Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysHispanic & Latino VoicesSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Elämä on ihanaa

Original title: Life Is Sweet
  • 19901990
  • K-13K-13
  • 1h 43m
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
10K
YOUR RATING
Jane Horrocks and Claire Skinner in Elämä on ihanaa (1990)
Trailer for Life Is Sweet
Play trailer2:12
1 Video
10 Photos
ComedyDrama

A shop assistant, her cook husband, and their twin daughters ponder their lives over a few weeks in a working-class suburb north of London.A shop assistant, her cook husband, and their twin daughters ponder their lives over a few weeks in a working-class suburb north of London.A shop assistant, her cook husband, and their twin daughters ponder their lives over a few weeks in a working-class suburb north of London.

IMDb RATING
7.4/10
10K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Mike Leigh
  • Writer
    • Mike Leigh
  • Stars
    • Alison Steadman
    • Jim Broadbent
    • Claire Skinner
  • Director
    • Mike Leigh
  • Writer
    • Mike Leigh
  • Stars
    • Alison Steadman
    • Jim Broadbent
    • Claire Skinner
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 56User reviews
    • 40Critic reviews
    • 88Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 8 wins & 3 nominations

    Videos1

    Life Is Sweet
    Trailer 2:12
    Life Is Sweet

    Photos10

    Elämä on ihanaa (1990)
    Elämä on ihanaa (1990)
    Imelda Staunton and Mike Leigh in Ilottomat hetket (1971)
    Jane Horrocks and Claire Skinner in Elämä on ihanaa (1990)
    Jane Horrocks and Claire Skinner in Elämä on ihanaa (1990)
    Jane Horrocks and Alison Steadman in Elämä on ihanaa (1990)
    Jane Horrocks and Claire Skinner in Elämä on ihanaa (1990)
    Elämä on ihanaa (1990)
    Elämä on ihanaa (1990)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Alison Steadman
    Alison Steadman
    • Wendy
    Jim Broadbent
    Jim Broadbent
    • Andy
    Claire Skinner
    Claire Skinner
    • Natalie
    Jane Horrocks
    Jane Horrocks
    • Nicola
    Stephen Rea
    Stephen Rea
    • Patsy
    Timothy Spall
    Timothy Spall
    • Aubrey
    David Thewlis
    David Thewlis
    • Nicola's Lover
    Moya Brady
    • Paula
    David Neilson
    David Neilson
    • Steve
    Harriet Thorpe
    Harriet Thorpe
    • Customer
    Paul Trussell
    • Chef
    • (as Paul Trussel)
    Jack Thorpe Baker
    • Nigel
    • Director
      • Mike Leigh
    • Writer
      • Mike Leigh
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • 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.
    • 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

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    8/10
    I know these people
    Another reviewer has commented that this could be a fly-on-the-wall documentary rather than fiction. That hits the nail right on the head. I live some 5 miles from Enfield (where Life is Sweet was filmed) and this is completely true to life. No car chases, no martial artists, no expensive explosions, just life going on and (in the main) being fairly sweet. Everybody knows a Patsy who has a "little deal", everybody knows families like this one, everybody knows an Aubrey who never *quite* makes it. Mike Leigh knows what he's talking about, and it's enough to make a highly enjoyable movie that's worth seeing many times. I don't fancy Aubrey's "Saveloy on a bed of Lychees", though!
    helpful•30
    4
    • tony-walton
    • May 10, 2003

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 22, 1991 (United Kingdom)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Life Is Sweet
    • Filming locations
      • 7 Wolsey Road, Enfield, London, England, UK
    • Production companies
      • British Screen Productions
      • Channel Four Films
      • Thin Man Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $1,516,414
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $12,856
      • Oct 27, 1991
    • Gross worldwide
      • $1,516,414
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 43 minutes
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Jane Horrocks and Claire Skinner in Elämä on ihanaa (1990)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Elämä on ihanaa (1990) officially released in Canada in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View list
    List
    The Best Movies and Shows in September
    See the IMDb Editors' picks
    View image
    Photos
    Double Duty: Musicians-Turned-Actors
    See the full gallery
    View image
    Photos
    We Love These Hollywood Power Couples
    See the gallery

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more access
    Sign in for more access
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.