Mihai Toma Mark is a man with a fully crippled body, struggling every day to enjoy his short life, a life which is dependent of his "Iron Lung". He is able to leave the premises of his house only for a couple of hours (as much as his oxygen tank allowed) and the presence of an attendant is mandatory at all time. As a poet, he never managed to achieve a lifetime goal, mostly due to his very difficult condition, but a sudden change of events will open an unprecedented chapter in his life. He meets an understanding priest and with his guidance, he starts receiving some unusual therapy which will fulfill his unknown desires.It's a dramatic film which features the complicated life of a crippled man and his struggles in a modern society. Although it is pretty touching, it manages to insert key comedy moments which will definitely put a smile on your marked face. It saddened me, it moved me and it made me laugh. An unexpected combination which makes this one an unique movie. It was also a bit too predictable for my taste and it focused a bit too much on the "therapy" scenes, neglecting some other aspects but it is worth your time nevertheless.

sddavis63 I wasn't sure what to expect from "The Sessions." A movie about a disabled man who hires a sex surrogate seems capable of going in a lot of different directions - not all of them good or worthy. But this turns out to be a very good movie. Sensitive and sensual, it's also thought-provoking. It takes us through a wide range of human emotions, from fear to joy to sadness. It features very good performances from the three leads (John Hawkes, Helen Hunt and William H. Macy) that end up making this a real pleasure to watch.Hawkes plays Mark O'Brien in this true story. O'Brien is a writer and poet, stricken with polio, as a child, confined to a gurney and dependent on an iron lung to survive. He's missed out on a lot of normal experiences, and one thing that bothers him is that he's 38 years old and, while he has felt love, he's never experienced sexual intimacy, and after consulting with his priest (Macy) he hires a sexual surrogate (Hunt) to lose his virginity.The inter-relationships between O'Brien and the other two are fascinating. Macy is a wonderful actor, and he plays the part of the priest well. Father Brendan wants to be a support for Mark, but there are times when he's clearly out of his depth in discussing this situation, and Macy handles those scenes with a subtle sense of humour. Meanwhile, Cheryl, the surrogate, finds herself struggling with perhaps unexpected feelings that she begins to develop for Mark, even while she has a husband and son at home. There's a remarkable chemistry between Hunt and Hawkes. Hunt seemed comfortable in a part that demanded a great deal of nudity - but it was all appropriate and never gratuitous. The world of sexual surrogacy must be a strange one, demanding both great intimacy and solid professional boundaries, and Hunt gives us a glimpse into that world.It's a very good movie, based on an article O'Brien wrote about his experiences with sexual surrogacy. leading up to an ending that's both heart-warming, as O'Brien meets a woman (Robyn Weigert) to share his life with but also a bit heart-wrenching as he passes away a few years later.

