''If I Were Rich'' ( es, Si yo fuera rico, links=no) is a 2019 Spanish comedy film directed by

Álvaro Fernández Armero Álvaro Fernández Armero (born 6 March 1969) is Spanish film director, writer, producer and actor; who is known for '' El columpio'' (1993), ''Vergüenza'' (2017) and '' The Art of Dying'' (2000). Early life Álvaro Fernández Armero was born o ...

and consisting of a remake of the French film '' If I Were a Rich Man''. It stars Álex García and

Alexandra Jiménez Alexandra Jiménez Arrechea (born 4 January 1980) is a Spanish actress. She became popular for her role as África Sanz in the sitcom ''Los Serrano''. She starred in the TV series '' La pecera de Eva'', broadcast between 2010 and 2011. Between 20 ...

alongside Jordi Sánchez,

Adrián Lastra Luis Adrián Álvaro Lastra (born 26 February 1984), known professionally as Adrián Lastra, is a Spanish actor, dancer and singer, known for his performance as Pedro in the TV series ''Velvet'' and ''Velvet Colección''. Biography Luis Adrián ...

, Diego Martín, Franky Martín,

Antonio Resines Antonio Fernández Resines (born 7 August 1954) professionally known as Antonio Resines, is a Spanish film and television actor known for his performance in comedy films and series. Biography He was born 'by accident' on 7 August 1954 in Torr ...

and

Paula Echevarría Paula Echevarría Colodrón (born 7 August 1977 in Candás, Carreño, Asturias, Spain) is a Spanish model and actress. Career In the year 2000 she made her television debut on series such as '' Al salir de clase'', ''Policías'', and '' Co ...

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'' (), the screenplay was penned by Álvaro Fernández Armero alongside and . The film was produced by

Telecinco Cinema Telecinco Cinema, S.A.U. is the film production division of Mediaset España. It produces both feature films and television films. History Telecinco Cinema is a subsidiary film company of Mediaset España. Formerly known as Estudios Picasso, the ...

alongside Si yo fuera AIE, Think Studio and Ciskul, with the participation of

Mediaset España Mediaset España (), full name Mediaset España Comunicación, S.A., is a Spanish media company, controlled by the Italian company MFE - MediaForEurope. Its divisions include the generalist free-to-air TV channels Telecinco and Cuatro, thematic c ...

and

Movistar+ Movistar () is a major telecommunications provider owned by Telefónica, operating in Spain and Hispanic American countries. It is the largest provider of landline, broadband, mobile services, and pay television ( Movistar+) in Spain. Movistar ...

. It was shot in

Asturias Asturias (, ; ast, Asturies ), officially the Principality of Asturias ( es, Principado de Asturias; ast, Principáu d'Asturies; Galician-Asturian: ''Principao d'Asturias''), is an autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensi ...

(including

Gijón Gijón () or () is a city and municipality in north-western Spain. It is the largest city and municipality by population in the autonomous community of Asturias. It is located on the coast of the Cantabrian Sea in the Bay of Biscay, in the cen ...

, Salinas, Xagó and Verdicio) and

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), an ...

Release

Distributed by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

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

Reception

Pablo Vázquez of ''

Fotogramas ''Fotogramas'' is Spanish digital and print film magazine which has been in circulation since 1946. It is one of the early film magazines in Spain. History Founded in Barcelona, it was first published on 15 November 1946 by Antonio Nadal-Rodó a ...

'' 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. Santiago Alverú of ''

Cinemanía ''Cinemanía'' is a Spanish language monthly film magazine based in Madrid, Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin ...

'' gave it 3½ out of 5 stars, considering that "in spite of falling into every imaginable commercial" tic, sublimated by a "ferocious

product placement Product placement, also known as embedded marketing, is a marketing technique where references to specific brands or products are incorporated into another work, such as a film or television program, with specific promotional intent. Much of th ...

", the story still maintains its honesty. Raquel Hernández Luján of ''

HobbyConsolas ''HobbyConsolas'' is a Spanish video game magazine founded in 1991 by Hobby Press and published by Axel Springer SE. The first issue appeared in October 1990. The monthly magazine offers information about games for all consoles, and since 2012 ha ...

'' gave the film 50 out of 100 points ("so-so"), considering that Fernández Armero throws himself into vulgarity, reproducing sketches with "

body shaming Body shaming is the action or inaction of subjecting someone to humiliation and criticism for their bodily features. The scope of body shaming is wide, and can include, although is not limited to fat-shaming, shaming for thinness, small breasts, ...

, 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. Javier Ocaña of ''

El País ''El País'' (; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. ''El País'' is based in the capital city of Madrid and it is owned by the Spanish media conglomerate PRISA. It is the second most circulated daily newspaper in Spain . ''El ...

'' 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".

References