My Last Five Girlfriends – 2009 | 87 mins | Romance, Comedy | Colour

Plot Synopsis

Writer/director Julian Kemp’s adaptation of Alain de Botton’s international best seller Essays in Love is a shallow, quirky, and at times, deeply bizarre romantic comedy dealing with the ups and downs of love until finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Duncan narrates the history of his past five doomed relationships in a series of self-conscious whinging trial and error flashbacks set around funfair attractions that act as a metaphor for his rollercoaster lovelife. Kemp’s film treads similar ground to High Fidelity (2000) and (500) Days of Summer (2009, but does so with an overlong narrative and gimmicky style that fails to develop characters you might care for or a skilful romantic story. The performances are run of the mill and with the actors having little material to work with they depict a succession of irritating stereotypical characters. Only the cameos by Michael Sheen and Johnny Ball raise a smile.

Devastated when his latest relationship hits the rocks, loser-in-love Duncan Anderson (Brendan Patricks) is on the brink contemplating suicide. In a final attempt to find out where it all went wrong (and right) Duncan audits his last five girlfriends. Over the last two years Londoner Duncan has seen and tried it all; moulding himself into what he thinks is the perfect boyfriend.

We begin with a plunge into the unknown in the economy class on the plane of Wendy (Kelly Adams), a journey that gets cancelled by the ghost of her ex-boyfriend. Next is the incomprehensible Olive (Jane March), but she’s no more than a date really. After that is Rhona (Cecile Cassel), who Duncan has nothing in common with and unwisely offers fashion advice to. Then Duncan meets Natalie (Edith Bukovics), but despite six months together he can’t commit and believes they are much too alike. Or is it just that he’s fallen for her friend Gemma (Naomie Harris)? Duncan believes that Gemma is different and somebody he could share his life with, but eventually the relationship enters a stage of ‘romantic terrorism’ after he looks for problems where none exist.