We are in the technological age. People might say that we are in a time when computers can help us reach out to the world with the simple stroking of fingertips. Some people would also claim that we are in a time of independence. The truth is, this is an age in which people become so obsessed with ambition and success that they are willing to forsake the most simple of human emotions and sacrifice any chance of relationships.
Wayne Wang, director of “The Joy Luck Club,” perfectly portrays this image of our cold society in his new film, “The Center of the World.”
“The Center of the World” monitors the relationship of a very successful computer geek, Richard (Peter Sarsgaard, “Boys Don’t Cry”) and drummer/part time stripper, Florence (Molly Parker, “Sunshine”). The movie’s main set is a luxurious Las Vegas hotel room where the couple is first introduced.
Their story begins to unfold with a series of flashbacks that explain how they met and how they ended up together in Las Vegas. The two meet at a café where flirtatious talk leads to Florence’s admittance of her night job as a stripper in an upper class joint. Richard, charmed and intrigued, decides to find her at her work place. He grows an obvious attraction to Florence and proposes that she spends three days with him in Vegas. She refuses at first; but when he offers to pay her $10,000 in compensation for her wages, she hesitantly agrees. To ensure that this will simply be a business matter, Florence makes the rules of the game very clear: no kissing on the mouth, no penetration, no talk of feelings, her own room, and a set meeting time of 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. The rules disappear one by one as Richard and Florence are subjected to a rush of unanticipated raw emotions.
The adult content of this movie is definitely not suitable for the sexually squeamish, but it would be a shame to dismiss this film as a soft core porn and judge it on the basis of its explicit material.
Today more than ever, American society is infatuated with sex. Wang shows how sex plays a significant role by exploiting human emotion and fantasy. The two main characters, Richard and Florence, are not just simple people who do not know how to deal with this chaotic relationship. They are products of this new generation of capable individuals, but inept in dealing with the realities beyond business and work.
Florence sees herself as a woman in absolute control of her life, but when emotions surface where they should not, she stumbles into panic. Richard, on the other hand, has always dealt with the world in front of the confines of his condo: simultaneously doing work, playing games, and watching ‘Sorority Showers’ across three flat screen computer monitors.
The movie’s pace is extremely well thought out, with no moments of unnecessary dialogue or pointless ramble. There are quite a few great speeches that are fun to look for during the movie. Two in particular caught my attention and approval. The first, delivered by Florence, describes exactly what the center of world is. The second is a reflection speech by Richard that accurately points out the depressing truth of his living. Sansgaard and Parker give amazingly authentic performances as the characters they portray. One scene in particular, during Florence’s final night with Richard, they go through a very emotional conclusion, which Parker executes fiendishly well. The onscreen chemistry of both actors is strong, making the idea of them as a couple very believable.
To give the film an intimate and personal feeling, the movie was shot in a style somewhat similar to “Dancer in the Dark.” Flashbacks and editing are not raw, but rather done well throughout the movie. Wang also uses multiple colors to give each scene a certain intensity level and appropriate mood. Steamier scenes such as the lap dance are flooded with red lighting and dreary depressing scenes are tinted a grayish blue. The direction in the film shows almost no resemblance to that of Wang’s previous work or “The Joy Luck Club,” so it is safe to say that both movies have little in common.
“The Center of the World” is not a typical date or romance movie; in fact, it is anything but that. It is a social commentary and a film that depicts the incompetence people display in managing their emotions. The sexual content in the movie is blunt and pushes all the buttons a movie can push; but behind the games and the sex, the film does not restrain from exploring the truths of modern day life.
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