Working Girls (1986 film)

Molly, a Yale graduate in her late twenties living in New York City, works in a Manhattan brothel to support herself and her girlfriend, Diane. Dawn, a college student, and Gina, an aspiring boutique owner, also work in the brothel, entertaining various male clients while Lucy, the brothel madam, is out shopping. In Lucy's absence, the three women covertly misrepresent their sessions in the books to keep more of the money. Jerry, a regular client and middle-aged construction foreman, engages in a threesome with Molly and Gina. Gina gives him a prostate massage before he engages in aggressive sex with her.

John, another regular client, nervously enters the brothel but leaves in a rush before having sex with any of the women. Later, Gina tells Molly that she recently broke up with her boyfriend; although he knew about her work and apparently did not mind, Gina wondered how he could love her given her occupation. Molly subsequently confesses to Gina that Diane does not know she is a prostitute. Fred, another client, visits Molly to engage in a sexual roleplay fantasy in which she pretends to be blind.

Lucy returns from her shopping trip and chastises the women for smoking weed inside the brothel and not keeping the common area tidy. She then proceeds to flaunt the expensive clothing she has purchased for a ski trip. Robert, a young financial advisor, and Joseph, an older attorney, both enter the brothel to meet with the women. Lucy engages in a discussion with Robert about what to do with her supply of gold.

Molly goes to have sex with Joseph and is preemptively warned by Lucy that Joseph likes "light" BDSM, which she typically does not allow the girls to engage in, but makes an exception for Joseph. Miles, Lucy's boyfriend, visits the brothel and is introduced to several of the girls along with a number of other clients. Debbie, a new employee at the brothel, is casually told by Lucy to not be upset should she make less than the other girls, as she is black and the brothel's clientele tends to prefer white women.

Molly is sent to run errands to pick up a number of items from a drugstore for the girls in the brothel. After, Lucy demands that Molly work overtime that night. Molly meets with Neil, a shy teacher and regular client who gifts her one of his shirts she had previously complimented him on. Despite their transactional sex, Molly and Neil appear to have a platonic friendship, as Molly tries to help coach him on how to treat the women he goes on dates with. During the night shift, Molly again engages in a threesome with a male client and Mary, a new hire who lacks confidence and is uncomfortable with the profession. Lucy angrily returns to the brothel after finding that the phone lines were left on hold by another employee, April.

Paul, a musician client who wishes to see Molly outside of the brothel, visits for an appointment with her. During their sexual encounter, Paul asks she meet him in public, when Molly declines he belittles her and calls her a whore. The encounter upsets Molly, and she asks Lucy if she can leave, but Lucy informs her she has already made another appointment for Molly with another regular, Elliot, a wealthy fine furniture dealer. During a subsequent staff meeting, Lucy chastises Mary for talking to her child on the phone during a family emergency, in front of clients. Molly and Elliot have sex, he offers to provide her with enough money to leave the brothel if she should meet him in public, she stalls him. Exausted, after her shift ends, Molly informs Lucy she is quitting the brothel. Lucy, who has fired Mary and is short-staffed, tries to keep Molly from leaving, to no avail. Molly deposits the money she had been saving, buys flowers for her girlfriend and rides home.

The film was the second feature film directed by Lizzie Borden. Working Girls depicts the world of prostitution, and maintains some of the stylistic and thematic features of her debut, but is more mainstream in its approach.^[2] The film was inspired by some of the women who participated in the making of Born in Flames, who coincidentally supported themselves through prostitution.^[3][4] Although Working Girls addresses the subject of prostitution in great detail, Borden prefers the film to be discussed as a narrative fiction film rather than as a documentary.^[5] The film was intended to be a "backstage" look at prostitution.

Working Girl premiered in the Directors' Fortnight section of the Cannes Film Festival on May 28, 1986. Shortly after, Miramax Films executives Harvey Weinstein, Bob Weinstein, and Mark Lipsky met John Pierson to make an offer for distribution rights to the film, only for its producers to inform them of a prior commitment with Circle Films, which had offered $100,000. Bob, however, insisted on buying the film, continuously making calls to the filmmakers; Borden recounted, "Bob kept appearing with a suitcase full of a little bit more money every time we said no[...] I didn't trust them, but I liked them. I visited them in the apartment they were working out of." Ultimately, Miramax doubled Circle Films' offer and bid $200,000 for North American rights, at which point Borden gave in, "Fuck, these guys want it more than anyone else, why not give them a shot."^[6] The film was released theatrically in the United States by Miramax Films, opening in New York City on February 5, 1987.^[1] It was a commercial success, grossing $1,777,378 in the U.S. out of the estimated budget of $300,000.^[7]