catching up with ... unconditional love

Unconditional Love is a fun little film starring Kathy Bates and Rupert Everett. It's a comedy, but it touches on love, grief, and betrayal, all while never getting sappy and staying a black comedy like only filmmakers from overseas can seem to do them. It was directed by Australian P. J. Hogan, whose films include Muriel's Wedding and My Best Friend's Wedding, which also featured Everett.

A loving friendship forms between Grace and Dirk

Unconditional Love centers around Grace Beasley (Bates), who loves with a capital "L" the pop singer Victor Fox (a sort of Tom Jones/Barry Manilow mash-up), played by a wonderfully smarmy Jonathan Pryce. Grace is so obsessed with her idol that she almost doesn't notice when her husband (Dan Aykroyd) announces he's walking out on their marriage, citing boredom as one of the main reasons. To add insult to injury, when she finally has a chance to see Fox at a talk show in her home town of Chicago while he is on tour in America the singer is murdered, by a serial killer dubbed the "Crossbow Killer."

Grace spontaneously decides to travel to Britain and attend Fox's funeral, and soon discovers the truth about his life and his family and his very special friend Dirk (Everett). Fox not only hid his personal life from his fans, but some of his many extra-curricular activities from Dirk. Can Grace still love Victor Fox unconditionally now that she learns who he really was? Can Dirk? Was his death a random killing or is there something more behind it? As Grace and Dirk become friends, they decide to try and solve the mystery of Victor's death.

Dirk: I don't believe in unconditional love, I mean, what is it anyway? Cut off my ears, steal my money and I'll love you anyway?
Grace: Yes, and more.
Dirk: More?
Grace: You don't have to love me back.

Bates is wonderful at being able to transmit that she is a woman in pain but still has enough love and humanity to be able to try to bolster others in their misery — like the grieving Dirk and her daughter-in-law Maudey (Meredith Eaton), who is currently estranged from Grace's son. Bates and Everett have a winning chemistry. Lynn Redgrave is also wonderful as one of Victor Fox's uptight and upright sisters who is not at all eager to acknowledge who he really was, to herself or the world. Julie Andrews and Barry Manilow provide winning cameos as well. There are some great little throwaway jokes — when someone sees Maudey ("Nobody messes with a dwarf in a red raincoat.") he asks his companion if he has ever seen the film Don't Look Now.

Unconditional Love will leave you smiling and even humming (and maybe even a little upset with yourself for doing so), but that's unconditional love — it's surrendering everything for that brief moment of joy.

Pin It