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Kinsey
2004
The life story of Alfred Kinsey, a man driven to uncover the most private secrets of the nation, and journey into the mystery of human behavior. In 1948, Kinsey irrevocably changed American culture and created a media sensation with his book "Sexual Behavior in the Human Male." Using the technique of his own famous sex .. Read more
| Starring | Liam Neeson, Laura Linney, Chris O'Donnell, Peter Sarsgaard |
|---|---|
| Director | Bill Condon |
| Genres | Drama |
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Kinsey
The life story of Alfred Kinsey, a man driven to uncover the most private secrets of the nation, and journey into the mystery of human behavior. In 1948, Kinsey irrevocably changed American culture and created a media sensation with his book "Sexual Behavior in the Human Male." Using the technique of his own famous sex interviews, the story recounts the scientist's extraordinary journey from obscurity to global fame. Rebelling against the rigid piety of his home life, and drawn to the world of the senses, Kinsey becomes a Harvard-educated zoologist specializing in the study of gall wasps. After being hired to teach biology at Indiana University, Kinsey meets and marries a witty, freethinking female student, Clara McMillen. In the course of his teaching, he discovers an astonishing dearth of scientific data on sexual behavior. When students seek him out for advice about sexual concerns and problems, he realizes that no one has done the clinical research that would yield reliable answers to their questions. Inspired to explore the emotionally charged subject of sex from a strictly scientific point of view, Kinsey recruits a team of researchers, including Clyde Martin, Wardell Pomeroy and Paul Gebhard. Over time they refine an interviewing technique, which helps people to break through shame, fear, and guilt and speak freely about their sexual histories. When Kinsey publishes his Male study in 1948, the press compares the impact to that of the atom bomb. But as the country enters the more paranoid Cold War era of the 1950s, Kinsey's follow-up study on women is seen as an attack on basic American values. The ensuing outrage and scorn causes Kinsey's benefactors to abandon him, just as his health begins to deteriorate. At the same time, the jealousies and acrimony caused by Kinsey's attempt to create a private sexual utopia threaten to tear apart the research team and expose them to unwelcome scrutiny.
| Starring | Liam Neeson, Laura Linney, Chris O'Donnell, Peter Sarsgaard, Timothy Hutton, John Lithgow, Tim Curry, Oliver Platt, Dylan Baker, Julianne Nicholson |
|---|---|
| Director | Bill Condon |
| Studio | 20TH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT |
| Run time | DVD: 1 hr 54 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Drama |
| Language | DVD: English |
| Released | DVD: 11 Jul 2005 Production year: 2004 |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (5)
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Most people will find it difficult to imagine the level of sexual ignorance prevalent in 1948 when Alfred Kinsey published his ground-breaking book Sexual Behaviour in the Human Male. Without him, presumptions about sex that the Victorians would have been comfortable with might still persist. Director Bill Condon's excellent biopic charts the life of the academic (Liam Neeson) from his repressive religious childhood, when he is bullied by his moralistic father (John Lithgow), through his unsatisfactory first attempt at lovemaking with his wife (Laura Linney), which provokes his desire to research - and educate others about - human sexuality. Neeson has never been better, playing Kinsey as a scientist whose revolutionary research may be motivated as much by a need to justify his own desires as by a determination to pursue the truth. There's also a fantastic performance from Peter Sarsgaard as a researcher and sexual adventurist who represents the moral uneasiness some had, and some perhaps still have, about this new freedom.
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Engrossing study of a man who knew everything about sex and nothing about people; Liam Neeson's performance brings out Kinsey's prickly character and his overwhelming curiousity that led him to practise what he researched. It also brilliantly captures the
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Most helpful member's review
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12 out of 16 people found this review helpful
Interesting but poorly executed
I'm sorry if I don't agree with the hype, but I found this film a little over zealous. Don't get me wrong, it's not bad, but as soon Kinsey finds his true 'purpose in life' I feel his character changes a little too dramatic, and I get the feeling it is a case of America creating itself another all american hero.
Apart from that, it is an interesting film about an interesting man. Worth the watch. -
Most recent members' review
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1 out of 1 person found this review helpful
Interesting, educational, overlong
In the sexually-repressed 1950's Americans badly needed a Kinsey to break some taboos and scientifically prove that there ain't nothing under the sun that consenting adults won't at one time or another do with each other... so long as it feels good to both. However, once the film got going, it proved too long, and eventually too dull for four stars.
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News and features
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Kinsey comes to the small screen
- 04 Jul 2005
The Liam Neeson film Kinsey is scheduled for DVD release this week, with the sex scientist making for popular viewing. Charting the life and work of famed expert Alfred Kinsey, director Bill Condon traces an intriguing and occasionally controversial film about sexual peccadilloes. The UK Region 2 DVD went on release today, priced at £19.99, and comes in English DD5.1 Surround. An audio commentary by the director as well as more than 20 deleted scenes are also included on the disc. Kinsey... Read more
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