All or Nothing (2002)

83% of critics liked it
(88 reviews)
81% of users liked it
(2,942 ratings)

A drama set in present-day London in which a supermarket checkout girl named Penny begins to fall out of love with her taxi-driver boyfriend, Phil. Their daughter Rachel cleans in a home for elderly people, and their son Rory is unemployed and aggressive. The joy has gone out of Phil's and Penny's… More A drama set in present-day London in which a supermarket checkout girl named Penny begins to fall out of love with her taxi-driver boyfriend, Phil. Their daughter Rachel cleans in a home for elderly people, and their son Rory is unemployed and aggressive. The joy has gone out of Phil's and Penny's life, but when an unexpected tragedy occurs, they are brought together to rediscover their love.

Rating, Runtime: R, 2 hr. 8 min.
Directed By: Mike Leigh
Written By: Mike Leigh
Genres: Drama, Comedy

In Theaters: Oct 25, 2002 Limited
On DVD: Feb 18, 2003
Studio: MGM Distribution Company

Critic Reviews

John Anderson, Newsday
Mike Leigh goes spelunking in search of the English soul, finds gold.
Andrew Sarris, New York Observer
For close to two hours the audience is forced to endure three terminally depressed, mostly inarticulate, hyper dysfunctional families for the price of one.
Jay Boyar, Orlando Sentinel
An unsentimental, but nevertheless touching and sincere, reflection on the meaning of family and the fragility of love.
Steven Rosen, Denver Post
Leigh makes these lives count. And he allows a gawky actor like Spall -- who could too easily become comic relief in any other film -- to reveal his impressively delicate range.
Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer
It's a challenging film, one that rewards the committed filmgoer.
Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee
It is almost impossible to sludge through this tiny morality tale and not recognize bad habits, small and familiar, that we all share -- and also take for granted.
Michael Dequina, TheMovieReport.com
It's all quite tough going, but the actors make it difficult to look away.
Steve Crum, Kansas City Kansan
On the surface, a dreary, knuckles-down tale of a working class London family.
Urban Cinefile Critics, Urban Cinefile
All Or Nothing may seem depressing, but in fact uplifts us.
Mark Robison, Reno Gazette-Journal
Grim but really good.
Mark Dujsik, Mark Reviews Movies
There's an extended scene (the film's penultimate one) in the family's apartment with a level of verisimilitude that I doubt I'll ever forget.
Jack Garner, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
There's no denying the downbeat nature of All or Nothing -- it's not a frivolous night at the movies. But the story of Phil and Penny wins you with its heart.
Philip Martin, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
...a somber film, almost completely unrelieved by any comedy beyond the wistful everyday ironies of the working poor.
Arthur Lazere, culturevulture.net
Leigh and his actors succeed in making these characters human and sympathetic and, thus, all the more profoundly sad.
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul), St. Paul Pioneer Press
[An] observant film.

Read all 15 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Anthony L

Gone has Mike Leigh's usual signature humour here but at All or Nothing's core is his usual basic message that no matter how bleak or desperate life can be, simple acts of kindness and love, can still flourish above everything else, although it's not as slushy or as… More
Gone has Mike Leigh's usual signature humour here but at All or Nothing's core is his usual basic message that no matter how bleak or desperate life can be, simple acts of kindness and love, can still flourish above everything else, although it's not as slushy or as Hollywood as that sounds. Mike Leigh's films tend to have the same tone, many don't like it but I just can't get enough. My only criticism of this film is that of the casting of James Corden. Considering he played a fat useless and rather unlikeable character it is actually very good casting I suppose (I wonder if he was acting?), I just can't stand him and so it wasn't necessarily as enjoyable as most of Leigh's films are for me. Damn you James Corden!
Gordon A

Grim but genuine study of a struggling working class family and their world on a London estate. Particularly disturbing is the feeling each successive generation is doomed to repeat the mistakes of their parents.
Eric B

"All or Nothing" is more a collection of good scenes than a good film. Laboriously workshopped in director Mike Leigh's usual fashion, the story centers on a financially struggling family in a rundown apartment complex. The father (Timothy Spall, his doughy face… More
"All or Nothing" is more a collection of good scenes than a good film. Laboriously workshopped in director Mike Leigh's usual fashion, the story centers on a financially struggling family in a rundown apartment complex. The father (Timothy Spall, his doughy face permanently froze in a blank torpor) is a slack cabbie. The mother (Lesley Manville, steadily whimpering) is a grocery checker. Their two young-adult children are both significantly overweight -- he (James Corden) is coarse and unemployed, while she (Alison Garland) cleans up at an old-age home. The family's neighbors also wander in and out of scenes, most notably a feisty tease named Samantha (Sally Hawkins, who later played a much different role in Leigh's "Happy-Go-Lucky") and an empathetic mother (Ruth Sheen). Sheen -- sort of an Edith Bunker type -- steals the movie with her fragile warmth and weakly reassuring smile. Wish her role had been larger. Eventually, a health crisis forces the family to re-examine its emotional bonds. If you crave more plot than this, you're pursuing the wrong director. "All or Nothing" is relentlessly downbeat and depressing, and doesn't manage to supply enough insights to make its bleak ride worthwhile. Furthermore, the script's treatment of Corden borders on cruelty. The film's acting is certainly strong, but Leigh has done better.
Daisy M

<a href="http://tinypic.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i29.tinypic.com/ixguwl.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a> All or nothing involved lots of characters which were great among each… More
<a href="http://tinypic.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i29.tinypic.com/ixguwl.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a> All or nothing involved lots of characters which were great among each other in their own ways. The movie used the first hour to build up the link between each of them and it serves as a nice creation for the story to go further. The casting of the movie was excellent. The actors and actresses are just like the real people around us. Not bad,
Barry L

I dont think I have been so utterly depressed whilst watching a film as I was for this one. If you are suicidal or have lost a loved one you do not want to get this.