Life Is Sweet

1990
15
1h 43m

IMDb RATING

7.4/10

12K

YOUR RATING

Jane Horrocks and Claire Skinner in Life Is Sweet (1990)

Play trailer2:12

1 Video

99+ Photos

Comedy Drama

A shop assistant, her cook husband, and their twin daughters go about their lives in a working-class London suburb.A shop assistant, her cook husband, and their twin daughters go about their lives in a working-class London suburb.A shop assistant, her cook husband, and their twin daughters go about their lives in a working-class London suburb.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.4/10

12K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 8 wins & 3 nominations total

Videos1

Trailer 2:12

Life Is Sweet

Photos115

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
David Thewlis was disappointed at being given such a small role, so Mike Leigh promised him that the next time he considered Thewlis for a role in a film, "he'd be given a fair slice of the pie." Thewlis would be cast as the lead in Leigh's next film Naked (1993), and win an award for his performance.

Goofs
(at around 1h 17 min) When Wendy is laying in bed, the alarm clock to her right is clearly not ticking as the second hand is not moving.

Quotes
[Natalie and Nicola ponder having children]
Natalie: Well, I wouldn't fancy bringing one up on me own.
Nicola: It's better to be on your own than be with a bastard.
Natalie: Well, presumably you wouldn't *choose* a bastard in the first place if you had any sense!
Nicola: All men are bastards!
Natalie: *What*?
Nicola: They're all potential rapists!
Natalie: That's a bit sweeping!
Nicola: All men have got the ability to rape.
Natalie: Well they don't all do it, do they!
Nicola: But they've got the ability; they've got the desire.
Natalie: That's paranoid rubbish!
Nicola: What d'you know about paranoia?
Natalie: Well, not half as much as you do, I'll give you that.

Connections
Featured in Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: Other People's Money/Ernest Scared Stupid/City of Hope/Life Is Sweet (1991)

Soundtracks
Happy Holidays
By Rachel Portman and Julian Wastall

User reviews56

Featured review

10/10

Best film of the year

What can I say that previous fans of this movie have not said yet? I think that Mike Leigh is the best filmmaker working today. So, I won't bother rehashing the story line.

I am convinced even thinking back to 1991, when it was released in the US, that Life is Sweet was the best of that year. That year was remembered more for, among others, Schindler's List, The Remains of the Day and The Piano.

Alison Steadman seemingly insensitive lighthearted outlook on the world -laughing after nearly every sentence she or others utter, which incredibly I never tired of (an amazing feat), is all just her way of dealing with life. She sees it for what it is. The scene where she explains to her daughter Nicola how much of a sacrifice that she and her husband have made for the sake of their family is one of the most touching I have seen between a mother and daughter. I felt as though I was eaves-dropping while watching it. What a pleasure!