Apr 06 2009
B+ Movie Review: Kinsey
The problem with biographies is trying to remember that they are not documentaries. They are tales of specific people, dramatized as to be entertaining, as opposed to direct reporting of facts or moment by moment history. If told well, then they can make an interesting story out of even the most dull or familiar subject. If told poorly, it doesn’t matter how interesting the subject of the biography is… we won’t be interested.I figured this out while watching the Oscar nominated film Kinsey.
The Dr. Kinsey mentioned in the title did absolutely groundbreaking work on sexuality. That his work was revolutionary can hardly be debated, but Kinsey isn’t concerned with how important the doctor was. The question is can his life be made dramatic?
And the answer would appear to be yes.
Kinsey follows the title character (played by the outstanding Liam Neeson) from his boyhood through his career. The Kinsey of the biography is both detached from and immersed in his subject and the story gives no small amount of emphasis to how his pursuit affects his home life and relationships, his reputation and his character. While much is said about his work, the man too is displayed, some times at the forefront and sometimes in the spaces in-between the discussion of the science.
The star power in this movie considerable and every member of the cast gives an outstanding performance. Every award this movie has won or for which it has been nominated (including Golden Globes and the aforementioned Oscar nod) it comes by honestly. Laura Linney is approachable, sexy and dignified as the wife of Dr. Kinsey, a participant in his research. Peter Sarsgaard plays Kinsey’s student and assistant, a man who eventually becomes his lover. Other actors include Tim Curry (as a professional adversary), Timothy Hutton and Chris O’Donnell (also working alongside the doctor), and John Lithgow (Kinsey’s repressed and oppressive father).
There were moments in this movie that made me feel warm and fuzzy, others that made me feel tingly and at least one that made me misty eyed. Where Dr. Kinsey is seeking answers to questions of biology, the actors tell an emotional, moving story. The drama of their situation breathes life into the raw data and statistical analysis that became Kinsey’s books, putting it in a framework of time and place.
The only warning I would give the viewer is that this movie is not for the squeamish. It has more erotic moments than many pornos, more nudity (male and female) than some locker rooms and discussion of sex in both clinical and colloquial terms in virtually every scene. These elements, while at times titillating, never distract from the story but rather are an essential tool in the telling of the narrative. In fact, the on screen sex, deglamourized and very realistic, connects us to the characters in ways that feel intimate; ways that not so much just tell us their story but also involve us in it.
The reason I was willing to review Kinsey was because despite superb acting, engaging direction and honest visuals the subject matter alone of the film may push it to the fringe of cinematic experience. Like the title character, this film is uncompromising in its honesty and boldness, and honesty tends to either strongly endear or strongly repulse those who hear it.
Those seeking out this movie for sex scenes alone are likely to be disappointed. Those seeking it for the history are likely to be scandalized. The audience for this movie is small, but those willing to dive head first into Kinsey will be rewarded with a stimulating and poingant tale about amazing moment in the science of human sexuality and the people that made that moment happen.
While I doubt the cast and crew need another award to prove that their movie was amazing, I never the less add a B+ to its list of honorifics. Kinsey is not a movie about sex, but about a man. I give it my highest mark because in introducing us to that man without flinching, this movie made me care about him and his world, not just the mark he left on the study of one small part of it.
