The Sessions: Does paralyzed virgin, plus sex surrogate, plus Helen Hunt, equal Oscar?

The Sessions: Does paralyzed virgin, plus sex surrogate, plus Helen Hunt, equal Oscar?

The Sessions, an indie-drama about a paralyzed poet who hires a sex surrogate to lose his virginity, is creating quite a buzz as awards' season approaches. The movie, directed by Ben Lewin and starring Helen Hunt and John Hawkes, hits theaters in the U.S. this weekend and has received rave reviews.

The movie holds a quite stunning 97% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 53 reviews from some of the most revered critics in the business. Writing in the New York Times, Stephen Holden said, "The Sessions is a pleasant shock: a touching, profoundly sex-positive film that equates sex with intimacy, tenderness and emotional connection instead of performance, competition and conquest." Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times praised the movie for tackling its subject matter, writing, "In a country that embraces cinematic violence with such ease but blushingly prefers to keep sex in the shadows or under the sheets, the grown-up approach of "The Sessions" is rare." Bookmakers don't fancy the movie's chances to land Best Picture at the Oscar, though we see the current 14/1 odds as a real steal. As with 'The Artist' last year, word-of-mouth can really enhance a movie's chances heading into the Golden Globes and the Oscars, and the Academy has favoured indie movies in recent years. If you're of the opinion that 'Best Picture' is a bridge-too-far for 'The Sessions', you could do worse than backing Hawkes for Best Actor. He's currently the second favourite (behind Daniel Day Lewis) for the gong, and recently discussed his chances with Just Press Play.com , saying, ".who knows what will happen? The buzz, the talk, in a way makes me nervous to think about it, the Oscar evening, and the events leading up to it. But, it brings more people to the movie and that makes me really happy."

So, why not eschew the latest Paranormal Activity movie this weekend and go see The Sessions?