As Luck Would Have It

When a freak accident leaves Roberto (comedian José Mota) with his head impaled on a metal rod, the unemployed marketer can’t believe his good fortune. Without ever leaving the accident scene—one wrong move could kill him—he becomes an instant celebrity and the centre of a media circus. While medics race to free him and politicians sweat a potential public-relations disaster, Roberto coolly enlists an agent and incites a bidding war for exclusive rights to his story. Soon entering the melee is his devoted, headstrong wife Luisa (Salma Hayek, rarely better), who strives to support her husband and maintain some self-respect amidst all the depravity.

Shelving some of his more outlandish tendencies in favour of subtle nods to classics like Ace in the Hole and Network, Spain’s leading satirist Álex de la Iglesia (Day of the Beast), outrageously lampoons our society’s increasing willingness to sell our dignity to the highest bidder—or anyone with exact change…

"The film skewers the savagery not only of the media, but also of craven officials such as the mayor and the museum director, willing to think only in terms of how Roberto’s plight could damage their careers… Hayek’s Luisa is the real anchor here, bringing heroic nobility to her suffering that recalls Carmen Maura’s roles in vintage Almodóvar."—David Rooney, Hollywood Reporter