R, 95 min.
Director: Ben Lewin
Writers: Ben Lewin, Mark
O’Brien (article “On Seeing a Sex Surrogate”)
Starring: John Hawkes, Helen
Hunt, William H. Macy, Moon Bloodgood, Adam Arkin
If you look at movies today,
you’d never know people had sex. Or at least you’d have no idea exactly what
the physical act of love involved. “The Sessions” is a film that addresses sex
in terms that even the filmmakers of the 70s never really explored. It tells
the true story of a man in an iron lung who yearns to have a sexual experience
before he dies. It’s really only natural.
Perhaps the most interesting
part of Mark O’Brien’s journey to have sex is that his primary source of advice
comes from a priest. I had a college roommate who was called to serve the lord
and this is the type of clergyman I would expect him to be. Played with full
amicability by William H. Macy, he understands that while the church’s stance
on sex outside of marriage is firmly in the negative, there are certain circumstances
to which no set of rules can apply. “I think He’ll give you a pass on this
one,” he says to this man desperately trying to understand his own body in
respect to his religion and his difficult life circumstances.
Helen Hunt plays a sex
surrogate, who approaches her clients on a very business-like level. Sex is not
just a business to her, but a therapy for those who require her unique
services. There are differences between her and a prostitute and Hunt makes
those differences very clear. Moon Bloodgood also plays an important role as
one of Mark’s nurses. She’s hired just as he’s beginning to explore his options
for sex. While at first she seems shocked by his desire, she soon understands
his reasons better than anyone else in his life. She is never an object of his
desires put provides necessary support in his quest and an important window
into how we all approach sexual experiences for him.
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