Mari(dos)

This Mari (dos) is a commercial product made to entertain us , a comedy that has been moderately received by the Spanish public. The film is set in our time , we know from the outset that an avalanche has occurred at a ski resort (perhaps in the Aragonese Pyrenees, although the specific location is not mentioned) that has killed a large number of people and injured many others. Towards that ski resort , here fictitiously called Malpaso, Toni (Paco León) , a Catalan businessman, and Luis (Ernesto Alterio) , a comic book artist from Madrid , are heading ; the wives of both have been injured by the avalanche , and are in a coma , in the local hospital . Toni picks up Emilio on the way , whose car has broken down , and they both arrive at the hospital at the same time ; there , to their surprise the name of his wife coincides, Laura Sánchez (Celia Freijeiro) , but that coincidence is not only nominal : it also seems to be that it is the same person . As they find out a surprising happening , the two men unintentionally discover that they are married with the same woman .

This Mari(dos) concentrates on the relationship among two off-the-wall roles , amusingly played by Paco León and Ernesto Alterio , two of the best Spanish comedians , both of whom are frequently omnipresents in the humor of the Spanish cinema . One of the few values of this ¨Mari (dos)¨ is to present us an unusual situation , not just in Spanish cinema , but in any international country : films with bigamists , or polygamists , men married to two or more women , and here there are of all kinds . However, those that deal with its opposite , polyandry , women married to two or more men at the same time, are quite a few rare films . This issue , certainly , has always been a much less common than others as polygamy or the ordinary adulteries . As it will be the subject that the word "bigamy" exists but not "biandria", which would be a woman with two husbands . The picture boasts of the good acting work by the two popular protagonists , despite their outlandish characters . I really like the very Sevillian Paco León with a funny Catalan accent , which is parodic but not hurtful ; Ernesto Alterio seems to play a character similar to the hateful thug from ¨Alex de la Iglesia's El cuarto pasajero¨ , only here he's the duped husband , not the shameless trickster who takes advantage of his other passengers in the aforementioned film . This is a disconcerting satire combined with romantic comedy and touches of road movie, being an austerily enjoyable and brightly colored film . The fact is that one of the attractions of this very modern film is , precisely , staging a case of polyandry , of course in a comedy key , with a more or less ironic humor and with the ambitious intention of filling the pocket of its producers , which seems to have not happened due to its limited succes .

This is not the only merit of the film : we also find it interesting that it has aspects very much of our time , such as dysfunctional couples , the phenomena of trans-children , as well as some curious movie-goers winks , such as the name of the supposed ski resort , ¨Malpaso¨ , the same name as Clint Eastwood's production company , which may have influenced the fact that composer Vanessa Garde's soundtrack contains sounds that seem unmistakably similar to the music of spaghetti-westerns . Of course , it also has rather negative things , such as the presence , once again, of the humor of opposite sides , the Madrileños and the Barcelonans , here with the laconic, curmudgeonly and grumpy man from Madrid , who could illustrate the "unfriendly" and the talkative, "good guy" Catalán, who, however , behind his bland appearance , will hide some hidden secret that allows for a certain funny gag . Containing some situations or moods that are not exactly distinguished , such as : swearings , bad-mouthed language , dirty humor , continuous sexual remarks , or scatological pieces , like that scene of the two "comaridos" urinating together and sizing it up like teenagers.

Pleasant comedy at times , with very professional staging , an acceptable narrative rhythm and a series of plot twists that maintain interest enough in the public , but the final results turn out to be really mediocre . It is noticeable in any case that the writings of the script are carried out by a couple like Pablo Alén and Breixo Corral , authors of the cinematic storylines of successful films as ¨3 bodas de más¨ and ¨Anacleto, secret agent¨ and series as ¨El Internado¨, ¨Los Serrano¨ or ¨Los Hombres de Paco¨. Director Alemany brings us a very mixed bag of outlandish characters , rapid dialogs , and absurd situations . This uneven film has its lights and its shadows . Lucia Alemany carries out a so-so but professional direction, she was successful a few years ago for his La inocencia (2019), which got nominations at the Goya, Feroz and Gaudí awards, a small Valencian film that got awesome critics . It is logical, reasonable and plausible that the new generations of good filmmakers make commercial films at the same time that they prepare their new and more exciting personal projects . Rating : 4.5/10 . Average but passable at times.

This is one of those films that doesn't offend, but doesn't leave much of a mark either. Mari(dos) leans on the contrast between its main characters and the classic odd-couple formula, with a few funny moments that land... and many others that fall flat. You can sense the intention to make a friendly, accessible comedy, but everything stays on the surface.

The biggest issue is how uneven it feels. Some scenes manage to pull out a smile, but overall the film stumbles along without much rhythm or spark. The script relies on forced situations we've seen a thousand times before, and while the actors try their best, there's not much chemistry or punch in the dialogue.

One curious detail, though: the hospital shown in several scenes is the same building used as the hotel in El hotel de los líos. It's the kind of trivia that ends up being more fun than the main plot.

All in all, Mari(dos) works as a quick, forgettable watch-something to have on in the background when you don't want to think too hard. It has a couple of amusing moments, but never really shines, either as a comedy or as part of the recent wave of commercial Spanish cinema.