Romance Unlimited

**Box office** | $550 million

***Romance Unlimited*** (Reshan: *Unlimitaskromanse*) is a 1993 Reshan crime film with elements of black comedy and romance, written and directed by Nigel Ekerbro and starring Kristjan Kavermann and Melisa Abbermann. The film follows newlywed couple Jon (Kavermann) and Severina (Abbermann) after they accidentally traffic cocaine from Eastern Resha into Hederhelm, and the efforts to stop them by the police and Velkanian mafia. The film also sees supporting roles played by Olak Netter, Samel Eriksen, Milo Bratten, Hans Jonassen, Olaf Burto, and Paul Deneld.

Originally written in 1988 as a screenplay known as *The Long Road* by Ekerbro, the screenplay was eventually split into two separate films: *Romance Unlimited* and *Meet the Family* (1995). Production on *Romance Unlimited* began in late-1991, and continued throughout 1992. After its release in 1993, the film received rave reviews from audiences and critics alike, being nominated for several awards at the 1993 Reshan Movie Awards and 1994 Formann Awards, and grossing a total of $550 million on a $10 million budget. It has went on to become an iconic example of both Reshan cinema and 1990s cinema.

## Plot

In Kalan, on his 28th birthday, Jon Dansermann (Kristjan Kavermann) goes to a movie theatre by himself after his boss gives him the day off of work. After spilling popcorn on him, Severina Bakkermann (Melisa Abbermann) strikes up a conversation with him. They hit it off and have sex at Jon's apartment. Early the next morning, Jon finds Severina crying on his apartment balcony. Severina reveals to Jon that she is a call girl hired by his boss as a birthday present and that she has fallen in love with him, believing that she is a bad call girl for falling in love with her first customer. Jon comforts her and they later spontaneously elope.

After settling in, Jon tells Severina that he intends to visit her brothel to collect her things from her pimp, Axel (Munro Jaksen). He brings a gun to protect himself, and deliberately hides the fact from Severina that he intends to kill Axel. Upon visiting the brothel, Axel and Jon get into a fight over Severina. After severely injuring Jon, Axel turns his back before Jon shoots him several times, later shooting all the other men in the brothel as well. He instructs the other prostitutes to fill a bag of Severina's items and he brings it back to her. After inspecting the bag, Jon and Severina realize that the girls gave him the wrong bag, and the bag actually contains several hundred thousand dollars worth of cocaine.

Jon and Severina visit Jon's estranged father Robert (Olak Netter), a retired police officer who he has not spoken to in four years, to ask him if he was a suspect in Axel's murder case. Robert reveals that the police are treating Axel's death as gang violence, and that he is not a suspect. Jon tells Robert that him and Severina are moving to Hederhelm and leaves him the address of his childhood friend Daniel Viktorsen (Milo Bratten), with whom they're staying. After the two leave, Robert is visited by Andru (Samel Eriksen), a member of the Velkanian mafia. Axel was an affiliate of the mafia and had been holding their cocaine for them. After finding Jon's driver's license at the scene of the crime, they begin to believe that he intentionally killed Axel in order to steal the cocaine and sell it for a profit. Andru and his goons attempt to torture Robert into revealing the whereabouts of Jon, but he refuses their advances. After realizing he will die either way, he humiliates Andru before being shot in the head. On their way out, one of Andru's goons notices Daniel's address written on a note taped to the fridge and gives it to Andru.

After arriving in Hederhelm, Jon and Severina meet Daniel, a struggling actor, and his roommate Klark (Paul Deneld), a stoner. They rent a room in a nearby motel, and reveal to Daniel their plans of selling the cocaine to an elite in the Hederhelm entertainment industry. While initially hesitant, Daniel tells them that he is in an acting class with the personal assistant of a movie producer rumored to work as a cocaine dealer. Jon, Severina, and Daniel later meet with the assistant Henrik (Hans Jonassen). Jon tells Henrik an outrageous story of how he got the cocaine including being given it by a crooked cop who was a childhood friend of his, and they set up a deal to meet and exchange the drugs. On his way home, Henrik is caught by the police speeding, who also find several bags of cocaine in his car. After being arrested, in a state of panic he reveals the deal that was planned and agrees to become an informant.

The Velkanian mob arrives at Daniel and Klark's apartment to find that only Klark is home. Stoned and not understanding the situation at hand, he reveals the whereabouts of Jon and Severina. After successfully negotiating the deal with Henrik, Jon drops Severina home at their motel room before running errands and going shopping. She is greeted by Kasje (Martin Karler), another one of Andru's goons. The two get into a physical fight after Kasje discovers the cocaine in a suitcase underneath the bed. After throwing Severina into the shower door, he lights a cigarette. As he lights a match, Severina sprays hairspray into his face, lighting him on fire. She then steals his gun and shoots him several times in the face, killing him. After arriving home, Jon and Severina leave the motel and begin living out of their car.

The following week, Jon, Severina, Daniel, and Henrik arrive at a luxury hotel in Neverhahn in order to negotiate with Henrik's boss, film producer Marko Jaspersen (Olaf Burto). In the elevator, Jon suspects that Henrik is unloyal and threatens him at gunpoint, before apologizing. In Marko's room, Jon is able to broker a deal to sell the cocaine for $400,000. After the deal is finalized, Jon leaves to go to the bathroom and the police break in. Almost immediately after, the Velkanian mob, who have once again discovered Jon and Severina's whereabouts through a stoned Klark, enter the room as well and a standoff ensues between Marko's bodyguards, the police, and the mob. After Henrik displays a friendly relationship with the police officers and asks if he's allowed to leave, Marko shoots him and a shootout ensues, killing nearly everyone except for Daniel, who flees, Severina, and one police officer. When Jon leaves the bathroom, the police officer shoots him immediately. Severina rushes over to Jon, and shoots the police officer several times with Jon's gun. Jon later wakes up, revealing that the bullet missed his brain and spared his life. Severina assists a wounded Jon out of the hotel, being able to slip through the cracks due to a hostage situation between the Velkanian mob and the police on the ground floor. They then drive off into the sunset.

In an epilogue set ten years later, Jon and Severina are now living peacefully in a secluded Beratian beach village with a son and a daughter. Severina states that her love for Jon is "truly unlimited".

## Cast

* Kristjan Kavermann as Jon Dansermann
* Melisa Abbermann as Severina Bakkermann
* Olak Netter as Robert Dansermann
* Samel Eriksen as Andru
* Milo Bratten as Daniel Viktorsen
* Hans Jonassen as Henrik
* Olaf Burto as Marko Jasperssen
* Paul Deneld as Klark
* Martin Karler as Kasje
* Munro Jaksen as Axel

## Reception

### Critical

Following its release, *Romance Unlimited* received rave reviews from film critics, praising the film's writing, directing, plot, and acting performances. On *SuperCritic*, the series holds an overall approval rating of 91%, based on the reviews of 310 critics. Many critics put it on their top-ten lists for the year of 1993, and it has been named as one of the best films of the 1990s by various publications.

### Box office

*Romance Unlimited* became a large box office success, grossing $550 million on a $10 budget. The film grossed $410 million in Greater Resha, and a further $140 million in international markets.