Effectively paralysed from the neck down after contracting polio as a child, journalist Mark O`Brien (Hawkes) has spent much of his conscious life trapped in his body and in an iron lung. He has yearned to make real connections all his life – in love and in sex. At the age of 38, Mark decides to take charge of his own emotional and sexual well-being, and engages the services of professional sex surrogate Cheryl Cohen Greene (Hunt) to help him lose his virginity.
For a film that`s ostensibly all about sex, The Sessions is less titillating than sweet, heartfelt and inspiring. It`s a wonderful portrait of a man who hasn`t given up on life despite suffering from a truly crippling infirmity – a gentle, dreaming soul who dares to fall in love in a world that`s tough enough to live in as an able-bodied person. His relationship with Cheryl is beautifully developed: it ranges from pure, unadulterated terror on Mark`s part through to his touching desire for her to enjoy herself as well during intercourse.
The film is sensitively directed by Lewin, himself a polio survivor, and there`s as much joy and insight to be found in Mark`s relationships with his caregivers: Amanda (Annika Marks), with whom he falls into a doomed kind of love, as well as the solid, sensible Vera (Moon Bloodgood) and Rod (W. Earl Brown). Unconventional preacher Father Brendan (Macy) provides moments both comic and genuinely lovely, as he advises Mark with as little prejudice and judgement as he can.
Hawkes should really have secured himself a place in this year`s ridiculously crowded Best Actor race with his sensitive, heartbreaking performance as Mark – he practically radiates charm and optimism with just his face and a crumpled, bed-ridden body (which caused him to suffer some permanent damage to his own spine). Hunt has been off the silver screen more often than she`s been on it in the past five years, but she makes a welcome return here, delivering a brave, powerful turn as a woman who finds herself unexpectedly rattled by a man who can`t even touch her if he wants to.
In the interest of full disclosure, Lewin`s script is occasionally clunky and overly sentimental; his chosen narrative structure (Mark`s voice-over) becomes rather odd and faintly creepy by the end of the film. Do some research (recommended: the article that started it all, Mark O`Brien`s `On Being A Sex Surrogate`) and it quickly becomes clear that there`s a little more fiction than fact to Mark`s relationship with Cheryl in the film. Nevertheless, there`s no denying that The Sessions remains a stirring, funny and worthwhile film, one that pays great tribute to Mr O`Brien`s strength of spirit and love of life.
Summary: Book yourself in for The Sessions to experience that rare beast in Hollywood: a tender, smart film about sex that celebrates rather than exploits it.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Shawne Wang