The Justice

Media Credit: Madjabuds Sasha Grey, Inc. Adult film star Sasha Grey makes her mainstream debut in 'The Girlfriend Experience,' which depicts the life of a prostitute who gives her clients the feeling of being in a committed relationship.

It seems like anyone who appears in an adult film or two can be called a porn star, but Sasha Grey has certainly earned the title: She's appeared in over 150 X-rated movies in the last three years and was named Female Performer of the Year by Adult Video Network in 2008. That's especially impressive when you consider that she just turned 21 in March. So there was considerable excitement in Wasserman Cinematheque April 30 as the audience waited for the start of a screening of The Girlfriend Experience, Grey's latest movie.

"Is she naked in it?" asked the boy sitting just behind me.

"She's trying to go mainstream," his neighbor reminded him.

The film, directed by box-office powerhouse Steven Soderbergh, aired at Sundance and the Tribeca Film Festivals earlier this year. Grey disrobes a few times (to the audible delight of those in the next row) but does not have sex on screen.

The Girlfriend Experience depicts a few days in the life of Grey's character Christine, alias Chelsea, a prostitute who specializes in giving each of her clients the feeling that he is in a committed relationship with her.

Set in New York City in October 2008, the movie shows Christine asking advice from johns about recessionproof investing and voting in the presidential election. Unlike the stereotypical call girl, she isn't flirty or vulgar. She laughs only once in the movie's 77 minutes and hardly cracks a smile the rest of the time. She politely asks about her clients' families and listens to their mundane anxieties. For the most part, the movie feels like a high-budget reality TV show. It might just as well be called The Business Lunch Experience.

After the film, Grey joined Brandeis alum Scott Feinberg on stage for a question-and-answer session about her career. If you haven't seen her work, she might not be what you're picturing. With straight dark hair, sardonically arched eyebrows and proportionate breasts, Grey is practically the anti-Jenna Jameson.

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