No.of Epis: 41Year/TV Stn: 2009/TVB
Cast:
Ray Lui ~ Marcus Zhuo Yi Yuan
Jaime Chik ~ Connie He Jue Nian
Anita Yuen ~ Rene Zhuo Yi Xin
Gallen Lo ~ Sha Fu Lai / Zhuo Yi Ming
Kenneth Ma ~ Sha Bao Lai
Kenix Kwok ~ Angie Dong Ling Zi
Sharon Chan ~ Dai Yi Xin
Joe Ma ~ Topman Gao Tuo Ming
Synopsis: (edited from Dramawiki)
Sophisticated banker Zhuo Yi Yuan mistakes con artist Sha Fu Lai for his half brother Zhuo Yi Ming, fortuitously elevating the swindler to one of the leading figures in the banking industry. The lost and found brotherhood has blinded Yuan to Fu Lai’s real nature and intentions.
Yuan is kidnapped in Mumbai by a group of rioters. He undergoes a dramatic personality change after the incident. Yuan’s wife, Jue Nian, has tried her best to console him but still cannot help him to get over the unpleasant experience. Longing for more comfort and support, Yuan gets back with his ex-lover Ling Zi. Nian is heartbroken to learn about the affair and decides to file for divorce.
The identity of Zhuo Yi Ming gives Fu Lai not just a sense of family warmth but also a sweet taste of romance. He finds himself in love with Yuan’s younger sister Zhuo Yi Xin. Xin is attracted to Fu Lai too, but thinking that they are true biological siblings, she decides to keep her love under wraps and stays with her long-term admirer Topman instead. This comes as a huge blow to Fu Lai. He is not willing to lose his love, but neither can he reveal his real identity. Caught up in the dilemma between love and money, Fu Lai finally chooses the fortune road of no return.
Slacker's review:
"Born Rich" was one of the mega dramas of TVB in 2009. Well, cast was grand, but plot was average. The storyline was rather predictable, though there were some good twists in between. The lousy twist was Bao Lai survived and made his way back to Sabah. I really wondered how he got back. Ha! Another damn irritating thing was...the only foreign land they kept going was Sabah. I knew Msia Tourism board sort of sponsored the filming, but no need everything also go Sabah right? Ending was alright, though one might wonder if Fu Lai really lost his memories. I thought the scriptwriter was too nice to Fu Lai as well. He caused so many deaths and yet he still cld lead a carefree life in Sabah????
Ray Lui looked good despite his age, but I did not like Yi Yuan. This man was fickle-minded and selfish. He wanted both his wife and Ling Zi by his side. WTH! He ignored his buddy Topman's advice and chose to believe a man whom he knew for such a short time. I wondered if he really loved Connie, or he decided to patch up with her to have a complete family. Well, since Ling Zi was out, Connie was the only choice for him....I don't know...it's just quite unconvincing.
Gallen Lo outshone Ray and Joe in the drama, and to me, he's the real lead. Fu Lai was clearly a bad guy here. He's hungry for fame & power, and he's also determine to have Rene. I thought Gallen's acting was quite good after Lai raped Xin, and his true identity closed to being revealed. The actor's expressions were like turning insane, and getting out of control. Chemistry with Anita was not bad, though I saw more sparks b/w Anita & Joe.
Joe was the big support lead in "Born Rich", and sometimes it's weird to see Joe acting a plain good guy. I still like him acting as neither gd nor bad..hehe! Loved Joe's scenes with Anita, though sometimes I pitied Topman. His love for Xin was deep, but sometimes I did not think Xin deserved his love. The guy became so emotional when Xin decided to stay with Lai after being raped. In the end, Topman still ended up with Xin, but I did not understand why they chose to lead their new life in SABAH!!! Hey, Sha Fu Lai was there too!!! No where else to go??? This is really dumb!
Glad to see one of my fav HK actress on the small screen. Anita's performance was good, but I did not like Xin somehow. She was not honest with herself, and I seriously believed that she did not love Topman as much as he did for her. Throughout their r/s, Xin clearly had feelings for Lai. One of the big twist for Xin was her decision to stay with Lai. However, it was quite clear that she had other motives later on.
First time watching Jamie Chik, who is an actress in the 80s or 90s, and wife of Michael Miu. I liked Connie, as she's really a nice person. She might not be likable initially as she was too rational, and somehow has a distant personalty. I liked how she handled her husband's affair with Ling Zi, and Jamie's acting was great, as we cld feel her pain and sorrow. As for Connie's ending with Yi Yuan, I thought it was quite reasonable, though I wld prefer Connie to remain as a career woman and remained single.
Long time no see Kenix Kwok. You might hate Ling Zi most of the time, but she was one woman who stayed true to her feelings. She cld sacrificed herself so that the guy wld not suffer from a broken family. I cld not stand Ling Zi and Yi Yuan's scenes most of the time, as I really disliked this couple! However, I thought it was rare for a TVB drama to focus so much on a storyline b/w a married man and his lover. Ling Zi's ending was a sad one, but if she did not exit from the big picture, Yi Yuan & Connie wld never reconcile.
Last but not least, Kenneth and Sharon were supporting characters here. They did not have lots of scenes together, and I felt that their storyline was not fully developed. Nice acting from Kenneth when Bao Lai confronted Fu Lai. It's just a pity that Kenneth's Bao Lai was quite insignificant in the drama.
Theme song "差一剎的地老天荒" by Gallen Lo & ending theme "兩生關" by Kay Tse. It's nice to hear Gallen's singing again.
