"The Sessions" (2012)

‎"The Sessions" (2012) Review:

"Searching for sex with Helen Hunt as Your Guide"

How do you know when your movie should aim in the direction of a short film, or maybe an HBO style miniseries? Perhaps when you only have about forty five minutes worth of story to tell. Unfortunately this was the main drawback to the otherwise delightful film "The Sessions" (2012). It's a shame really
that this film didn't want to say more utilizing it's ninety minutes of audience attention in perhaps a more productive or meaningful way. Yet there is hope yet as this film has one item that can't be found in any other film in the Oscar run: Helen Hunt.
The film is not particularly groundbreaking as it clearly tries to line up an Oscar win for it's protagonist John Hawkes who plays Mark O' Brien, a, for all intents and purposes, paralyzed man with a lung problem requiring him to live the vast majority of his life in an iron lung. When asked to do an article on sex and the disabled, Mark is at first repulsed by the bizarre sexual practices of those he interviews yet soon finds himself meeting regularly (for a total of four sessions (not really even a spoiler)) with his sexual surrogate Sheryl (Helen Hunt). O' Brien, a religious man, confesses all this to his priest played by the film's comic relief William H. Macy who gives him a pass on what is essentially hiring a therapeutic prostitute. The film's plot is great yet falters at moments and seems to then limp on not quite sure of what it wants to do next as it leads the audience down pointless roads and ultimately ushers them out of the theater feeling unsatisfied with questions still lingering.
Unfortunately for Mr. Hawkes, there has been widespread rumor that though his attempt was adamant that an Oscar will not be coming his way because he accepted the role of a cripple. I however found Hawkes performance compelling and oftentimes had a difficult time distinguishing between the character and the actor. This being said, his performance was in no way near the caliber of Daniel Day Lewis' performance as the title character in "Lincoln" (2012) but to be fair, Hawkes had far less opportunity to reach into his character than Day Lewis did in his film of the month. And then there was Helen who, after all these years still looks beautiful, even with her clothes off (and yes there is plenty of that in the movie). With a meaningful and not overacted performance, Hunt succeeds in this film to fill exactly her prescribed role; the changing force that helps to complete O' Brien's character by about three fourths of the way through the film.
And one final not on an aspect of this film that truly stood out; texture. This film's unique focus on texture in the human body helped to frame it's characters. This subtle nuance and focus is noticeable to the keen observer and a delight.
Forgettable? Perhaps, but certainly enjoyable in the moment, "The Sessions" is clever, well acted and brief, a rare treat with the behemoths surrounding it this Oscar season. If for no other reason, see it for Helen. You either won't be disappointed or you'll be totally gay. There, I said it. 

Stars: 8/10