“An efficient screenplay and raw, emotional performances”

At the Sundance Film Festival premiere of Molly Manning Walker’s feature directorial debut, How to Have Sex, she spoke about how Sundance influenced the edit of her own film. After the screening, Walker was asked during the Q&A to expand on how attending the festival affected the project, and she jokingly answered that she knew afterwards that she didn’t want to make a long film. With a runtime of 91 minutes, How to Have Sex falls within the range that many people consider to be the “perfect” runtime, meaning that Walker certainly achieved her goal. But most importantly, she chose the perfect runtime for the story she wanted to tell, with an efficient screenplay and raw, emotional performances from the young actors.

16-year-old best friends Tara (Mia McKenna-Bruce), Skye (Lara Peake), and Em (Enva Lewis), arrive in sun-soaked Malia on holiday, armed with booze and hook-up plans in order to distract themselves from the impending results of their final exams and the uncertainty of their futures— both in their careers and their friendship. Surrounded by debauchery, inexperienced Tara is left open to the peer pressure of losing her virginity, a concern that’s heightened once she meets a neighboring hotel guest called Badger (Shaun Thomas), who introduces the trio to his friends Paddy (Samuel Bottomley) and Paige (Laura Ambler). 

The group sets out to have yet another frenzied night of partying and Tara tries to join in on the fun. However, she’s clearly uncomfortable with the sexually charged drinking games that Skye persuades her to be a part of, furthering her feeling of ostracization. Though this feeling is a familiar one, the loneliness that comes from being isolated—especially from people who are supposed to be your best friends—is also a very internal experience, making it something that’s difficult to capture on screen. McKenna-Bruce is able to convey these complex emotions through her facial expressions and body language, making the scenes where silence takes over some of the most devastating. The subtleties in her performance and her willingness to be this vulnerable as an actress are the aspects that make her such a relatable and compelling character to follow, allowing viewers a glimpse into Tara’s soul, and her emotional journey is a heartbreaking one to witness.

The evening comes to a screeching halt for Tara after Badger volunteers to participate in another game, one where he and another man go on stage to have sexual acts performed on them by women while the crowd of rowdy partygoers goad them on. Paddy takes advantage of a distraught Tara by convincing her to go to the beach alone with him, despite her attempts to politely sidestep the situation altogether. Once on the beach, Paddy continues to ignore Tara’s boundaries— throwing her in the water after she refuses to go skinny-dipping with him and putting the blame on her after touching her inappropriately and without her permission. Finally, Paddy coerces Tara into having sex with him. This scene is not an easy watch because the ubiquitous sense of danger is something that most women can relate to, resulting in a visceral reaction. Walker spoke more about this scene after the screening at Sundance, mentioning that a flashback to the beach was added later on in the film in order to emphasize that this experience was a bad one for Tara, as some people failed to understand what was wrong with it. 

The morning after, Skye and Em realize that Tara is missing. While they try to get more information from their neighbors, Badger admits that he doesn’t even remember going on stage. He laments over being blacked out during what he claims was probably one of the best nights of his life. This comment is said in passing while everyone else’s attention is elsewhere, but it’s yet another example of dubious consent, ignored by the characters in the film in the same way men’s experiences with sexual assault are trivialized in real life. It’s a necessary inclusion that’s easy to miss, as it never takes the focus away from Tara and her experience as a woman, but the way it’s glossed over with a round of high-fives and pats on the back is a chilling, very real moment. How to Have Sex is an important film for people of all ages, but especially young people, with a clear message. The way it has been received and misinterpreted by some only further proves that the discussion around consent is still leagues away from where it should be by now.

Dir: Molly Manning Walker
Prod: 
Cast: Mia McKenna-Bruce, Daisy Jelley, Samuel Bottomley, Lara Peake, Shaun Thomas, Laura Ambler
Release Date: 3 November 2023
Available on: Various streaming services (Curzon, Apple TV, Amazon)

---