Review of Kinsey (2004) by Andrew E — 23 Jul 2011

What makes this film so interesting is the subject matter. And not the subject matter per say, but the fact that the study of something as basic as human sexuality was ignored for so long. Whether you agree with his methods or not, Kinsey helped to make sex less of a taboo and brought attention to its importance to humans and the importance to understand our own sexuality and that merits recognition.

As to the film itself, it's rater pedestrian except for the fact that it features full frontal male nudity with minimal female nudity, a rarity in most American films. The best parts of the film are those contained in black and white and the interviews. Here Condon manages to bring all of us into Kinsey's study and exploration of human sexuality and normalize what is normal, but has become a taboo in society. The actors all do a credible job, but nothing spectacular, with the exception of Peter Sarsgaard who commands the screen every time he appears.

I honestly think that this is a film that is more suited to a documentary than a docudrama and could have, at the very least benefited from some documentary footage.