Ri¢hie Ri¢h (1994)

User Rating:

4.6/10   

Director:

Donald Petrie

Writers (WGA):

Neil Tolkin (story)
Tom S. Parker (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

21 December 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family

Tagline:

An adventure so big... even the world's richest kid can't afford to miss it!

Plot:

The richest kid in the world, Richie Rich, has everything he wants, except companionship. While representing his father at a factory opening...

Plot Keywords:

Take Over | Factory | Baseball | Gumball Machine | Product Placement

Awards:

1 nomination

US TV Schedule:

Sun. July 26	1:00 AM	TBS
Sun. July 26	7:20 AM	TBS

Cast

Macaulay Culkin	...	Richie Rich
John Larroquette	...	Lawrence Van Dough
Edward Herrmann	...	Richard Rich
Christine Ebersole	...	Regina Rich
Jonathan Hyde	...	Herbert Arthur Runcible Cadbury
Michael McShane	...	Professor Keenbean
Chelcie Ross	...	Ferguson
Mariangela Pino	...	Diane Pazinski
Stephi Lineburg	...	Gloria Pazinski
Michael Maccarone	...	Tony
Joel Robinson	...	Omar
Jonathan Hilario	...	Pee Wee
Reggie Jackson	...	Baseball Coach
Claudia Schiffer	...	Aerobics Instructor
Wanda Christine	...	Newswoman at Factory (as Wandachristine)

Also Known As:

Richie Rich (USA) (alternative spelling)

MPAA:

Rated PG for mild violence and language.

Runtime:

95 min | Finland:90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Latin

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby | DTS

Certification:

Singapore:PG | Iceland:L | Germany:6 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Belgium:KT | Chile:TE | Finland:K-8/5 | Netherlands:AL | South Korea:All | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Biltmore Estate - 1 Approach Road, Asheville, North Carolina, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Theatrically released in the USA with Chariots of Fur (1994) as the preceding cartoon.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Richard Sr. unwraps the TNT in the airplane, it claims there are seven seconds late - and there is a beep each time a second depletes. By the time it has been tossed out of the airplane, well over seven seconds have passed from the time he unwrapped it.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Van Dough: [as he steps out of his limo] 37-and-a-half miles of driveway, and you park in the *5 feet* with a *puddle*!
Chauffeur: I'm very sorry, sir.
Van Dough: You're very sorry? Well, in that case, find another job.

Movie Connections:

References Star Wars (1977)

"Bad Year" for a "Cool Kid"

While 1994 was a great year to be Green Day or The Offspring, this was not so for the young Macaulay Culkin and his fans. As a 14 year old playing the younger 12 year "richest kid in the world", Culkin and his management must have realized quickly that he could not stay a child actor forever. Richie Rich, therefore became Culkin's last major project until his return to film as a 23-year-old young adult in 2003's Party Monster.

In "Rich", no actor is in top form. The laughs were too few and too far between, especially for a family comedy. The post-Jurassic Park CGI "robot bee" may have even been a hindrance rather than a creative flourish. None of the characters were developed beyond the simple caricatures we'd expect and further stripped of comedic potential. By the time the antagonist breaks into the vault, anyone over the age of 17 probably knew what was inside; that is if they hadn't already stopped paying attention and fallen asleep.

Had the film starred another adolescent lead, we may have been forgiving, but the overall quality of this venture paled in comparison with the Culkin we knew from Uncle Buck, the Home Alone pictures, My Girl, and even his brief appearance in Michael Jackson's 9 minute "Black or White" rampage. Being that it was filmed in and around the Chicagoland area, and that this reviewer is a sucker for anything local, this reviewer feels generous giving Richie Rich 4 out of 10 IMDb stars.