Film reviews: A Complete History of My Sexual Failures

Tag : Balls Of Steel


Initially his investigation of past failures stalls when allWaitt's exes refuse to be interviewed. Then his mother intervenesand persuades some of them to talk on camera. After a while,however, the film senses it may be losing our attention and cranksup a second strand by revealing Waitt has been suffering fromerectile dysfunction for three years. This is confirmed by a womanhe has just slept with, who agrees that his performance in bed isdisappointing.

Not only in bed. A Complete History is a film full of unfunnymoments that have been contrived for the camera such as writing andperforming an obscene song to a psychologist, a whipping andspanking session with a dominatrix that feels like a Jackassdiscard, and one night when Waitt takes "six or seven Viagra" andheads onto the streets of Soho to ask women to have sex with him.At that point, from fatuous ingénu he crosses over into annoyingsex pest.

Charmless and dishonest, Waitt's desperation is like an auditiontape for Channel Four's skit show of humiliation Balls Of Steel. Afinal confrontation between Waitt and his big lost "true love" isboth the best and the worst moment; her response is poignant andheartfelt, but there's nothing in Waitt's manufactured performancethat earns her tears.

On general release from Friday

FEMALE AGENTS (15)
**

Sent to rescue a British scientist from the Gestapo inNazi-occupied France before he gives away plans for the D-Dayinvasion, Jean-Paul Salomé's Female Agents (Les Femmes de l'Ombre)isn't much more than an old-fashioned action flick but with pluckygals doing the undercover war work of spying, seducing andshooting.

Appropriately for the time of rationing, each girl has only onedefining characteristic. Tough Jeanne (Julie Depardieu) is a tartwith a heart, Gaelle (Déborah François) is an innocent yet knowsher explosives, showgirl Suzy (Marie Gillain) is recovering from anaffair with a high-ranking Nazi officer, Countess Maria Luzzato(Maya Sansa) is avenging her murdered Jewish parents, and theirleader Louise (Sophie Marceau) has a jaw that must ache from allthat determined jutting.

The recruitment process is conducted with all the gravity ofassembling the Dirty Dozen, but glamour clearly takes precedenceover historical detail, with our heroines running around Francewith high-maintenance hairstyles and a large wardrobe ofnip-waisted dresses and heels. But there's more depth than usual tothe Nazi officer, Col Heindrich (Moritz Bleibtreu), there's asubway sequence of real tension, and the performances carry thefilm over its bumpier patches. Dreadful title though.