- Joined
- Feb 8, 1999
- Messages
- 18,425
- Real Name
- Robert Harris
Occasionally, when there isn't something that hits the top of the review pile, that must be viewed, one can delve in, and find some gems that have been waiting their turn.
So it is with Starz' 13 episode The Girlfriend Experience, based upon the feature by Steven Soderbergh.
My hope was that this would not be yet another cable quality t & t drama, wrapped within a storyline just visible enough to allow the participants to disrobe.
And it wasn't.
Director's Lodge Kerrigan and Amy Seimetz keep things moving at an intelligent and interesting pace.
Although there are times when the more sensual episodes get in the way of an actually well-written and interesting storyline, one cannot but take the main character's arc into consideration. And 13 episodes allows that to occur.
The lead is played by Riley Keough, a young lady that's not only attractive, in a perfect girl-next-door way, but intelligent - she's a second year law student and intern at a top law firm - and someone that any gentleman would be happy to take home to meet mother.
The fact that she makes a well-considered decision to enter the high-end escort trade, comes off here as any other normal life decision. It's a business, and she does it well.
I actually preferred the series to the original film, as Ms Keough's acting (I found her reactions of interest) is far above the norm. Possibly, she comes by it via her genes, as others in her family have worked in the entertainment industry. Her grandfather was a musician / singer of some high repute in his day, and actually appeared in a few films.
With episodes being short at 27 minutes, it's easy to get through the series, and if binge viewing, that time can actually cut closer to 25 - fast-forwarding through those openings that remind one what they've just seen.
The Girlfriend Experience, which returns for a second season, with a different set-up, is one of a handful that work on their own as a limited series, which only the attributes of our current cable channels and streaming can provide.
As a Blu-ray experience, the series shines. Shot with a Red Epic Dragon, the series shines.
Image - 5
Audio - 5 (Dolby TrueHD 7.1)
Pass / Fail - Pass
Recommended
RAH
So it is with Starz' 13 episode The Girlfriend Experience, based upon the feature by Steven Soderbergh.
My hope was that this would not be yet another cable quality t & t drama, wrapped within a storyline just visible enough to allow the participants to disrobe.
And it wasn't.
Director's Lodge Kerrigan and Amy Seimetz keep things moving at an intelligent and interesting pace.
Although there are times when the more sensual episodes get in the way of an actually well-written and interesting storyline, one cannot but take the main character's arc into consideration. And 13 episodes allows that to occur.
The lead is played by Riley Keough, a young lady that's not only attractive, in a perfect girl-next-door way, but intelligent - she's a second year law student and intern at a top law firm - and someone that any gentleman would be happy to take home to meet mother.
The fact that she makes a well-considered decision to enter the high-end escort trade, comes off here as any other normal life decision. It's a business, and she does it well.
I actually preferred the series to the original film, as Ms Keough's acting (I found her reactions of interest) is far above the norm. Possibly, she comes by it via her genes, as others in her family have worked in the entertainment industry. Her grandfather was a musician / singer of some high repute in his day, and actually appeared in a few films.
With episodes being short at 27 minutes, it's easy to get through the series, and if binge viewing, that time can actually cut closer to 25 - fast-forwarding through those openings that remind one what they've just seen.
The Girlfriend Experience, which returns for a second season, with a different set-up, is one of a handful that work on their own as a limited series, which only the attributes of our current cable channels and streaming can provide.
As a Blu-ray experience, the series shines. Shot with a Red Epic Dragon, the series shines.
Image - 5
Audio - 5 (Dolby TrueHD 7.1)
Pass / Fail - Pass
Recommended
RAH