The Sessions

This morning I saw The Sessions, starring John Hawkes and Helen Hunt.

Mark O'Brien (Hawkes) is disabled from childhood polio and lives most of his life inside of an iron lung. Despite this confinement, he is an accomplished poet with a sense of humor and a desire to enjoy normal things.

When he reaches the age of 38, he decides that he would like to pursue losing his virginity.

As a devout Catholic, he wrestles with the sin of premarital sex, and consults with his priest to see if he can "get a pass," since the chances of him marrying are slim to none. The priest grants him his blessing and soon he seeks the help of sexual surrogate named Cheryl (Hunt).

Cheryl does her best to communicate the boundaries of her role to Mark, but that doesn't stop him from developing a crush on her. After all, he's never been this intimate physically or emotionally with a woman before.

Their sessions to teach him about his sexuality are clinical, yet tender; mechanical, yet arousing. Most people probably don't even know that folks like Cheryl exist (and this, after all, is a true story).

Hawkes is phenomenal as the vulnerable, sweet, scared Mark, who wrestles with so many issues, you wonder if he'll ever be able to give his heart (and body) to any woman; Hunt is equally impressive as a matter-of-fact doctor of sorts, who is brimming with compassion.

This movie is far better than most films in theaters today. The dialogue is witty (and dangerously close to how it really happened, when compared with O'Brien's actual article on the topic); the revealing scenes are treated respectfully and tastefully while not being too sanitized.

It will surprise me if *The Sessions* doesn't receive multiple Oscar nominations, as it deserves several.

Go see it.

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Then She Found Me

This morning I screened Then She Found Me, starring Helen Hunt and Colin Firth.

I was quite pleasantly surprised by the depth and meaning of this film.

The main character, April (Hunt), seems to have everything going wrong in her life: her adoptive mother just passed away, her husband cheated on her and left her, and she desperately wants to be a mom as she feels her biological clock ticking out of control. She's 39, a teacher and alone.

Then out of nowhere, her obnoxious biological mother (played by a perfectly cast Bette Midler) swoops back into her life to complicate things even further.

What saves the movie from being a complete downer is the lucky connection she makes with Frank (Firth), the father of one of her students, though she works hard to self-sabatoge that relationship too.

That's not to say that all (or any) of this is her fault—her persona is likable and sweet, if not pathetic, and you can't help but root for her. But what I liked the most about this intertwined story was that every situation could happen. April is not perfect, so when her character grows as a result of these experiences, it makes them all that more believable.

Hunt should be commended not only for her acting in this role, but for her directing, as she commands great performances from all involved.

The only elements of the film that bothered me were an early street scene between Hunt and Midler, which feels more like a theater performance than a conversation, and the fact that I found myself wanting to give April a hairstyle for the duration.

Otherwise, watching this movie is a great way to spend a couple of hours.