Quando la moglie non basta

Filmed after 'dramatised documentary' The Wife Swappers but a few years before the success of the 'Adventures of' series of careerist sex comedies, the tone of Stanley Long's 1972 Sex and the Other Woman rests, sometimes uneasily, between the two. A downtrodden man's encounter with a blow-up doll, which probably gave unwanted self-realisation to the film's original mackintoshed audience, kicks things off before master of ceremonies Richard Wattis introduces four tales vaguely linked by the theme of adultery. In the first Lisa a big-busted secretary with a thing for married men makes a bee-line for an office co-worker, in the second Maggie Wright plays a gold-digger out to bag a wealthy tennis pal, breaking up his marriage in the process. Alas the luckless man is left penniless after the divorce and the moment she gets wind of this Maggie heads for the door. The third tale ventures into John Lindsay territory, albeit in a more socially acceptable (i.e. softcore) fashion, as a stripping schoolgirl proves too much a temptation for her best friend's middle aged father. Surprisingly humourless for a Stanley Long production, Sex and the Other Woman is enlivened by star turns from Jane Cardew and Felicity Devonshire who cause their male 'victims' to fall off the marriage wagon with minimum effort. In fact the film's depiction of men as universally weak willed and women as powerful vamps is such that the final episode involving a cheating hubby whose wife and mistress are happy to live under the same roof can't help but feel like implausible, wishful thinking.

Its worth noting that the film was the victim of over nine minutes of British censor cuts the last time this was released on video in the UK (in 1988). Although, unless the DVD is also censored, it's hard to see what they got their knickers in a twist for! Extras on the disc include Sex and the Other Woman's original US trailer (it wasn't released stateside till 1980) and trailers for two forthcoming Salvation/Image titles; Norman J. Warren's Prey and the dull Cruel Passion (under the title De Sade's Justine).

Another sex comedy from Stanley Long,which reflects to an extent the attitudes of the day.For example it is not till late on that we learn that Felicity Devonshire has reached 19 years old.In those days the mans behaviour would be regarded as a laugh.Today he risks going to prison.These type of films kept cinemas open for a while,and they saw the eclipse of the Carry Ons.

This movie is sexist, vaguely misogynistic, and very politically incorrect by today's standards, but there are things I didn't like about it as well. It's basically a series of vignettes with the common theme of gorgeous, predatory females seducing hapless married men. However, with one major exception the men don't end up divorced or in jail or suffer any of the other consequences they would probably face in the real world for doing the things they do. This is definitely a male fantasy above all else.

After a somewhat funny opening involving some pathetic schlub's misfortune with a blow-up sex doll (which is pretty much how all the real women in this movie are regarded, so be warned), an official-looking British narrator takes us into the first story of a young married man who is seduced at his new job by the man-eating secretary (Jane Cardew) first in a cupboard, then in an elevator, then in his boss's office. But what will happen when his wife finds out? In the second story a ruthless gold digger (Maggie Wright) gets her claws in a wealthy, but married, man. After nearly killing them both while initiating him into the "mile-high club" in his private jet, she proceeds to more conventionally wreck his life. The third story is the standard one of a middle-age man being seduced by a "schoolgirl" friend (Felicity Devonshire) of his daughter. He fancies himself a painter, and though he only does still-lifes, she offers to pose for him nude, then mounts him on the sofa.

Unlike some of your better British sex comedies(i.e. the "Carry On" and "Confessions of" series), this is almost never very funny, but it is pretty sexy thanks to the actresses involved. The busty, voluptuous Jane Cardew was in a couple early Pete Walker flicks. The scene when she calls him into the boss' office where he finds her reclining in the office chair in her bra and panties and smoking a cigar is definitely memorable. Felicity Devonshire (who was not REALLY a schoolgirl at the time) was every bit as sexy as the more famous Mary Millington, who she somewhat resembled, and quite a bit better actress. Don't go out of your way to see this, but it's worth seeing if you like 70's British sex comedies (like I kind of do for some reason).