TIFF ’22 Review: ‘The End of Sex’ is funny because it feels so true

Relationships are unique in that no couple will have the same experiences, the same outcomes, the same problems or the same solutions. Whether they manage to stay red-hot lovers for years without end or the passion fizzles out with time, anything can occur for different reasons and people will have different feelings about their situation. Yet, neither is an indication of how much the two people involved love and/or trust each other — only they can be the judge of that. In The End of Sex, as a couple’s kids spend a week at camp, they try to revive their waning sex life.

Josh (Jonas Chernick) and Emma’s (Emily Hampshire) marriage recently reached double digits, their lives primarily revolving around work and their two daughters. When the girls head off to winter camp, their privacy-deprived parents seize the opportunity to have loud, open door sex. But it’s not as passionate or satisfying as they’d hoped. So, they spend the next few days trying to spice up their sex life by introducing things they never thought they’d consider, let alone ever do, including a threesome and a night out at a sex club. However, their adventures create problems in their relationship that didn’t exist before, forcing them to decide what’s really important.

This is a romantic comedy that occurs after all the first-date sparks have long gone out, leaving burning embers that are cherished and tended to different ways over time. What this film demonstrates is sex is not always the best or only way to show how much you love your partner or the key element to measure the health of a relationship. Even if Josh and Emma are not having exciting sex, they do not lack intimacy. It’s a marriage many would envy. They appear to share the domestic chores, getting the girls ready and cleaning the house after their emotional departure together. They know each other incredibly well and are happy — at least before this week, for which each passing day is marked with the toppling of one of their seven lawn gnomes, which is a clever alternative to intertitles.

The film does an excellent job of embracing and showcasing the humour of their situation. It also skillfully uses screen text to demystify the pair’s inner thoughts in certain situations, such as faking an orgasm. The comedy is inherent and feels genuine, making the connection to audiences seamlessly. Their reactions to these unconventional situations, especially their facial expressions, are both relatable and hilarious. Chernick and Hampshire deliver excellent performances, nailing the chemistry essential to the narrative’s success, as well as exhibiting spot-on comedic timing. The cameo by Colin Mochrie is also played to perfection, making an awkward situation as mortifying as possible.

The End of Sex had its world premiere in the Contemporary World Cinema programme at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Read other reviews from the festival.

Director: Sean Garrity
Starring: Emily Hampshire, Jonas Chernick and Melanie Scrofano