A Life Less Ordinary (1997)

Ewan McGregor stars as a cleaning man in L.A. who takes his boss' daughter hostage after being fired and replaced by a robot. Two "angels" who are in charge of human relationships on earth,... See full summary »

Director:

Danny Boyle

Writer:

John Hodge

Stars:

Ewan McGregor, Cameron Diaz, Holly Hunter

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ewan McGregor	...	Robert Lewis
Cameron Diaz	...	Celine Naville
Holly Hunter	...	O'Reilly
Delroy Lindo	...	Jackson
Dan Hedaya	...	Gabriel
Ian McNeice	...	Mayhew
Frank Kanig	...	Ted
Mel Winkler	...	Francis 'Frank' Naville
Stanley Tucci	...	Elliot Zweikel
Anne Cullimore Decker	...	Violet Eldred Gesteten
K.K. Dodds	...	Lily
Tony Shalhoub	...	Al
Christopher Gorham	...	Walt
Ian Holm	...	Naville
Maury Chaykin	...	Tod Johnson

Storyline

Ewan McGregor stars as a cleaning man in L.A. who takes his boss' daughter hostage after being fired and replaced by a robot. Two "angels" who are in charge of human relationships on earth, offer some unsolicited help to bring this unlikely couple together.

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Plot Keywords:

angel | robot | janitor | security guard | novel | 

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Taglines:

A twisted love story from the filmmakers of "Trainspotting".

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Fantasy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and language

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 October 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Une vie moins ordinaire

Filming Locations:

Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$12,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$3,200,000 (Non-US) (31 October 1997)

Gross:

DEM 1,682,281 (Germany) (30 January 1998)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Channel Four Films, Figment Films, Polygram Filmed Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Rankcolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Shot over a period of 50 days.

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Goofs

When first shown, the writing on the glass of the door of Gabriel's office (incorrectly) faces in to the office. In later scenes, the writing is reversed and faces out.

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Quotes

O'Reilly: We can do this with or without violence, it's up to you. The client pays our medical bills but not yours. Well?
Robert: Oh, without, please.

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Crazy Credits

For the start of the credits, the top half of image contains a wide box (2.35:1?) which runs footage furthering the plotline. Note the film itself was in 1.85:1.

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Connections

References Stairway to Heaven (1946)

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Soundtracks

"VELVET DIVORCE"
Written by Liam Howe, Chris Corner, Kelli Dayton, Ian Pickering
Published by BMG Music Publishing Ltd.
Performed by 'The Sneaker Pimps' (as Sneaker Pimps)
Courtesy of Clean Up Records, Virgin Records America, Virgin Records GMBH

User Reviews

A difference of opinion.

It seems that with A Life Less Ordinary you either love it or you hate it. Personally I am of the former persuasion, with it being a favourite of mine. I can see were the detractors come from, especially after viewing Boyle & Hodge's previous works. ALLO is in a completely different in style to their previous two films Shallow Grave and Trainspotting. But to say it is the weaker of the three films would be a fallacy. Stylistically the film is excellent - reminding me a lot of a Coen brothers film. The script is spot on and the performances of McGregor and Diaz are both excellent (which surprised me for Diaz) as their does seem to be a real chemistry between the two. A very enjoyable romantic comedy overall, and if an old cynic like me can say that, it must be good.