Laura Linney Takes Uniquely Provocative Journey With 'Kinsey'

There's no other way of putting it: the new drama, "Kinsey," is all about sex.

The thing is, it's supposed to be. Don't go thinking that stars Liam Neeson, Laura Linney or Peter Sarsgaard, or writer-director Bill Condon, will try to lull you into thinking it's about anything otherwise. It is what it is.

But what "Kinsey" isn't, is gratuitous. Sure, there's sex in the film -- but these provocative images, along with some pretty explicit sex talk, actually serve the narrative.

Sex scenes aside, "Kinsey" is also a fascinating biopic about Indiana college professor Alfred Kinsey, who, in 1948, released "Sexual Behavior in the Human Male" -- a groundbreaking publication that resulted from thousands of interviews with people about the most intimate details of their lives; in a society where talk of sexual practice was left behind in the bedroom.

I talked with Linney hours before the sun set on Halloween night, and the timing was appropriate given this very scary thought: It's been 56 years since Alfred Kinsey released the first of his "Sexual Behavior" tomes, yet Americans are still uptight over the subject over the hot button issue of sex -- even though it's all around us.

"Our country has a really schizophrenic relationship with sexual behavior and sexual activity with our Puritan background and history -- part of it is engrained in the national character," Linney observed for me. "Yet, at the same time, a lot of commercialism is based on sex. A lot of advertising is fueled on sexual images."

In the film, Linney plays the pivotal role of Clara "Mac" McMillen: Kinsey's student who became his wife, research partner and most of all, a strong-willed woman way ahead of society's ideas of who she should be.

"She was really a remarkable human being, and I loved seeing the world through her eyes and her perspective on life," Linney said. "I loved making this movie."

But there were challenges. While there was much documented on Alfred Kinsey in biographies, there was little on Mac. As a result, Linney was left with the difficult responsibility of playing a real person and exercising some creative license at the same time.

"You have to give yourself permission to take creative license and to fill in the script as written -- It's very tricky to play a real person who doesn't have a lot of resources available about them," Linney explained.

Linney said there was information in biographies, photographs and some footage of her moving, which was helpful, but one specific piece of material brought Mac home to her.

"There was an audiotape of her being interviewed by Clyde Martin (Kinsey's top researcher, played by Sarsgaard in the film). The sound of her voice; the organization of her thoughts; her wonderful dry humor and wit; her warmth and generosity -- that's where it all came together for me," Linney recalled.

But as much or as little was available to Neeson and Linney in terms of source material, it would have meant little or nothing if the pair didn't have any screen chemistry. Fortunately, both had proof that they had the goods with each other after sharing the Broadway stage before.

"Liam and I did 'The Crucible' together for six months and it was a fantastic experience," Linney said. "I didn't think my respect could get any deeper than it already was. I loved being onstage with him. That kind of bond between people, when you've created something together, is very, very strong. And, we're great friends, personally, as well. We spend a lot of time together, socially."

Plus, their sense of comfort and trust in one another was vital to the execution of their most intimate scenes in "Kinsey."

"When you know somebody that well personally and professionally, there is a sense a sense of security and trust, and consequently, you can really relax with someone. And when you can really relax with someone, you can really act," Linney said, with an infectious laugh. "Your concentration goes to a very pure place and the fact that we have the personal and professional history that we do, it put us way ahead of the game when we started making this movie."

Linney also had a deep sense of trust in writer-director Condon -- the Oscar-winning filmmaker who won a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar for "Gods and Monsters," the poignant biopic about "Frankenstein" and "Bride of Frankenstein" director James Whale."

Needless to say, it made her work on "Kinsey" all the easier and enjoyable.

"He has a deep appreciation and love and respect for the complexities of the human condition," Linney said in praise of Condon, who also received an Oscar-nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay for "Chicago." "He loves what he does and he's very collaborative and understands film and how to actually make a movie. And, he's a profoundly lovable human being."

With "Gods and Monsters" and "Chicago," Condon demonstrated that he had a great handle on character-driven pieces, without becoming pigeonholed as a genre director. "Gods and Monsters" showed subtlety, while "Chicago" boasted flair. "Kinsey" is billed as a drama -- but the intelligently written film doesn't take itself too seriously, as demonstrated by its fine share of dry humor.

And Condon's character-driven sensibility is perfect fit for someone like Linney, who says it's all about the script. And, her diverse body of work -- which includes "The Truman Show," an Oscar-nominated turn in "You Can Count on Me," "Mystic River," "Love, Actually" and an Emmy-winning guest role on "Frasier" -- is proof of it.

"I'm attracted to scripts that are actable -- and a lot of scripts aren't," Linney said. "They're either projecting a quality or going for a result, and are written to impress an executive or producer, but a lot of scripts are not really with actors in mind. They're not written from the inside out. You can bend them, but they're just not actable."

"Kinsey" opens in New York and Los Angeles Nov. 12, select markets accross the U.S. Nov. 19, and nationwide Dec. 17.