As High concept Since the 1980s, it has been used to describe premises that can be briefly summarized in one or two sentences: “Die Hard” on a mountain = “cliffhanger”. The increase of this are films that, like “Snakes On A Plane”, make everything clear with their title. That’s how it is now with “Rich Flu“: The new film by Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia, who became known for the Netflix superhits “The Shaft” and “The Shaft 2”, starts as an apocalyptic thriller about an epidemic that only affects the rich. In these times, it's actually a wonderful “Oh, they really deserve it” concept that works very entertainingly for quite a while. At least until the Spanish director suddenly decides to tell a superficially moral story instead of a nasty, juicy satire.
As a film producer, Laura (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) lives a breathless jet-set life, in which her family is increasingly falling by the wayside: her marriage to Tony (Rafe Spall) has long since ended, and she can only greet her daughter's birthday via video chat congratulate. No wonder that Laura hardly notices how the catastrophe is slowly spreading. More and more super-rich people are being wiped out by a mysterious epidemic, but Laura hardly even notices the death of the Pope. Because she is on a flight to the far north, where she is taken by dog sled to a meeting with Sebastian Snail (Timothy Spall), the boss of her company. He offers her a job that at first glance seems spectacular, but there is a catch: Suddenly Laura is also filthy rich…
Laura (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) moves confidently in the world of the rich and famous.
The rich really don't have it easy: As if spending their hard-earned – or inherited money – wasn't already stressful enough, in recent years they have increasingly become the target of ridicule and criticism in cinema and television: films and series like “Triangle Of Sadness”, “The Menu” and “The White Lotus” blame the rich for pretty much all the world's ills, portraying them as decadent, thoughtless and narcissistic. Which is probably true, but in the long run it seems a bit under-complex. In this tradition, “Rich Flu” begins as a successful satire: As viewers, we too get caught up in the fast, exciting life of Laura, who moves confidently at glamorous film festivals, integrates against her competitors and almost believes she has reached the goal of her dreams.
She just doesn't want to call herself rich at this point. After all, there are plenty of others who have a lot more than they do. And when the plague has hit them, their already bright white teeth shine even whiter, almost radioactive, before they waste away. How exactly a plague that only attacks the rich works remains an open question. But that doesn't matter, because as a metaphor it still works excellently. At least until Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia decides to become completely moral.
In the second half, “Rich Flu” becomes quite morally sour – and also takes a turn for the sudden heaviness.
About halfway through, “Rich Flu” suddenly changes key and becomes a reverse escape story: suddenly there are wealthy, white Europeans trying to cross the Mediterranean on dilapidated boats. Your destination: Africa. There should be enclaves of hope there, where the epidemic is not rampant.
But before that, Laura and her relatives end up in a refugee camp and experience what refugees from the Global South are currently suffering in the camps that are supposed to protect Fortress Europe from unwanted migration. What began as a pointed satire is now increasingly becoming a rather flat story about the really unoriginal realization that wealth makes you selfish.
Conclusion: Once again the rich and famous of the world get a real beating in “Rich Flu”. It's not particularly original or substantive, but it works as nasty, over-the-top satire for quite a while. At least until “The Shaft” mastermind Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia unpacks the moral cue in the second half and you suddenly find yourself in a completely different film, which is unfortunately much less fun and instead noticeably drags on.