I have a lotta respect for Artisan Entertainment. Their movies have included "Pi," "The Limey," (a movie directed by recent Oscar winner for Best Director, Steven Soderbergh... I never saw it in theaters, but I recently bought the DVD... it's really good, go buy it), "Requiem for a Dream," and a movie you probably never heard of called "The Blair Witch Project" (that was sarcasm). They release movies that are edgy, ballsy, and completely different form the mainstream. Also, they're not afraid to release movies that are unrated, which virtually guarantees that few movie theaters will have the balls to play it. This is a company that really seems to care about art. Then again, they DID release "Blair Witch 2: Book of Shadows." Nobody's perfect. Okay, well, despite that horrible movie, I still respect Artisan, and their latest release is yet another example of why.
There's a very big reason that "The Center of the World" is unrated, and it's a single shot within the first few minutes of the movie. Make sure you pay close attention to what's going on during the first scene in the strip club. When I saw it, my jaw dropped. There are some sexual situations later, but the one shot I'm telling you about, that's the money shot.
A lot has been said about the amount of sex in this movie. There ARE plenty of sexual situations, but aside from the shot I wrote about in the paragraph above, it's all implied. If anything, the dialogue is more sexually-charged. Still, despite the obviously mature subject matter, none of what goes on in "The Center of the World" is erotic in the least, nor do I think it's supposed to be. This isn't a cheesy sex flick or a low-grade erotic thriller, it's a very intelligent art film that requires some thinking. There are those who will see this movie in an attempt to replenish the old spank bank. They'll be sorely disappointed.
Oh, there's this one scene in the movie that has to do with a sexual act called "fire & ice." My God, people get turned on by the weirdest things! You couldn't pay me enough to go through something like that. Actually, I take that back. Everyone has a price, and at this point, mine is pretty damn low.
"The Center of the World" is about two people who each have a different idea of what the center of the world actually is, and they're in practically every scene of the movie. Peter Sarsgaard plays a guy named "Richard Longman." I don't know if that's a joke or not, but ya gotta wonder. Think about it. "Richard Longman"... can also be "Dick Longman"... get what I'm saying? If his character name is no accident, I gotta tellya, it's pretty cheesy. Hopefully, it's just a coincidence. Anyway, like I said, he's played by Peter Sarsgaard, and if you've seen the great movie, "Boys Don't Cry," you'll recognize him as the main bad guy. He's very good, and even though his role is VERY different from the one in "Boys Don't Cry," he's no less effective. He's a great actor. Then there's Molly Parker. As great as Peter Sarsgaard is, Molly Parker is sensational. I don't know if the A.M.P.A.S. (Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences) would have the chutzpah to give her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress, but in this movie, she deserves it. She's absolutely phenomenal. Though I've never seen her earlier films, I know that she starred in another provocative art film, "Kiss," a movie about a woman who has sex with dead people. Gross. Other independent films she was in include "Sunshine," "Wonderland," "Waking the Dead," and "The Five Senses." This truly is a breakout performance for her, and I think we're gonna see a lot more of Molly Parker in the future. The only real supporting role belongs to Carla Gugino. I saw her very recently in "Spy Kids," a kid flick! Needless to say, her role in this movie is a complete 180 from her role in that one. She isn't in this movie for very long, but in the few scenes she's in, she gives a commanding performance. She's come a long way since being in that Pauly Shore movie, "Son-in-Law." And she's really hot!
"The Center of the World" was directed by Wayne Wang, a respected director whose films include "Anywhere But Here," "Blue in the Face," "Smoke," and "The Joy Luck Club." I like his work in this movie a lot. He shot it in digital video and blew it up to 35mm. That does a lot to make it seem seedy and voyeuristic. As for the writing, well, the story was by Wayne Wang & Miranda July (her debut as a writer... I read somewhere that she's a performance artist... interesting) and Paul Auster (he wrote "Smoke") & Siri Hustvedt (her debut... she's married to Paul Auster). Finally, the screenplay was written by Ellen Benjamin Wong, but that's just a pseudonym for Wayne Wang.
Paul Auster, one of the writers, wrote and directed a movie called "Lulu on the Bridge," which makes reference to Louise Brooks, the star of the German silent classic, "Pandora's Box." Is it just a coincidence that Molly Parker's character works at a strip club called "Pandora's Box"? Maybe Paul Auster has a small obsession with Louise Brooks. Then again, I've seen "Pandora's Box," and I can completely understand why someone would be obsessed with her.
"The
Center of the World" is a movie that I thoroughly enjoyed, but some
may be bored to tears. It's very low-key, and it moves slowly (sometimes
TOO slowly), but it's a very smart, thought-provoking movie that has two
of the gutsiest performances of the year. I liked this movie a lot... though
I may never look at a lollipop the same way again.
Scale of 1-10: 9