The Center of the World

In the above mentioned movie it always seemed strange that a really rich and handsome guy resorted to a hooker, albeit a real knockout one? Now we see a possible scenario that might make the plot not just a fantasy. A "Dot-Com." millionaire, with the required "nurd-ness" uses his economic power to feed his...well I guess fantasies and the story results are pretty good. They are at least more realistic than the sterile grunting that most current movies use as "sex scenes". Hollywood does violence beyond scale, but they do "sex" in the taboo filled lock-ups of censors and religious heresies. A director takes a daring chance into these forbidden areas and he is either eviscerated or beloved. For this movie there has been some of each. I don't think it deserves either. I think the movie making is a bit lame but the story and the attempt at reality deserves credit where due. I wonder how "The Postman Always Rings Twice" would have been if it had been done this boldly? Rhetorical questions seem to serve little purpose but I wonder how this movies got to be "R" rated and "Midnight Cowboy" was rated "X"? A question for another time perhaps? This movie is not in the class of "Midnight Cowboy", but it is pretty good and should be seen.

"You don't *look* like a stripper..." was the first clue. Director Wang, who clearly OK'd Zalman King/Adrian Lyne film style ad and packaging art, was hardly hiding the reality vs. fantasy (or real vs. fake) themes of his superb dot-com romantic tragedy much past the opening credits.

Wang's use of hand-held camera, grainy 8mm, incandescent lighting color wash, high-definition close ups, and assorted traditional noir and verite style cinematography and direction is a breakthough exploration of digital media.

Vegas visitors brave enough to leave their Strip casino/hotel cocoons during daylight hours will surely be struck by the almost surreal difference between how ugly and unglamorous the city is by day and how other-worldly beautiful after dark. Florence, however, is no Vegas...

Get it? Florence (Italy), is *real*, and every flaw she (the city) may have simply adds to the unearthly beauty she emanates. Whether filmed in handi-cam, Fisher-Price pixelvision, or 70mm IMAX, at high noon or midnight, the beauty of Florence (Italy) is timeless and media-independent. At least in the hands of Wayne Wang, Florence glows with or without the lipstick and latex...I mean neon.

Richard's visit to the Venetian Casino/Hotel near the end of the movie completes the tragic romantic (city) metaphor. The "canals" at the Venetian Hotel are truly as pathetic as the film depicts them.

The problem is, these two tragic lovers have always kept a safe distance away from Florence (Italy), or *reality*, and are tragically resigned to a Vegas-reality. Or a dot-com reality...

Filmed digitally and rendered as cinema verite, even duplicating the "grainy" silver halide crystal image artifact of low light film stock with a digital effect extends the film's theme to the medium communicating the artist's expression.

Great film.

I just wish my many shares of homegrocer.com were as valuable as a single used copy of a DVD of this film....or a single apple from an actual grocer.....

...Wayne Wang's notorious, controversial and explicit "CENTER OF THE WORLD" (Artisan, $.. is a much more polished piece of work than "Romance." It also explores the bleak terrain of emotional isolation. This time the protagonist is a rich internet geek (Peter Sarsgaard) who literally contracts with a rock and roll drummer and part-time stripper (Molly (Parker) for a sexual get-away in Las Vegas. The phoniness of Vegas and the impersonal internet are more than metaphors for what amounts to virtual sex in real life. The basic elements are familiar in countless other love stories, but here the physicality of the two main characters dominates everything. In many ways we root for them to break out of their protective shells and actually connect with the hearts.

Sometimes the walls we build to keep out the bad cuts us off from life itself. This film, shot on high definition video, evokes a more personal and immediate response and is much more effective on DVD than it is projected in a theater. Longing for intimacy but in the grip of a fear of letting go leaves the main characters with only the option of exploring physical sensations as soulless.

It's hard to find a truly erotic movie made in America. Most mainstream films have little sex/no nudity and a whole lot of violence. And what constitutes "erotic art" in films is made up horribly contrived, unbelievable Cinemax/Playboy movies. That lack any real heat and are amazingly unsexy and boring.

So a film like "Center of the World" is a rare gem. It actually is sensual, erotic and the participants in the sex scenes seem comfortable and actually engaged in what they are doing. The scenes do not come off as awkward or simulated. Which is the challenge for any film director. To make the audience believe what they are seeing is real.

What's special here is that a great actress who one would actually like to see do nudity/sexual material, has the lead female role. There's no body doubles here and Molly seems really comfortable with the nudity and explicit sex scenes. She looks absolutely gorgeous throughout the movie. And is not the traditional, cookie butter starlet that is churned out in a 1,001 Cinemax skin flicks.

Hollywood should make more of these films. Unfortunately, I think during this age of "sexual repression" in the arts, our natural human sexual needs will continue to be hidden from view on both the big and small screens.

An extremely articulate and well-observed film from Wayne Wang, about what it means to have power - financial power, sexual power - and how shallow this power truly is, especially when it's detached from anything resembling true involvement, genuine passion. Both characters are obsessed with The Game, and they are both very good at it. Peter Sarsgaard and Molly Parker are both superb, letting us see enough of their characters' inner workings to completely understand them without showing too much, losing the edge. Each has what the other thinks he/she needs, and the film is basically a discourse on negotiation - what you will give up to get what you desire? Issues of control are central to the theme, and the cool thing is, both characters know it and they get off on that more than the actual sex itself.