Superlópez is a 2018 Spanish

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...

comedy film directed by

Javier Ruiz Caldera Javier Ruiz Caldera (born 1976) is a Spanish film director, primarily known for his comedy films. Biography Born in Viladecans, province of Barcelona, in 1976, Javier Ruiz Caldera graduated from the Cinema and Audiovisual School of Catalonia, E ...

based on the comic strip of the same name.

Plot

In the planet Chitón the scientist Jan has created the "ultimative weapon" to fight against the evil dictator Skorba: a baby with

superpowers Superpower describes a sovereign state or supranational union that holds a dominant position characterized by the ability to exert influence and project power on a global scale. This is done through the combined means of economic, military, tec ...

. He sends him in a spaceship to Earth, but Ágata, Skorba's daughter, follows him in another spaceship to capture him. However, the baby's spaceship impacts with the

Hispasat Hispasat is the operating company for a number of Spanish communications satellites that cover the Americas, Europe and North Africa from orbital positions 30.0° West and 61.0° West. It was formed in 1989 and its activities include provision ...

satellite, so he lands on Spain, whereas Ágata lands in United States. The baby is adopted by the López family, who teach him to hide his powers, to not make other people jealous of him. Years later, López is his 30s and has a normal life only using his powers when nobody is watching. In his office his boss and friend Jaime hires Luisa. Jaime is romantically interested in Luisa, but she is more interested in López and they both go on a date. After the date, a subway loses control and López manages to stop it. Footage of this rescue is seen by Ágata, who is now the owner of the biggest tech company in the world. Ágata creates an ultrasound machine with a message that can only be heard by López, asking him to meet her. He complies and is informed of his true origin. He goes to his parents’ house to confront them and they show him the spaceship. López accidentally activates a

holographic Holography is a technique that allows a wavefront to be recorded and later reconstructed. It is best known as a method of generating three-dimensional images, and has a wide range of other uses, including data storage, microscopy, and interfe ...

message of his biological father, explaining his original planet conflict. His (Earth) parents convince him to try to learn how to use his powers and, after many trials and errors he finally discovers how to fly. Ágata kidnaps Jaime and Luisa. López manages to rescue them and they go to the house of the parents of López. There Ágata attacks them with a giant

mecha In science fiction, or mechs are giant robots or machines, typically depicted as piloted, humanoid walking vehicles. The term was first used in Japanese (language), Japanese after shortening the English loanword or , but the meaning in Japan ...

robot. López's father distracts Ágata by firing a shotgun at her before being sucked into the mech's vacuum, while López attempts to put on his suit despite the hot weather. With the help of his parents and friends, he finally embraces his abilities to become Superlópez and takes on the robot. Ágata sucks him in, only to push him out and cause him to land within

Camp Nou Camp Nou (), meaning ''New Field'' and often referred to in English as the Nou Camp, is a stadium in Barcelona and the home of La Liga club FC Barcelona since its opening in 1957. It is currently undergoing renovation, and with a planned increa ...

during a match between F.C. Barcelona and Villareal CF. Juan rips out the goal net but misaims and tosses it at his Earth mother. Ágata captures her, before stamping López into the ground. Before she tries to kill him via buzzsaw, Jamie distracts her, while Luisa drives the López's truck. Regaining consciousness over Luisa's cries, López uses his ice breath on the windshield and pushes it into the pool as the mech trips over the Lópezes's truck. López's adoptive parents and Jamie come out of the pool safe, followed by Ágata. López's adoptive mother reminds him that his home planet is still waiting for his help, before he tells her to not worry as he has a plan. Days later, Skorba's spaceship returns to Chitón with Ágata, carrying the man from the park who everyone believed as "Juan", and appoints him as the planet's new leader. Back on Earth, Juan now becomes a proper superhero, much to the disdain of the press and general public. Luisa and López start dating, while the latter points towards the man who called him Superlópez before he teleports away, leaving behind a pacifier.

Cast

* Dani Rovira as "

Superlópez Superlópez is a Spanish comic book character created by Jan (comics), Jan. Created in 1973, Superlópez is a parody of Superman. Born ''Jo-Con-Él'' (translated as ''Damn-with-him'') on the planet ''Chitón'' (Spanish slang meaning something l ...

" *

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 201 ...

as Luisa Lanas * Julián López as Jaime González *

Pedro Casablanc Pedro Manuel Ortiz Domínguez (born 17 April 1963), best known by his stage name of Pedro Casablanc, is a Moroccan-born actor known for his many stage, film and television performances in Spain. Biography Pedro Manuel Ortiz Domínguez was bor ...

as adoptive López father * Gracia Olayo as adoptive López mother *

Maribel Verdú María Isabel Verdú Rollán (born 2 October 1970), better known as Maribel Verdú (), is a Spanish actress. She is the recipient of numerous accolades throughout her career spanning nearly four decades, including two Goya Awards for Best Act ...

as Ágata Müller * Ferrán Rañé as Skorba * Gonzalo de Castro as Jan, López biological father

Reception

Box office

The film had the best opening weekend of 2018 after it was released on 23 November 2018, grossing 2.3 million euros from an attendance of 377,501. After only two weeks of its release, the film had grossed more than 7 million euros by 10 December 2018, making it the third highest-grossing Spanish film of 2018. By the end of the year, with a box-office taking of €10.3 million, it had become the second highest grossing Spanish film of 2018 in Spain, after ''

Champions A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world championships, and ...

''.

Critical reception

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website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, the film has an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of . The movie received generally positive reviews. Oti Rodríguez in ''ABC'' describes it as "a surrealist cross between the

sainete A sainete (farce or titbit) was a popular Spanish comic opera piece, a one-act dramatic vignette, with music. It was often placed at the end of entertainments, or between other types of performance. It was vernacular in style, and used scenes of lo ...

, the grotesque and the joke about a serious matter (

Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...

) that has completely lost any hint of sensibility". Beatriz Martínez in ''El Periódico'' says that is an "intelligent comedy of adventures that through an addictive rhythm reflects on the Spanish idiosyncrasy, mediocrity and mediocrity as engines that drive our society". More negative is

Javier Ocaña Javier Ocaña (born 1971) is a Spanish film critic. Life and career Ocaña was born in 1971 in Martos, province of Jaén. He earned a licentiate degree in law from the University of Granada and a master's degree in journalism from the Autonomo ...

in ''

El País (; ) is a Spanish-language daily newspaper in Spain. 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 . is the most read newspaper in ...

'' who says "Nothing is wrong: neither the interpreters nor the situations nor the dialogues nor the direction. And, nevertheless, not a grimace, because nothing is good enough to provoke a certain merrymaking".

References