Director: Ben Lewin
Starring: John Hawkes, Helen Hunt, William H. Macy
Running Time: 95 Mins
Synopsis: Mark (Hawkes) is a poet who suffers from crippling polio, which means most of his day-to-day life must be spent in an iron lung. Starved of a genuine physical and emotional relationship and desperate to lose his virginity, Mark begins a series of therapy sessions with sex surrogate Cheryl (Hunt)…
Based on the true story of Mark O’Brien (and in particular his article and book on the subject), THE SESSIONS is a heart-breaking exploration of life, death, and all in-between, disguised as a smutty romantic comedy. However, it’s not smutty or disgusting at all, instead dealing with it’s risqué subject matter in an emotionally engaging and thoughtful manner that will, by movie’s end, leave a tear in your eye.
Ben Lewin’s script chooses to sidestep the wider, more negative attitudes and issues that come with such a story, instead focusing on the positives. There is much to love about this simple story of a man trying to live life to the full, despite his crippling disability, and the script, whilst light on actual dilemma or obstacles to overcome, knows that to focus on the positive and uplifting aspects of the story is the right way to go in making us care. That’s not to say that the film is light and frothy throughout though – there’s a slightly darker subplot midway through the film that focuses on sex therapist Cheryl’s family life and her job’s effects upon it. Whilst brief, these scenes put the audience in the other, less cosy side of the story, a creative choice that is welcome here, and which doesn’t compromise everything that has already gone before it.
John Hawkes is phenomenal here as Mark, giving nothing short of a perfect portrayal, and proving himself to be one of the most dedicated actors of this generation. Hawkes imbues Mark with fragility and innocence, yet wisely keeps him confident and likeable throughout. The fact that Hawkes has nothing to work with physically but his face says bucket loads about his dedication and calibre. Equally brilliant here is William H. Macy as his friend and priest, Father Brendan, who delivers many of the film’s funniest lines, and also gives the film a moral and objective conscience, yet does so without coming across as preachy. As for Helen Hunt, nothing else can be said by fantastic. Underused at first, Cheryl could well have been any other guru-like figure, but as the film progresses and begins to highlight the effect of such an emotionally demanding job on her personal life, the character grows to become a loveable and interesting screen presence, down much to Hunt, who fires on all cylinders here.
If there’s any criticism to aim at THE SESSIONS, it’s that the ending feels slightly rushed and abrupt. But the emotional payoff is still there, and it’s worth it, even if it does feel like a huge narrative jump. The final shot though is gorgeous and poignant, reminding us of the fragility, the loneliness, as well as the friendship and love that runs through the film. In a word: brilliant.
THE SESSIONS is on full release in the UK from January 18th and you can check out our London Film Festival coverage, where this originally screened, here.