ironhorse_iv The Sessions is a film that could provide a lesson about what sex & love mean to the disabled. However, its lecture approach to the real-life true story was somewhat dull. I was really hoping for it, to be a little more risqué. Directed by Ben Lewin, the Sessions tell the story of 38 year old virgin, poet and journalist, Mark O'Brien (John Hawkes) who lived, most of his life, under the guardian of an Iron Lung Machine, due to his paralytic polio. A devout Catholic, Mark is often reminded of how lonely his existence can be when he grows enamored of an assistant who can't reciprocate his feelings and a relationship with God that bring him further and further away. When an editor assigns him, to write a story about sex and disability, Mark decides that it's time to explore his own sexuality, as well. He consults with his priest (William H. Macy), who supports him, and hires a sex surrogate, Cheryl Cohen-Greene (Helen Hunt), to teaches him about his body and learn, what does, it take to form a strong, and steady relationship. Can a 38 year old man using an iron lung for survival become sexually active or is Mark, just way too weak? Watch the movie to find out, if you want to. Without spoiling the movie, too much, I have to say, I was very surprise, that movie didn't move as much, as I thought, should had. After all, I love other similar films, like this, such as 2014's The Theory of Everything or 1992's The Water Dance that has the same actress, in this film, Helen Hunt. I think, one of the biggest problems of the film is that we rarely got to know, who Mark O'Brien, was. Don't get me wrong, John Hawkes was awesome in the film. He deserves nothing, but praise for his believable physical performance. However, his emotional performance was somewhat, lacking. He was a little too, innocent and positive looking. We never got to see Mark, in any negative emotional light, besides his unhealthy Florence Nightingale Syndrome. I would had love for the film to tackle, more on his depression, fears and his physical and mental pains, because of that. Yes, I know the movie was, about his sexual needs, but it would had been more-well rounded movie, if it brought up, some other sides of his personality. Another thing, the movie need to explore, more is his views. For a man who happens to be, a journalism. He rarely shows, writing, anything in the film. Come on, movie, I want to know; what's his opinion on a number of issues, related to people with disabilities. How dramatic, would the movie, become, if it mention a little about physician-assisted suicides, or disability discrimination. I know these subjects has so much political and moral implications, but that's why it would be, interesting for the film to tackle. The real-life Mark talks about it, all the time, so why not!? Highlight, some of his work, movie! Honestly, this movie would had been, way more engaging, if it focus, on a good number of things that disabled people have to go through, rather than one. I really wanted to know, how Mark O'Brien was able to get a job and his own housing. Sadly, this film wasn't very informative. We never got to see, his childhood, his time, his time at the Fairmont Hospital, his time attending UC Berkley, and most of all, his time producing poetry with Linda. Where is Linda!? For a movie about love, it's really odd, that only one poem is even mention, here about one person, when in truth, he made hundreds of love poems, to many, many females. I would think, there would be more to this film, than he got. This movie really needed to be, like 1996's Breathing Lessons: The Life and Work of Mark O'Brien, a short documentary film directed by Jessica Yu that showcase, nearly everywhere about him. It won an Academy Award at the 69th Academy Awards in 1997 for Documentary Short Subject, because how well-made, it was. Made Mark O'Brien more complex, than simple. Incorporating more the vivid imagery of O'Brien's poetry, and his candid, wry and often profound reflections on work, sex, death and God, movie. It would had, been so much better. Anyways, I have to say, the supporting cast was mostly alright. Helen Hunt was wonderful in her role. However, I really didn't think, the movie needed to add, her character turning to Judaism sub-plot. William H Macy as a priest character is a bit doubtful, with the long hair, beer drinking and smoking scenes. Still, he did the best, he could, to seem real. About the sex. It was not that erotic. I understand why the sex is not that sexy, due to the depiction of Mark's struggle with manhood. Still, I would had thought, the movie would try to make, sex with the disabled seem kinda sexy, but no, it doesn't. They really make, the most entertaining part of the film seem, lukewarm. Plus, they not even doing it, right. Where is the condoms? I guess, this sex doctor didn't heard of safe sex, before. Anyways, I wouldn't call this movie, porn. It's far from it. After all, they don't bother, showing male nudity, anyways. The actress in the movie, Helen Hunt, has a lot of scenes, completely full frontal naked basically the entire film, but not one shot of John Hawkes's privates, oddly. I guess, they didn't want, the film is be rated NC-17, but its still, make me, ask the question, why is okay for women to be completely nude and not men? Why does a naked man automatically an NC-17 rating; but naked women can be rated R? It's really wrong. Overall: This provocative theme movie wasn't the movie, I was hoping it to be. It was a bit disappointing. It needs more depth.

Howlin Wolf I didn't feel like the scenes went by too quickly, so much as they just focused on the wrong people... It was interesting how the sessions affected his intimacy with other people (Amanda, Vera, and even the girl he met at the end... Susan?) but instead we focus on the more sensational aspects, and his development as a human being kind of gets shortchanged because of it... It makes sex the center of everything, when really it felt more like sex was just the gateway that helped to open up corners of his personality that were previously closed off.In a similar vein, having him fall in love with his surrogate also reinforced this, and was the wrong move for the movie, I felt (even if that's how it played out, in reality... ) It gives the impression that the emphasis should be on the person you get to have sex with, when really I feel like the companionship is the more important part of it. (I'm disabled myself, if that colours my interpretation of the movie at all, and I have had similar experiences to those depicted in the movie)Now, technically there was nothing wrong with the story that was told, but I just feel like some tinkering with the elements I mentioned would have made the viewing more fulfilling, for me... We can't all get the movie we want, I guess! Still, what it does cover, it covers well.