8.5

My Year without Sex

This light hearted and feel good drama comedy is directed by Sarah Watts and stars the delightful Sacha Horler as Natalie, a mother who is about to experience all the straight and sometimes bizarre curve balls that life throws at you.

For Natalie is your typical mother, two kids and is married to Ross (Matt Day), a loving husband. The story begins on the 39th birthday of Ross and just when their kissing is about to lead onto something more, their daughter Ruby (Portial Bradle), son Louis (Jonathan Segat) burst into their room.

Unfortunately for them, the sex never happens and as the story progresses, Natalie is rushed to hospital due to an aneurysm. When she is released from hospital, she is given a list of what she cannot do which includes everything from sneezing to having sex.

As the year begins for Natalie, the characters open up even more and actually grow on you from the early moments in the film but what makes My Year Without Sex so special is how realistic and down to Earth are the situations and anecdotes are in the movie.

Director Watts really shines in this movie and her quirky nature suits this Australian film perfectly such as splitting up the movie into 12 chapters which of course relates to one full year.

Even though some of the content is not always light hearted, Watts and the stars of the movie portray their characters quite well such as the temptations of Ross at work or how 7-year old Ruby is learning that she cannot have everything. It's so Suburbia that it's not funny.

Of course there is a contrast and even though their life may appear quite chaotic at times, Watts also introduces their best friends who are quite the opposite of the family we love and know and is a great distinction that helps with some great comedic moments.

At the end of the day, My Life without Sex is a very enjoyable movie which not only tugs at your heart strings but creates a perfect snapshot of Australian suburbia. With decent video and audio quality, there's little to complain about this flick.