All or Nothing is a 2002 British drama film that takes a look at three families and their struggles in their daily lives. The film is written and directed by Mike Leigh and stars British screen legends Timothy Spall and Lesley Manville.

The film takes place in London, that mainly focuses on taxicab driver Phil (Timothy Spall, Hamlet, Stir Crazy) who looks depressed all the time, his wife Penny (Leslie Manville, Secrets & Lies, Maleficent) who works at Safeway, their daughter Rachel (Allison Garland, Virtual Sexuality) and son Rory (James Corden, Peter Rabbit, Trolls) who is overweight, lazy, and recluse. Rory is always telling his family to “fuck off” for one reason or another.  One day, he is playing a game called piggy in the middle and gets a heart attack where is taken to the hospital. Penny rushes to see him and is also trying to reach Phil who is unresponsive leading to why he is so depressed and looks unhappy. The exchange between the married couple was saddest scene that I have taken in for a long time and was the darkest part of the film.   

The second family looks at Maureen (Ruth Sheen, Vera Drake) and her daughter Donna (Helen Coker, Vanity Fair). She is impregnated by her boyfriend Jason (Daniel Mays, The Bank Job), resulting in rather strong argument among the three characters. Jason is adamant about not wanting to be a father and wants her to have an abortion. Jason is a creep to say the least and lord knows what Donna saw in him. She also tells her friends and family to “fuck off”.

The third family has to do with another Ron (Paul Jesson, Mr. Turner) his alcoholic wife Carol (Marion Bailey, Meantime) and their daughter Samantha. She dislikes her parents because they are drunk and worthless to her. She also tells her parents to “fuck-off” which seemed to be a theme in this movie with kids telling their parents that throughout. Her romantic interests are in Jason, who got Donna pregnant and Craig (Ben Crompton, 102 Dalmatians) who is stalking her.

This was a dark, but fascinating film with strong performances by the cast. Every single character in this movie was compelling and held my interest for the just over two-hour run-time. The big scene with Phil and Penny was unforgettable and may bring tears to the eyes of many. Several cast members have appeared in other films directed by Mike Leigh which says something about the mutual working relationship between them. The kids telling their parents to “fuck-off” seemed inappropriate and most parents would whack their kids for saying that to them. Here the parents are indifferent and seem not to care that their children are saying that to them. Maybe that was part of the theme of the movie, as the parents let them get away that much disrespect because they have so many problems.

Severin Films gives All of Nothing a Blu-ray release. The picture quality for the film is excellent with rich colors, inky blacks with great shadow details. Dick Pope’s sharp cinematography for the film looks better than ever with the indoor and outdoor scenery looking fantastic with rich textures. Blues and greens look especially strong. I was very happy with the video presentation. Skin tones look accurate with lots of details to the characters faces in close-ups. No DNR appears to have been applied.

Audio options for this release are English 5.1 Surround or English 2.0 Stereo both sounded great without any defects such as drop-offs or hissing. The dialogue comes in clear on both channels and didn’t hear much difference, possibly the 2.0 option was a bit stronger but either one is fine. English subtitles are available.

The release has an interview with All or Nothing’s writer and director Mike Leigh who discusses his film, the stories and characters involved. Another interview is with cinematographer Dick Pope who also looks back at the picture.  

Love Thy Neighbour: Interviews with Actors Marion Bailey, James Corden, Lesley Manville, Daniel Mays and Ruth Sheen is more of the same, with the actors discussing this movie.

The last of the supplements is a trailer for the film.

All or Nothing is a great, ingenious film for those that like dark dramas about everyday people. What makes this film work so well is that it feels “real”, meaning the issues found with these families happens in real life. There’s nothing that is far-fetched or fantastic about the movie. The Severin Films release with the excellent picture and sound quality to go with the extras make this a highly recommended release!

All or Nothing

Director- Mike Leigh

Cast – Timothy Spall, Lesley Manville

Country of Origin- UK

Distributor – Severin Films

Number of Discs – 1

Reviewed by – David Steigman

Date –12/18/2021