Confessions of a Window Cleaner (1974)

Director:

Val Guest

Writers:

Val Guest (writer)
Christopher Wood (novel)

Release Date:

8 November 1974 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

The dirty window cleaner reveals everything!

Plot:

Young Timmy starts as a window cleaner in the little company of his brother. Soon he learns that some female customers expect additional service...

Plot Keywords:

Window Cleaner | Pregnancy | Bicycle | Hospital | Yoga

Cast

Robin Askwith	...	Timothy Lea
Anthony Booth	...	Sidney Noggett
Sheila White	...	Rosie Noggett
Dandy Nichols	...	Mrs. Lea
Bill Maynard	...	Mr. Lea
Linda Hayden	...	Elizabeth Radlett
John Le Mesurier	...	Inspector Radlett
Joan Hickson	...	Mrs. Radlett
Katya Wyeth	...	Carole
Richard Wattis	...	Carole's Father
Melissa Stribling	...	Mrs. Villiers
Anita Graham	...	Ingrid
Sam Kydd	...	1st Removal Man
Brian Hall	...	2nd Removal Man
Christine Donna	...	Lil Lamour

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Ireland:18 | Finland:K-18 | Norway:16 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

The last film of Richard Wattis

Goofs:

Continuity: When Sidney is changing the tire on the Mini the hub cap appears and disappears between shots.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "X-Rated" (2004)

Soundtrack:

This Is Your Life Timmy Lea

Confessions of a non-British "Confessions of" fan

Most Brits will tell you that the "Confessions of" series of the 1970's sex comedies was not nearly as good as the more famous "Carry on" series, but if you're non-British and are more interested in sex and nudity than British humor (which might be an oxymoron) and seeing a lot of middle-aged Ealing Street comedians who you probably won't recognize anyway, the "Confessions of" series is the way to go. The main star here is Robin Askwith who was a dead ringer for Mick Jagger, and who probably logged more on-screen nudity than any male actor in the history of cinema. Here Askwith plays a young man, "Timmy Lea" (his character unfortunately has his own theme song), who lives with his larcenous father, his oblivious mother, his very pregnant older sister, and his philandering brother-in-law. He goes to work for the brother-in-law as a window cleaner, and. . .well, that's basically the plot.

I once worked briefly as a window cleaner, and although I don't really look too much like Mick Jagger, the experience was NOTHING like this. Apparently, a lot of beautiful women in England just wait around all day for the window cleaner to show up, so they can exhibit themselves to him and/or take him to bed. (Of course, it's also possible this movie isn't entirely realistic--hmmmm). Whatever the case, this makes for plenty of opportunity to see a number of naked "dolly birds" including, most notably, Linda Hayden and Katya Wyeth, both of whom appeared in Hammer films and other British movies much better than this one. But be warned also--all of these women put together don't spend as much screen time naked as Askwith himself does.

What I liked about this movie especially though was the end. American sex comedies always have the male protagonist acting irresponsibly promiscuous throughout most of the movie, but then falling in love with the girl of his dreams at the end (this might be called "eating your cake and having it to"). This movie does have a "dream girl" in the form of Linda Hayden (OK, she's more of a "wet dream girl"), but it takes a different turn at the end, which some would call cynical, but I personally found pretty realistic, and sweet as opposed to saccharine. The movie is also genuinely funny in places, not so much in the silly sex scenes, but in the scenes at home with the protagonist's oddball family.

You're probably unlikely to find this movie outside of the UK or Ireland, but it does have some appeal even for non-Brits like myself.