Dir: Ben Lewin
Stars: John Hawkes, Helen
Hunt, William H. Macy
The
Sessions follows the true story of
poet Mark O’Brien, a quadriplegic polio sufferer who spends most of his life
confined in an iron lung. Raised as a Catholic (“I believe in a God with a
sense of humour”), Mark visits a priest to discuss whether God will take into
account his extreme circumstances, and allow him to seek professional help to
lose his virginity at the age 36. During his therapy sessions with a
free-spirited sex surrogate, Mark learns the social and emotional difficulty of
attempting to respond to his sexually desires despite his overwhelming physical
limitations.
Featuring
a strong leading cast considering its modest $1m budget, writer-director Ben
Lewin has managed to create a movie with the perfect atmosphere in which to
tell Mark’s story. Light-hearted throughout, The Sessions manages to
maturely address the issues faced by disabled love and sex, whilst also trying to find the humour in the protagonist’s anxiety and apprehension towards losing his
virginity so late in life. John Hawkes, Helen Hunt and William H. Macy all
provide consummate performances, and are good company during an easy watch.
However,
this feel-good warmth is somewhat empty considering that the script is
free of any real belly laughs, and is ultimately a little predictable. Most of
the characters understand Mark’s plight, so it’s pretty much plain sailing to
the finish. Whilst Mark’s exploration of his sexuality is hindered by several
understandable difficulties, the audience is never led to believe that there
will by any serious danger of the narrative steering from its clearly
telegraphed course.
An
interesting and mildly amusing film, The Sessions is simple Sunday
afternoon fare that, while enjoyable, never fully grasps at the comedic or
dramatic strings that its story could conceivably pull.
6 / 10
No comments:
Post a Comment