''The Unexpected Life'' ( es, La vida inesperada, links=no) is a 2014 Spanish-American comedy-drama film directed by and written by Elvira Lindo, which stars Javier Cámara,

Carmen Ruiz Carmen Ruiz Hernández (born 28 July 1974) is a Spanish actress primarily known for her television work although she has also done theatre and film. She earned early visibility in her career for her performances in ''Mujeres (TV series), Mujeres'' ...

, Raúl Arévalo, Tammy Blanchard and

Sarah Sokolovic Sarah Sokolovic (born 1980) is an American film, television, and theatre actress, who starred in ''Homeland'' as Laura Sutton and has a recurring role on '' Big Little Lies''. She has performed in several plays including ''The Shaggs: Philoso ...

Plot

The plot concerns the developments following the meeting of Juanito (who settled in New York hoping to pursue an acting career), with his cousin (), who arrives in NYC to pay Juanito a visit.

Cast

Production

A Spanish-American co-production, ''The Unexpected Life'' was produced by Ruleta Media and La Vida Inesperada AIE alongside LVI Inc., with the participation of

TVE TVE may stand for: Television * Televisión Española, a Spanish state-owned public-service television broadcaster ** TVE HD, a high-definition channel run by Televisión Española * Televisão Educativa, a defunct Brazilian TV network * TV Eduk ...

, Canal+ and Cosmopolitan TV, collaboration of Numérica Films and support from ICAA and IVAC. Shooting began in New York City in March 2013.

Release

The film was presented to the main competition of the 17th Málaga Film Festival on 28 March 2014, screened at the Teatro Cervantes. Distributed by Universal Pictures International Spain, the film opened in Spanish theatres on 25 April 2014.

Reception

Jonathan Holland of '' The Hollywood Reporter'' considered the film to be "a wasted opportunity, largely because of a script which seems unable to decide whether it wants to deliver romance or reality", while noting that lead performers Cámara and Arévalo do not fail to deliver and the score by Godoy and Jusid "is a terrific piano and orchestra". Carlos Marañón of '' Cinemanía'' rated the film 3½ out of 5 stars, assessing that, in a rare instance of "comedy film taking good people seriously", Torregrossa "has found the perfect bitter tone to make a comedy rise above its jokes", with the "invaluable" help from Carmen Ruiz. Toni Vall of '' Ara'' scored 4 out of 5 stars, deeming ''The Unexpected Life'' to be "fatalistic and luminous", "a story in chiaroscuro, tinged with melancholy and inhabited by a beautiful realism".

Accolades

, - , align = "center" rowspan = "3" , 2015 , , rowspan = "3" ,

2nd Feroz Awards The 2nd ceremony of the Feroz Awards was held at the Gran Teatro Ruedo Las Ventas in Madrid, on January 25, 2015. It was hosted by actress Bárbara Santa-Cruz and aired on Canal+ Spain. Winners and nominees The nominees were announced on Decembe ...

, , colspan = "2" , Best Comedy Film , , , , rowspan = "3" , , - ,

Best Actor Best Actor is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actors in a film, television series, television film or play. The term most often refers to th ...

, , Javier Cámara , , , - , Best Original Music , , Lucio Godoy, Federico Jusid , ,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Unexpected Life, The 2014 comedy-drama films Spanish comedy-drama films American comedy-drama films Films set in New York City Films shot in New York City 2010s Spanish-language films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films