Sweet William - Review 1

By Ayesha Haqqiqa

Synopsis: For playwrite William McClusky, one sexual partner was not enough. And no woman could say no!

Sam's Performance: Sam turns on all of his sexual energy in this film, and it is very easy to see how women could be attracted to him. He is quite believable as a man who knows that whatever he does, no woman will turn him down. That confidence, tinged with smoldering sexuality, defines the character.

Must-see scenes: There are many good scenes in this movie. The pick-up scene where William comments on cloth is quite funny. Then there's the indoor picnic scene in the bed room, where William and his lover are dining au naturale, which leaves very little to the imagination! He munches on a pickle, and talks of this relationship as an idyll, and nothing more.

Rating:

1 Sam means you can't stand to sit through the film once; 5 Sams means you should buy the film and watch it again and again!

5 Sams

Besides the obvious sexual turn on, this film offers a comedic storyline in the British style, with a surprise ending.

Sweet William - Review 2

By WeezlLady

Sam is, of course, William---a delightfully charming cad. He's egotistical and arrogant, but somehow manages to be so thoroughly engaging that you're willing to put up with him. Or at least every women in this movie is. It really doesn't have that much of a plot. It mostly just shows this loveable scamp and all the women who adore him.

The story begins with Ann seeing her boyfriend off (presumably on a long business trip or some such) and arguing with her mother about having sex with her in the house. Ann goes to a school play and meets our "hero." He tries very hard to make an impression on her. Of course it works and she's utterly taken with him. Shortly after they meet, he just shows up at her apartment at an odd hour (2 women were both asleep) with an album he bought her. Her cousin is staying with her and hangs out in the bathroom to give them privacy. Unperturbed by this,  he plays the record and simply asks, "Where do you lie down?" That's all it takes to get her in bed with him! With her cousin in the next room.

She's utterly entranced by him. He's a real sweet talker and has an answer for everything. Like why there's nothing wrong with him lying on a bed in only a robe while her attractive female cousin is in the bed and they're alone. (Ann must be some kind of a prude!) Why the landlady is in her robe in their bedroom when she comes home. (HE just got home, just a second ago…why was he tucking his shirt in and why was she in a robe to check a leak?) Why he's always going out in the middle of the night. (To read to his night-owl children.) He always gets her to believe him. They have sex in a number of odd places (the back seat of a moving cab, behind a barrier in a hospital corridor) and he manipulates her pretty easily. The woman (women!) is either stupid or unbelievably naïve. Or she just wants to believe him.

After a number of suspicious moments (You DON'T come home early, unannounced, with this man in the house!), Ann finds out she's pregnant. He's thrilled. He says they'll marry and go to America. Before he gets back form a trip, his wife visits. Ann finds out that the tearful letter she (the wife) had sent her was dictated by William. Shouldn't have been that much of a surprise, considering that he told Ann what to write in a letter to break up with her boyfriend. Both women ask him what he wants. He wants Ann to be with him, and have his baby, but he doesn't want to divorce his wife, either.

Ann gets upset and leaves him. As soon as he comes around begging for forgiveness and pledging his devotion, she takes him right back. He FINALLY pulls one trick too many (pretending to bury a locket of her hair as a symbol of their love). For some reason, this silly thing is the "straw that broke the camel's back." While she's in labor,  he says he loves her and will never leave her. She calls him a liar. When he leaves after the birth, she looks from the baby to a photo of her ex-boyfriend (who never did want to break up) and smiles...presumably because the infant resembles him rather than William.

I suppose they were trying to show that she'd finally gotten a clue about William, but, between his possessiveness and all the other times she closed her eyes and forgave/forgot/whatever, I have a hard time believing he was really out of her life for good.

This man is beyond belief! Somehow, through a combination of good looks,  odd moments of boyishness, brass ba**s and sheer audacity, he manages to bang practically ever women he meets. I suspect it also has a lot to do (like a lot of Lotharios) with a superior instinct for finding vulnerable women with low self-esteem who would be particularly susceptible to their patter. The list includes, but is by no means limited to, his ex-wife, his new wife, Ann, her cousin, an actress in his play, and the landlady. I'm surprised the man has time to eat. Course if it was in a restaurant, he'd likely have the waitress under the table.

My final thought on this movie: it really says something about Sam's talent, sex-appeal and innate charm that you end up rather liking William. Despite all his tricks,  he's still highly likeable. He's cocky but not quite arrogant. Self-centered but not selfish. Amoral rather than immoral. And you can still kind of empathize with Ann. Who COULD resist this rascal.