How to Have Sex
Three British friends pursue a carefree Greek holiday of sex and partying until the rituals of adolescent belonging expose the frightening ambiguity of consent.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- spirited
- unsettling
- thoughtful movie night
- coming of age double feature
What critics said
Critics broadly praised Molly Manning Walker's assured tonal control and Mia McKenna-Bruce's star-making performance in a precise, unsettling exploration of adolescent sexuality and consent.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Tara's anticipated first sexual experience unfolds within a party culture where peer expectations and ambiguous behavior complicate her agency.
The holiday's exuberant drinking, dancing, and hookups gradually acquire troubling implications without relying on a conventional explanatory reveal.
The girls' Greek holiday is structured around clubbing, drinking, hookups, and the expectation that the trip should become an iconic rite of passage.
Dance and party scenes, forceful music, and heightened sound design contrast with the increasingly bruising emotional atmosphere.
Films like How to Have Sex, and why
The Miseducation of Cameron Post
coming-of-age drama centered on female friendship, sexual awakening, and uncomfortable adolescent social pressures
Lady Bird
emotionally direct female coming-of-age story examining friendship, sexuality, and the consequences of social expectations
Never Rarely Sometimes Always
naturalistic youth drama blending lively social energy with sexual vulnerability and difficult questions of consent
Booksmart
female friendship and adolescent sexuality rendered through a shifting mix of exuberance, discomfort, and emotional hurt
Movie Details
- Director
- Molly Manning Walker
- Release Date
- 2023-11-02
- Runtime
- 91 min
- Rating
- 6.2 / 10 (542)
Cast
- Mia McKenna-Bruce
- Lara Peake
- Enva Lewis
- Samuel Bottomley
- Shaun Thomas
- Laura Ambler
- Eilidh Loan
- Daisy Jelley
- Elliot Warren
- Anna Antoniades
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix, MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel, Netflix Standard with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is How to Have Sex about?
- Three British friends pursue a carefree Greek holiday of sex and partying until the rituals of adolescent belonging expose the frightening ambiguity of consent.
- What is How to Have Sex like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of How to Have Sex as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is How to Have Sex violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in How to Have Sex as mild.
- What did critics think of How to Have Sex?
- Critics broadly praised Molly Manning Walker's assured tonal control and Mia McKenna-Bruce's star-making performance in a precise, unsettling exploration of adolescent sexuality and consent.
- Which films are like How to Have Sex?
- Films with a similar feel include The Miseducation of Cameron Post, Lady Bird, Never Rarely Sometimes Always, and Booksmart.
- How long is How to Have Sex?
- How to Have Sex runs 91 minutes.
- Where can I watch How to Have Sex?
- In United States, How to Have Sex streams on Netflix, MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel, Netflix Standard with Ads.
