Review of The Riches (Season 1)
Probably pitched as The Grifters meets The Beverly Hillbillies but it's just a bunch of thieving gyppos doing uninteresting things.
I would love to have been a fly on the wall at the planning meeting for this TV series. They probably figured they were making the next Sopranos. What they have actually made is a nonsense mish-mash of melodrama and pseudo-comedy.
Poor Eddie Izzard does his best but his randomly changing accent really doesn't help. He is the light entertainment in the show whilst Minnie Driver provides the junkie drama angle.
The plot is risible. They are a family of con-artists (a nice way of saying thieves) who belong to that strange "sect" of Irish derived itinerants who live in the Southern US states and move around. I only heard about them for the first time last year. Possibly a bit like the Amish but with no redeeming qualities.
Mom has just got out of jail after two years and Dad plus kids collect her in their big old RV. This is obviously the US equivalent of a shiny caravan parked on public land in Ireland. They head back to the "camp" where the king of the gyppos (or whatever) is dying. Some fights ensue. No sign of any slash-hooks unfortunately but I'm sure there be a feud a-brewing.
Dad decides to get out of this life, steals a ton of money and exits stage left in the RV. After travelling for a while they meet more tinkers who they fight with (so no surprise there) and then race down a small road. An oncoming car crashes trying to avoid them. Other knackers keep going but heart-of-gold-Dad stops to make sure they are alright.
In fact woman is dead and man dies in front of them. Dad checks wallet etc and discovers they are moving to new house in new town. Dad decides to take their identity.
They move into a high-end estate and immediately put the RV up on blocks, start buring tyres in the garden and offer to tarmac their neighbour's driveway.
Lots of "humourous" situations for Dad like golf outings. Poor Mom addicted to cough medicine and heroin. Yawn.
Of course this review is offensive. So is the TV show. Avoid avoid.
Rated /5 on Oct 06 2007 by TV Treats
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If this is Virgin 1's best show, they are in huge trouble.
Posted by: Tom B | October 06, 2007 at 11:29 AM