Directed by:
Ben LewinScreenplay:
Ben LewinCinematography:
Geoffrey SimpsonComposer:
Marco BeltramiCast:
John Hawkes, Helen Hunt, William H. Macy, Moon Bloodgood, W. Earl Brown, Adam Arkin, Robin Weigert, Annika Marks, Rusty Schwimmer, Rhea Perlman, Jenni Baird (more)VOD (1)
Plots(1)
At the age of 36, Mark O'Brien, a man in an iron lung, decides he no longer wishes to be a virgin. With the help of his therapist and his priest, he contacts Cheryl Cohen-Greene, a professional sex surrogate and a typical soccer mom with a house, a mortgage and a husband. Inspired by a true story, The Surrogate, follows the fascinating relationship which evolves between Cheryl and Mark as she takes him on his journey to manhood. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (5)
Even though this wasn't my first time seeing the film, I let myself be surprised once again. When Americans make a movie about the disabled, I usually brace myself for relentless melodrama and a thinly veiled call to collective sympathy. Both tend to grate on my nerves, making me clench my teeth. But that wasn't the case here. Instead of a tearjerker that would have me scratching out my eyes, the creators delivered a refreshingly civil film filled with subtle humor. Despite its essentially serious subject matter, it left me in a good mood. / Lesson learned: It's never too late. Until it is.
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I know that the movie is about a forty-year-old quadriplegic losing his virginity with a woman who is almost fifty and it's evident on her face. Helen Hunt has never been one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood, she has sharp features on her face, but that doesn't change the fact that she is a great actress and her Oscar for the film "The Sessions" is well-deserved. Actually, the movie "The Sessions" is very similar to her only Oscar-winning masterpiece. She was nominated for an Oscar for both films and in both, she was paired with a man with whom not everyone could live. In the case of the movie "The Sessions", it was a mentally unstable person, this time it is a person paralyzed from the chin down. More: http://www.filmovy-denik.cz/2013/02/the-sessions-2012-85.html
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The Sessions is based on the book "An Intimate Life" by Cheryl T. Cohen Greene and Lorna Garano. What do you imagine under the slogan about the confession of a sex therapist who heals with her own body instead of words? Probably only a few of you will consider this "one of the most fascinating films of the year." But the combination of unobtrusive direction, the pleasantly short runtime, and good casting makes The Sessions a pleasant film about a taboo subject that feels completely natural and normal as you watch it. If you've made it this far, feel free to continue by reading the book, which has much more to it than just the one movie story. Sex is not a disease, sex is pleasure.
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Good, given the circumstances. Which doesn’t change the fact that the idea of a paralysed John Hawkes trying to lose his virginity with Helen Hunt is not particularly attractive. Fortunately, everything remains within the boundaries of “vulgar” and “slick award catcher”, but I can’t picture who the target audience is. For the older conservative viewers who like films about handicapped people, The Sessions is probably too sexually forward, and for the fans of how-to-lose-virginity comedies, there is way too much naked John Hawkes and Helen Hunt…
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I've always liked films "based on a true story" and here, thanks to a great story and the casting of Helen Hunt and William H. Macy, that's doubly true. The film isn't actually as sad as it might seem at first glance, because it looks at the problem from the lighter side (or so it seemed to me). In short, a nice and enjoyable film that I can only highly recommend to watch.
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