Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsEmmysSan Diego Comic-ConSummer Watch GuideToronto Int'l Film FestivalSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
8 suggestions available
Watchlist
Sign in
Sign in
New customer? Create account
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
IMDbPro

The Surprising History of Sex and Love

  • TV Movie
  • 2002
  • PG-13
  • 49m
IMDb RATING
7.1/10
106
YOUR RATING
The Surprising History of Sex and Love (2002)
DocumentaryHistory

Exploring the radical change in social and religious attitudes towards sex, this award-winning documentary takes a look throughout history and traces the shift in social attitudes and practi... Read allExploring the radical change in social and religious attitudes towards sex, this award-winning documentary takes a look throughout history and traces the shift in social attitudes and practices. Terry traces an unexpected route of how sex got from strict social repression to the ... Read allExploring the radical change in social and religious attitudes towards sex, this award-winning documentary takes a look throughout history and traces the shift in social attitudes and practices. Terry traces an unexpected route of how sex got from strict social repression to the full-frontal glossies of today.

  • Directors
    • Alan Ereira
    • Phil Grabsky
  • Writers
    • Alan Ereira
    • Phil Grabsky
    • Terry Jones
  • Stars
    • Terry Jones
    • Joann Fletcher
    • Bill Dever
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.1/10
    106
    YOUR RATING
    • Directors
      • Alan Ereira
      • Phil Grabsky
    • Writers
      • Alan Ereira
      • Phil Grabsky
      • Terry Jones
    • Stars
      • Terry Jones
      • Joann Fletcher
      • Bill Dever
    • 2User reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos1

    View Poster

    Top cast12

    Edit
    Terry Jones
    Terry Jones
    • Self…
    Joann Fletcher
    Joann Fletcher
    • Self
    • (as Dr. Joann Fletcher)
    Bill Dever
    • Self
    • (as Prof. Bill Dever)
    Diana Edelman
    • Self
    • (as Dr. Diana Edelman)
    Rick Jones
    • Self
    • (as Dr. Rick Jones)
    Susan Deacy
    • Self
    • (as Dr. Susan Deacy)
    Shobita Punja
    • Self
    • (as Dr. Shobita Punja)
    Carol Groneman
    • Self
    • (as Prof. Carol Groneman)
    Joycelyn Elders
    Joycelyn Elders
    • Self
    • (as Dr. Jocelyn Elders)
    David Gaimster
    • Self
    • (as Dr. David Gaimster)
    Khedija Sassi
    • 'Eve'
    • (as Kedysha Sassi)
    Ben Jewell
    • 'Adam'
    • Directors
      • Alan Ereira
      • Phil Grabsky
    • Writers
      • Alan Ereira
      • Phil Grabsky
      • Terry Jones
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews2

    7.1106
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    3johnjohnson68510

    Sloppy with an ax to grind.

    I'm a long time Terry Jones fan, but a couple of minutes into this and I realized it wasn't a documentary so much as it was a hatchet job against Christianity. And I was really surprised he did such a sloppy job of it. For example, he said the book of Genesis was written around 600 B.C., that Judaism originally had a female goddess, and he says over and over in different ways that the world was a happy place full of freewheeling sex until those mean old Christians showed up and invented shame and guilt.

    There's some interesting material on Egyptian fertility rituals, and if you've never seen the sexual artifacts of ancient Greece and Rome, you might find that interesting. Terry is absolutely gleeful about a Roman garden sculpture of Pan having sex with a goat, and he states, without any evidence, that such a thing was normal in Rome and perfectly acceptable, which I don't believe. And he goes on at length about how the age of consent was raised in America from nine or ten up to sixteen and then eighteen. He is so scornful and mocking of this change of the age of consent, I wondered if he was sympathetic with NAMBLO (an organization that wants to legalize pedophilia) and perhaps a bit wistful towards the good old days.

    Anyway, his points are good about the busy body control freaks who try to regulate every aspect of life, including sex, but mostly he's just shooting his mouth off in this poorly researched, agenda-driven show.

    More like this

    A History of Sex
    4.4
    A History of Sex
    The Surprising History of Egypt
    7.3
    The Surprising History of Egypt
    The Surprising History of Rome
    7.4
    The Surprising History of Rome
    Medieval Lives
    8.3
    Medieval Lives
    Monty Python and the Holy Grail
    8.2
    Monty Python and the Holy Grail
    Monty Python's the Meaning of Life
    7.5
    Monty Python's the Meaning of Life
    Monty Python's Life of Brian
    8.0
    Monty Python's Life of Brian

    Storyline

    Edit

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 10, 2002 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United States
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Production companies
      • Seventh Art Productions
      • Discovery Channel
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 49m
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Production art
    List
    Staff Picks: What to Watch in August
    See our picks
    Production art
    List
    August 2025 TV and Streaming Premiere Dates
    See the list

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.