Women in Temptation (Jirí Vejdelek, 2010): Czech Republic

Reviewed by Alex Descano. Viewed at the Santa Barbara Film Festival 2011.

This laugh out loud film, that most are referring to as the Czech version of Sex and the City, is a must see for a night out with the girls. The combination of witty humor and raw sexuality makes for an absolutely hilarious film. Director Jirí Vejdelek proves that although different cultures may speak different languages, everyone speaks the universal language–love.

Immediately upon seeing the opening credits I knew Women in Temptation was going to make my side hurt from laughing so hard. Creative editing of short sequences shown in between the names of those who worked on the film, instantly captivated the film’s true humor.  Shots of married couples “getting it on” in the office of the film’s protagonist, Helena, had the audience bursting out in laughter before the first scene had even begun. And the laughter did not stop there; I found myself gasping for air a mere twenty minutes into the film.

Jirí Vejdelek creates such dynamic characters that a plot line is almost not even necessary. Watching Helena’s mother, Vilma, and her crazy antics is entertaining enough to be the sole premise of the film. From her giving sex advice to a married couple using a papaya as a vagina to trying to seduce the writer of her memoir, she constantly surprises the audience and keeps them wanting more.

Although the film had me laughing most of the time, there were a few instances I found myself questioning its humor. At times it veered off into such strange directions it was really hard to follow. For example, there were a couple scenes with Helena counseling what appeared to be another version of herself that I just could not grasp. I tried to be open-minded to the idea that talking to oneself might be construed as humorous but the concept just did not stick with me.

Witnessing Helena’s absurd counseling sessions was not the only qualm I had about the film. I often found myself thinking the film was over when it wasn’t. In fact, there were a few times I even began to clap because I thought the film had ended when in reality there were many scenes left. The use of dramatic music and scenes slowly fading out of focus had me to believe the film was about to finish, especially after what I thought to be a resolution had occurred. After beginning to clap more than once, this misleading editing technique proved to be rather frustrating; I almost wished the film the had ended when it didn’t.

Despite these misgivings, I thought Women in Temptation was a rather entertaining film. Though it focuses on the sexual adventures of a middle aged woman, the jokes and clever humor can be appreciated by men and women of all ages. If you’re looking for a good laugh and don’t care too much about seeing a well developed story, I would definitely recommend seeing this film.