Unconditional Love (2002)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

P.J. Hogan

Writers (WGA):

Jocelyn Moorhouse (written by) &
P.J. Hogan (written by)

Release Date:

23 August 2002 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | Comedy | Musical | Thriller

Tagline:

If love takes no prisoners, somebody forgot to tell them.

Plot:

After her husband leaves her, a woman travels to London for the funeral of the pop star, Victor Fox...

Plot Keywords:

Singer | Funeral | Murder | Homeless | Dwarf

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Kathy Bates	...	Grace Beasley
Rupert Everett	...	Dirk Simpson
Meredith Eaton	...	Maudey Beasley
Peter Sarsgaard	...	Window Washer
Lynn Redgrave	...	Nola Fox
Stephanie Beacham	...	Harriet Fox-Smith
Richard Briers	...	Barry Moore
Marcia Warren	...	Lynette Fox-Moore
Jack Noseworthy	...	Andrew Beasley
Daniel Wyllie	...	Pete
Dan Aykroyd	...	Max Beasley
Jonathan Pryce	...	Victor Fox
Brenda Pickleman	...	Woman in Red Bra, Jerry Springer guest
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Steve Abbott	...	Graveyard Officer
Rose Abdoo	...	Contest winner
Julie Andrews	...	Herself
Ashley Anne Ayer	...	'Hitchcock Railway' dancer
Tim Bohn	...	TV show producer
Nancy Boykin	...	Homeless
William J. Brookes	...	Homeless
Daniel Campbell	...	Baby Pokey
Michael Campbell	...	Baby Pokey
David Darlow	...	Man in Plane
Gwenllian Davies	...	Woman in Pub
Don Elkins	...	TV Reporter
Mark Finney	...	Business Executive
Pat Finn	...	Keith
Heather Goldenhersh	...	Grace's Daughter
Amo Gulinello	...	T.V. Station Intern
Martin Herdman	...	Drunken Man in Pub
Peggy Kusinski-Kinander	...	TV anchor
Anne Lambton	...	Lady in Plane
Beth Littleford	...	Morning Chicago TV Host
Steve Lyke	...	Businessman
Barry Manilow	...	Himself
Stephen Marcus	...	Thug in Rain
Roddy Maude-Roxby	...	Minister
Rosalee Mayeux	...	Woman #1
Joel McKinnon Miller	...	Bartender
Sia A. Moody	...	TV field reporter (as Sia Moody)
Larry Nazimek	...	Copilot
Bill Noble	...	Homeless
Ian Noble	...	Thug in Rain
Elisabeth Oas	...	Talk Show Guest
Cornelia Hayes O'Herlihy	...	Mother
Laura Orrico	...	Back-Up Singer
Roderick Peeples	...	Man in Gun Shop
Sarah Peirse	...	Florist
Greg Pitts	...	Officer Jones
Eyal Podell	...	Officer Romilly
Sally Jessy Raphael	...	Herself
Rudy Roberson	...	Homeless
David Ryall	...	Funeral Director
Bitty Schram	...	Waitress
Rebekah Louise Smith	...	Nurse Mills
Philippa Stanton	...	Waitress in Tea Room
Kaja Stiglic	...	'Hitchcock Railway' dancer
Gregor Truter	...	Dave
Karen Vaccaro	...	Jerry Springer Guest
Javanley Washington	...	Homeless
Doug Wax	...	Navigator
Lisa Nicole Wilkerson	...	'Hitchcock Railway' dancer

Also Known As:

Who Shot Victor Fox (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, sexual content, brief strong language and some violence.

Runtime:

124 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Iceland:LH | Denmark:7 | Germany:6 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 | Argentina:13 | Canada:PG (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Chicago Studio City - 5660 W. Taylor Street, Austin, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Avery Pix

Trivia:

The china used in the tea house when Kathy Bates, Lynn Redgrave and the other sisters is Royal Albert Old Country Roses. This china is frequently used in movies where tea is being served.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the killer confronts Grace, Dirk and Maudie under the city, the trio change positions between shots.

Quotes:

Nola Fox: We love gay youth.

Movie Connections:

Spoofs Don't Look Now (1973)

Soundtrack:

All the Way

This might be my new favorite "comfort film".

I found this film by accident while shopping a sale of used DVDs at my local video rental store. I hadn't heard of it but Kathy Bates is always worth watching, so I didn't even look at the back of the package for the rest of the credits.

I got it home and was hooked from the beginning credits when the singer turns around and it is Jonathan Pryce. (I fell in lurrrrrrrve with his voice years ago in "Jumping Jack Flash, in which he IS just a voice for most of the film.) And even though he sings the most incredibly cheesy songs imaginable here, if there was a soundtrack I would buy it in an instant.

I enjoy movies which aren't easy to categorize. Here on IMDb it is listed as a Drama/Comedy/Musical/Thriller. That sums it up pretty well as far as I am concerned. If you need to have every little thing in a movie spelled out clearly and make perfect sense you will probably not enjoy this one. The whole movie has a slightly surrealistic feel and I loved the way it flows between reality and fantasy. It reminded me of Harry Sinclair's wonderful "The Price of Milk", but that wasn't a film for everybody, either.

Incidentally, no one so far seems to have mentioned the first credited screenwriter, Jocelyn Moorhouse. If you did like "Unconditional Love", you might want to see another film she wrote and directed called "Proof", with Hugo Weaving and Russell Crowe. It also was very strange/odd/beautiful/moving and hard to classify.