The Opposite of Love

The Opposite of Love (Lo contrario al amor) is a 2011 Spanish romantic comedy film written and directed by Vicente Villanueva (in his directorial debut feature) which stars Hugo Silva and Adriana Ugarte.

Plot
The plot tracks the ups and downs in the relationship between firefighter Raúl and massage therapist Merce upon their meeting by chance.

Production
The film is a Zeta Cinema (Francisco Ramos) and A3 Films (Mercedes Gamero) production. Shooting locations included Madrid.

Release
The film received a pre-screening at Cine Callao in Madrid on 25 August 2011. Distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing de España, it was released theatrically in Spain on 26 August 2011.

Reception
Jordi Batlle Caminal of Fotogramas rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, highlighting Lancho's supporting performance as the best thing about the film while negatively assessing the excessively "schematic" plot development.

Javier Ocaña of El País deemed the film to be a "romantic comedy that is much more subtle than its promotional poster implies" but also pointed out that it falls apart in its last third due to moralizing intentions and narrative cowardice.