'Ask Dr. Ruth' Trailer: America's Most Famous Sex Therapist Gets A Documentary
Dr. Ruth Westheimer is here to talk sex, baby. And don't let her diminutive appearance and advanced age throw you off. America's most famous sex therapist is getting the documentary treatment in the new Hulu film Ask Dr. Ruth, which chronicles Westheimer's path from Holocaust survivor to advocate on the front lines of sex awareness and LGBT rights. Watch the Ask Dr. Ruth trailer below.
Ask Dr. Ruth Trailer
Westheimer is used to the spotlight. Her 1980 radio show "Sexually Speaking" rocketed her to success, leading to at least five TV show hosting gigs for Lifetime throughout the late '80s and early '90s. She stood out from the crowd as a German-accented 52-year-old lady speaking frankly about sex, but her past life as shown in this documentary is even more amazing. A Holocaust survivor as a teenager, Westheimer went on to work briefly at Planned Parenthood, and later became an early advocate for LGBTQ rights and an ally in the fight against AIDS. And at 90, she shows no signs of slowing down.
Directed by Ryan White, whose seven-art true crime docuseries The Keepers premiered on Netflix in 2017, Ask Dr. Ruth follows the vivacious 90-year-old as she continues to make the TV and radio circuit to give sex advice, intercut with storybook-like animations of her childhood. It's a nostalgia-tinged, empowering documentary in the vein of last year's Won't You Be My Neighbor and RGB, and is already generating some Awards buzz. After Ask Dr. Ruth premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January, it was met with favorable reviews with Vanity Fair even calling it a contender for the Oscar nomination.
Here is the synopsis to Ask Dr. Ruth:
Ask Dr. Ruth chronicles the incredible life of Dr. Ruth Westheimer, a Holocaust survivor who became America's most famous sex therapist. With her diminutive frame, thick German accent, and uninhibited approach to sex therapy and education, Dr. Ruth transformed the conversation around sexuality. As she approaches her 90th birthday and shows no signs of slowing down, Dr. Ruth revisits her painful past and unlikely path to a career at the forefront of the sexual revolution.
Ask Dr. Ruth hits Hulu on May 10, 2019.