Director: Jonathan Teplitzky
Starring: David Wenham, Susie Porter, Catherine McClements, Kris McQuade, Simon Bossell, Imelda Corcoran

- Reviewed by Linda

To put it bluntly, Better Than Sex would have worked better as a short film, with the length chopped by half of its 90 minutes. The premise is interesting enough: a man and a woman (the amiable David Wenham and Susie Porter) meet at a party, share a cab together, then end up going to her place with the full mutual intention of having a one-night stand, no strings attached. After all, he is on plane home to London in three days. But they have such chemistry, he lingers another day, another night, and so on, until suddenly it is time for him to leave on a jet plane. 

There are voice-overs, and interview-style vignettes with the two characters talking candidly to the camera; not to mention the many close-ups of their faces looking thoughtful, pensive, regretful, etc. Plus there is all the commentary about differences between men and women (he leaves the seat up, she takes two hours to get ready to leave the house, even for fast food, etc.). They have sex. They talk. They have sex. They talk. They have sex. Oh! Wait! Are they falling in love?

Unfortunately, this has all been done before. The two stars were charming, but it would have worked a lot better with a good, crisp edit.

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