Different Take on 'Kinsey'

Dear Editor,
   It's not surprising that Kinsey will not be everyone's cup of tea, or that a male's reaction to the movie might differ significantly from a female's. I do not take exception to critic Kimberley Jones' rating the movie with three stars [Film, Nov. 26]. I would disagree that John Lithgow overacted; his character was pathetic, and ultimately poignant. Jones mentions the ambiguously gay scene between Boy Scout Kinsey and a fellow camper as "uninspired." Like Clara's pronouncement that she found Kinsey "churchy" (when he proposed), I found the scene of the two scouts praying in response to their mutual sexual attraction to be "a howl," as well as beautifully photographed. When Kinsey finally does explore his bisexuality, he immediately confesses to his wife, for not to do so would be "hypocritical." Kinsey does not "bully" Clara into accepting "an open relationship," he pleads with her not to abandon him. He clearly cherishes her throughout the story and never physically or psychologically abuses her. I really cannot think of the movie, however, without remembering Lynn Redgrave's stellar performance, which provides a catharsis to Kinsey's flagging career and self-esteem. And how can Jones say the movie "never thrills" when we are introduced to a character who starts out as hilarious but soon turns very creepy with his proud revelations of prolific pedophilia? The intersection of Kinsey's revolution with McCarthyism was also touched upon. It is truly ironic and thought provoking that Americans are in the grip of a new Puritanism, after we were given such enlightenment about human sexuality in the middle of the 20th century. Oh my God! The children saw an African-American breast during halftime of the testosterone-driven Super Bowl!