Alfred Kinsey is the man who almost single-handedly revolutionised sexual research in the late 1940s and early 50s. With his exhaustive studies of human sexual behaviour, not only did he bring some hard data to a field previously dominated by anecdote and prudish superstition, but his reports also became mainstream bestsellers, and are given credit for kick-starting the sexual openness and freedom of the latter half of the 20th century.

Kinsey is a look at the life of this unusual, shy, and highly driven man. Liam Neeson takes the title role, with Laura Linney playing his wife Clara. Their relationship, and Kinsey’s research form the core of the story, with Kinsey’s close friend and research associate Clyde Martin (Peter Sarsgaard) weaving the two threads tightly together. The screenplay takes great delight in juxtaposing sweet romantic innocence and 1940s attitudes with unflinching sexual frankness, to both humorous and sympathetic effect. It’s a warm, informative, and above all joyful film.