If I Were Rich (2019 film)

If I Were Rich
Theatrical release poster<z
SpanishSi yo fuera rico
Directed byÁlvaro Fernández Armero
Screenplay by
  • Ángela Armero
  • Álvaro Fernández Armero
  • Tom Fernández
Based onIf I Were a Rich Man
by Gérard Bitton and Michel Munz
Produced by
  • Ghislain Barrois
  • Álvaro Augustin
  • Eneko Lizarraga Arratibel
  • Francisco Sánchez Ortiz
Starring
Production
companies
Distributed byParamount Pictures
Release date
  • 15 November 2019 (2019-11-15)
CountrySpain
LanguageSpanish

If I Were Rich (Spanish: Si yo fuera rico) is a 2019 Spanish comedy film directed by Álvaro Fernández Armero and consisting of a remake of the French film If I Were a Rich Man. It stars Álex García and Alexandra Jiménez alongside Jordi Sánchez, Adrián Lastra, Diego Martín, Franky Martín, Antonio Resines and Paula Echevarría.

Plot

The plot follows the mishaps of Santi, who has earned a €25 million lottery prize. Since he is in the process of divorce, he tries to hide this circumstance from his wife Maite.

Cast

Production

An adaptation of the 2002 French film If I Were a Rich Man (Ah! Si j'étais riche),[2] the screenplay was penned by Álvaro Fernández Armero alongside Ángela Armero [es] and Tom Fernández [es].[3] The film was produced by Telecinco Cinema alongside Si yo fuera AIE, Think Studio and Ciskul, with the participation of Mediaset España and Movistar+.[4] It was shot in Asturias (including Gijón, Salinas, Xagó and Verdicio)[5] and Madrid.[6]

Release

Distributed by Paramount Pictures, the film was theatrically released in Spain on 15 November 2019.[4] It proved to be a "surprise" success in the Spanish box office,[7] grossing around €12 million by February 2020.[8]

Reception

Pablo Vázquez of Fotogramas rated If I Were Rich 4 out of 5 stars highlighting the "umpteenth confirmation of the talent of its leading couple and the 'scene-stealing' supporting cast" as the best thing about the film, while considering its formulaic nature and little magic as the worst thing about it.[2]

Santiago Alverú of Cinemanía gave it 3½ out of 5 stars, considering that "in spite of falling into every imaginable commercial" tic, sublimated by a "ferocious product placement", the story still maintains its honesty.[9]

Raquel Hernández Luján of HobbyConsolas gave the film 50 out of 100 points ("so-so"), considering that Fernández Armero throws himself into vulgarity, reproducing sketches with "body shaming, obscenities, prejudices and misunderstandings" galore in which humor "simply does not work", otherwise highlighting the performances of Alexandra Jiménez, Antonio Resines and Isabel Ordaz alongside the film's technical craft as the best things about it.[10]

Javier Ocaña of El País highlighted the irregularity of the film, bringing together features of American screwball comedy, stale Spanish costumbrismo, French popular comedy, and even American spoof comedies while conceding that the film is still watchable because "Armero is experienced and knows how to film with taste", also pointing out that the trend of Spanish remakes to which the film belong confirms "the growing faintheartedness of part of the Spanish industry, its lack of risk-taking capacity".[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Úbeda-Portugués, Alberto (13 November 2019). "Los estrenos del 15 de noviembre. 'Si yo fuera rico'. Amigos, amores y surf". Aisge.
  2. ^ a b Vázquez, Pablo (15 November 2019). "Crítica de 'Si yo fuera rico' Para soñadores con corazón y cosquillas". Fotogramas.
  3. ^ "'Si yo fuera rico', nueva comedia de Álvaro Fernández Armero". Audiovisual451. 30 May 2019.
  4. ^ a b "El estreno en abierto de 'Si yo fuera rico' en Telecinco logra el 17% de share". Cine y Tele. 17 December 2021.
  5. ^ Villacorta, A. (21 November 2019). "Me da rabia que los asturianos no sepan venderse". El Comercio.
  6. ^ Vega, Carla (December 2019). ""Si yo fuera rico" y el acento asturiano: una unión difícil de lograr". La Voz de Asturias.
  7. ^ "'Frozen II' y 'Si yo fuera rico' siguen acaparando la taquilla". Cinemanía. 10 December 2019.
  8. ^ ""Si yo fuera rico", rodada en Gijón, supera los 2 millones de espectadores". La Nueva España. 14 February 2020.
  9. ^ Alverú, Santiago (11 November 2019). "Si yo fuera rico". Cinemanía – via 20minutos.es.
  10. ^ Hernández Luján, Raquel (15 November 2019). "Crítica de Si yo fuera rico, la comedia de Fernández Armero". HobbyConsolas.
  11. ^ Ocaña, Javier (15 November 2019). "Bonoloto sin riesgo". El País.