All or Nothing
2002 Directed by Mike Leigh
Synopsis
Penny's love for her partner, taxi-driver Phil, has run dry. He is a gentle, philosophical guy, and she works on the checkout at a supermarket...
Cast
Popular reviews
More-
91.
In sypnosis, Mike Leigh's cinema is populated with caricatures or at least stereotypes--philosophical street wanderer in Naked, battling artistic partners in Topsy-Turvy, sweet ol' abortionist in Vera Drake--but its substance is unmistakably and uncannily lifelike. His plots read often like cliché, too, as if to accommodate his abstracted humans; All or Nothing reads as thus: family drama, loveless marriage, heart attack, paralleling community, working class angst. These are delicate and broad (in search of universal) sketches that Leigh bounces truths off of. Quoth Brian, Naked: "A cliché is full of truth, or else it wouldn't be a cliché." (Quoth Johnny: "Which is in itself a cliché.)
The film in question thus derives not only from the tradition of great…
-
Review from my VOD column "This Week on Demand".
Returning once more to his social realist roots after the giddy, gleeful theatrical abstraction of Topsy-Turvy, Mike Leigh began the 21st century with one of his most masterful films in All or Nothing, a poignant combination of his most accomplished abilities in both drama and comedy. A typically perfect cast enact the emotionally transfixing tale of three working class families, each and every character made by virtue of Leigh's unique manner of filmmaking to feel as real—perhaps even realer—than we ourselves. Timothy Spall and Leslie Manville are the towering highlights, playing a struggling taxi driver and his fatigued wife whose wearied resignation forecasts a grim future for their equally gloomy adult children. It's not all desolate darkness, however: Leigh injects his dialogue with as much humour as pathos, each line as likely to draw laughter as it is tears, each character as wryly amusing as they are bleakly and beautifully human.
-
I’ve been digging a little deeper into the films of Mike Leigh lately and this seemed like the logical next step after seeing Topsy Turvy. To call this a change of pace is putting it a little lightly. This is miserablist Mike Leigh in the vein of films like Naked and Vera Drake. I might go so far as to say that this is Leigh’s bleakest film to date. The film is set in a British slum and focuses on a family that can only be called dysfunctional as they go through a crisis. This film is all about hopelessness and self-deceit. Not exactly jolly viewing, but there’s a power to the film which can’t be denied. Another winner from this important director.
Recent reviews
More-
91.
In sypnosis, Mike Leigh's cinema is populated with caricatures or at least stereotypes--philosophical street wanderer in Naked, battling artistic partners in Topsy-Turvy, sweet ol' abortionist in Vera Drake--but its substance is unmistakably and uncannily lifelike. His plots read often like cliché, too, as if to accommodate his abstracted humans; All or Nothing reads as thus: family drama, loveless marriage, heart attack, paralleling community, working class angst. These are delicate and broad (in search of universal) sketches that Leigh bounces truths off of. Quoth Brian, Naked: "A cliché is full of truth, or else it wouldn't be a cliché." (Quoth Johnny: "Which is in itself a cliché.)
The film in question thus derives not only from the tradition of great…
-
Among Mike Leigh's weaker films in recent years. Another tale of working class misery which doesn't lead anywhere interesting.
-
This review reportedly contains spoilers. I can handle the truth.
-
Feel like I'm in a mode of utter disservice by dismissing this as our semi-annual exercise in seamless character study a la Mike Leigh, especially because it returns to the more humble magnifying glass which bore the likes of Life is Sweet and Secrets and Lies. The nod of my reaction to what some critics seemed to view as a competent rut, always wallowing in the miseries of life, always looking on the bright side at close - this seems particularly unfounded given how multifaceted and consistent Leigh's improvisational techniques can be. All or Nothing is abysmal - to be sure; But it's also powerful, uncommonly observant, and tirelessly objective, even when its wielding a score that's heavy on the…
-
Review from my VOD column "This Week on Demand".
Returning once more to his social realist roots after the giddy, gleeful theatrical abstraction of Topsy-Turvy, Mike Leigh began the 21st century with one of his most masterful films in All or Nothing, a poignant combination of his most accomplished abilities in both drama and comedy. A typically perfect cast enact the emotionally transfixing tale of three working class families, each and every character made by virtue of Leigh's unique manner of filmmaking to feel as real—perhaps even realer—than we ourselves. Timothy Spall and Leslie Manville are the towering highlights, playing a struggling taxi driver and his fatigued wife whose wearied resignation forecasts a grim future for their equally gloomy adult children. It's not all desolate darkness, however: Leigh injects his dialogue with as much humour as pathos, each line as likely to draw laughter as it is tears, each character as wryly amusing as they are bleakly and beautifully human.
-
a sad, bittersweet, tender and thoughtful movie. mike leigh understands people more than anyone ever will.
-
I’ve been digging a little deeper into the films of Mike Leigh lately and this seemed like the logical next step after seeing Topsy Turvy. To call this a change of pace is putting it a little lightly. This is miserablist Mike Leigh in the vein of films like Naked and Vera Drake. I might go so far as to say that this is Leigh’s bleakest film to date. The film is set in a British slum and focuses on a family that can only be called dysfunctional as they go through a crisis. This film is all about hopelessness and self-deceit. Not exactly jolly viewing, but there’s a power to the film which can’t be denied. Another winner from this important director.
-
Brilliant performances from Timothy Spall, Leslie Manville, James Corden and Sally Hawkins in one of Mike Leigh's strongest works. There's a lot to ponder here; like Another Year, this is more about character than plot, and what makes us do the things we do and act the way we act
-
4.5 out of 5 (A-)