The Sessions (2012)

Starring John Hawkes, Helen Hunt, and William H. Macy

Direction and Script:  Ben Lewin

Fran says:

I was agreeably delighted with this film, which treats its intertwined subjects of sex and spirituality with sympathy and honesty.  What could have been an uncomfortably squeamish 90 minutes of viewing was actually an uplifting story about how human beings interconnect at many levels of emotion, intellect, and ... well ... love.

The script is based on the life of Mark O'Brien, a poet/writer who was consigned by polio as a young boy to a life lived in an iron lung. His story easily could have been a tear-jerker; but due to the poetry and essays he wrote as he went through his university years and afterward, we know that he did not indulge in pathetic self-pity - and neither does the scriptwriter. Mark wanted to live life as fully as possible while life remained; and this is the story of how he went about doing that.

The performances were as uniformly fine as you would expect from these three stars; and supporting roles were all tuned nicely to enhance the main story.

I would caution that this is a film for adults; and by that I mean anyone who has a sane and mature attitude toward sex, spirituality, and human love.

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Julie says (via Haiku):

Helen Hunt naked
inspires shy sex, poetry
And John Hawkes? Oscar!