‘Center’ of Attention

The review you are currently reading is available over the Internet. The film that is the subject of this review will in time be available online as well. In fact, you can probably even have it delivered to your door as well. You never need to leave your room. Ever. For anything.

It’s a scene that seems all too common, especially at Harvard. The computer becomes the nexus of a voyeuristic universe in which we are connected to everywhere in the world, able to observe or obtain almost anything without leaving the comfort of home. With the proliferation of pornography on the Internet, it seems that even relationships are being virtually imported behind the shield of the monitor screen.

If at any point you find yourself languishing in front of your computer with some time to kill, take the opportunity to browse www.center-of-the-world.com—this is, if you’re 18 or older. Under the guise of a mock porn page, the website is actually the official site for Wayne Wang’s new film, The Center of the World. The name is a reference to the womb-like state of computer addicts hiding from the real world behind the internet.

The film’s protagonist is one such computer addict. Richard Longman, played by Boys Don’t Cry’s Peter Sarsgaard, has spent the last year essentially hibernating, living off the windfalls of a successful business venture while playing video games and watching porn.

However, an encounter with an alluring woman in a coffee shop somehow reminds Richard of the comfort of human contact that his computer cannot provide. The woman, Florence (Molly Parker), reveals to him that she is a drummer by night and stripper by day in order to pay her bills. Florence’s uninhibited sexuality entices Richard, and he pursues what he considers to be a relationship with her—he frequents the Pandora’s Box where she works and offers her $10,000 to accompany him on a vacation to Las Vegas.

She hesitantly accepts, but with certain conditions—no kissing on the mouth, no penetration and no “feelings.” She is attracted by the sense of power such a relationship offers her, but in the actual film, little of this is conveyed. Florence’s acceptance actually seems a bit forced, and a bit more economically motivated, as it plays out on screen.

The majority of the movie takes place in Vegas, particularly in the hotel room. Here the difficulties of human relationships begin to surface as Richard convinces himself that Florence is actually falling in love with him. These characters and the complexities of their interactions are The Center of the World’s greatest success. Florence and Richard are each a unique blend of cultural stereotype and individual nuance, so that they manage to be both extremely real and yet broadly understandable in terms of the issues they confront.

The film also manages to raise some good questions regarding the relationships between money, sex and power, and about the way in which technology (particularly the Internet) can isolate us and distort our desires. Yet the questions raised are relatively one-dimensional and often lack nuance or support in the details of the film. Furthermore, The Center of the World falls short of its potential as a drama. The film is only 86 minutes in length, and yet at times it even seems too long. The problem is that the narrative development is flat and ineffective—Wang seems unable to manipulate action and tension into a pattern that’s satisfying to audiences. Also lacking is effective imagery. The film is shot, interestingly enough, on digital video, which effectively augments the sense of voyeurism, of watching from a computer screen, but comes at the cost of the quality of the images. Wang also seems lazy or uninspired in his choice of shots and scenery—too much of the screen seems wasted on details (or lack thereof) that do not contribute to the effect or significance of the scene.

The characters, again, may manage to be the film’s saving grace, but nonetheless, it truly seems a shame that a movie with such a unique and interesting premise should fall so short of its potential.

The Center of the World

directed by Wayne Wang

starring Peter Sarsgaard, Molly Parker

Artisan Entertainment