For all its flaws, Life is Sweet is another deeply personal work from Leigh, one which makes everyday banalities seem somehow a little, dare I say, sweeter.

Most movies begin by knowing everything about their characters. Life is Sweet seems to make discoveries as it goes along; it really feels as if the story is as surprising to the characters as it is to us.

There's a warmth and hopefulness amid the arguing and drudgery of Mike Leigh's likable 1990 comedy about a dysfunctional but loving working-class family.

Jane Horrocks does Essex slacker teen with great conviction, while Claire Skinner impresses as her tomboy sister, and Timothy Spall is sweatily repellent as a wannabe restaurateur.