does deliver, however, is 21 year old porn star Sasha Grey, who tantalises at every turn as the hooker who offers The Girlfriend Experience. Full Review |
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Sex is acting, it's a product, but Soderbergh's film can't illuminate its commoditization Full Review |
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B+ |
The Girlfriend Experience chronicling the day-to-day travails of a high-end sex worker and her personal trainer boyfriend is many different things, but sexy ain't one of them. Full Review |
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1.5/4 |
A mostly hollow experiment, built upon a thoroughly artificial vibe, that never really connects. Full Review |
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2.5/5 |
Too much prurient interest would tend to detract from the important statement Soderbergh thinks he's making about the economy and society. Full Review |
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2.5/4 |
The movie ends so abruptly (it runs a scant 77 minutes), it's a toss-up as to whether Soderbergh was trying to make an auteur statement or simply lost his mojo. Full Review |
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3/4 |
This is one of the director's small, experimental, semi-improvised provocations, and if it doesn't push too deep, it's pointed enough to leave a mark. Full Review |
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2/4 |
Grey is comfortable in front of the camera (and this time she gets to keep most of her clothes on), but her range is limited. Full Review |
CommentLatest News for The Girlfriend Experience
June 14, 2009:
Sydney Film Festival: Final Day Wrap
Seven years in the making, Henry Selick's Coraline is a mind- boggling feat of stop motion animation. Presented in glorious 3-D as a Sydney Film Festival first, Selick's... More...
June 11, 2009:
Sydney Film Festival: Experiments On A Budget
As it heads towards its untimely finale, the 56th Sydney Film Festival's final week has served up some fine first-runs for these shores (Black Dynamite, In the Loop and Soul... More...
May 25, 2009:
Trailer & Poster review 
More...
May 23, 2009:
Porn star Sasha Grey talks XXXtreme moviemaking and kinky revelations about The Girlfriend Experience
More...
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