movie review all the money in the world

All the Money in the World

Ridley Scott ’s “All the Money in the World” is a long-winded but engrossing kidnap thriller. The heart of the film is a trio of lead performances:  Michelle Williams as Gail Harris, the mother of an abducted heir to the Getty fortune; Charlie Plummer as the heir, John Paul Getty III; and Christopher Plummer as the young man’s grandfather, John Paul Getty, the richest man in the world at the time of the kidnapping. (The two Plummers are not related, incredibly.) 

“All the Money in the World” is brutal and funny in the darkest way. The dark humor comes from John Paul Getty’s attitude toward his fortune. He’s so miserly he makes Ebenezer Scrooge look generous. Naturally, he’s the real target here; he would have to be, considering Gail is just another middle class single woman who barely has two nickels to rub together, thanks to her decision to decline Getty family funds in exchange for keeping custody of her kids after divorcing the old man’s drug addicted son. “All the Money in the World” would be ten minutes long if grandpa would just pay what the criminals are asking for the release of his grandson—$17 million—instead of hemming and hawing and trying to get the price down. 

Grandpa has reasons for haggling—not good ones, but reasons. Ultimately, though, he just seems like he’s not wired right. His grandson’s opening narration suggests that rich people aren’t actually like you and me—that money has deformed their minds—but the elder Getty’s behavior is so repugnant on so many levels, and so profoundly dislocated from anything resembling empathy, that money alone doesn’t strike me as the best explanation for his actions. I don’t know if this is an unresolved complication, a basic failing of the screenplay, or a dimension that Scott and/or Plummer added to the role during shooting. 

If the latter, however, what’s onscreen is more interesting than the younger Getty’s diagnosis, because it means we’re watching an emotionally stunted and perhaps mentally ill person with access to billions allow a blood relative to suffer just so that he can save a few bucks. In other words, it’s not the money, it’s him. To most of us, the stated ransom is an unimaginably huge amount, but to somebody like Getty, it’s the equivalent of the coins hidden under sofa cushions. We’d do whatever it took to save a loved one in similar circumstances, but John Paul the First has such an oversized dealmaker’s ego that he won’t take out his checkbook unless the terms are just right.

Gail’s tactical restraint when confronted with her former father-in-law’s iciness is commendable, and Williams plays it just right, letting us see Gail’s anger and frustration while making us believe that she could tamp it down out of sight when dealing with the elder Getty and his associates. What astonishing discipline this woman had! The old cheapskate acts as if this is all just a large-scale version of saving eight bucks buying a statue at a flea market. John Paul III could be murdered or tortured as a result of the stubbornness of an old man who prides himself on never meeting the first offer, and trying to save money on everything, even a transaction as basic as sending out laundry while staying in a five-star hotel (he washes and dries his own sheets to shave a few bucks off his tab). 

Scott is relatively restrained here, letting his stars carry the day and declining to unleash the full force of his directorial power except in a handful of intricate setpieces (I won’t specify which ones here, because I doubt anyone but students of the Getty family history know all the details, and a couple of them are genuinely surprising). A certain monotony sets in during the middle section, which replays too many similar beats too close together—if the script were looking to combine or cut incidents, this would’ve been the place to do it—but on the whole this is a more-than-solid effort. 

It’s also a throwback of sorts. Adapted by screenwriter David Scarpa from John Pearson’s 1995 book  Painfully Rich: The Outrageous Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J. Paul Getty , it has a welcome 1970s flavor, by which I mean that it’s about recognizable human beings dealing with tense situations that feel real because they happened. The story is told in classically shaped scenes with beginnings, middles and ends, and shot mostly in real locations. The wide-format cinematography creates tension by shoving characters off to one side or boxing them inside doorways or windows and letting you wonder what unseen threats might be lurking in the rest of the frame. 

As is often the case in his non-science fiction movies, Scott splits the difference between overwhelming, almost tactile-seeming realness, and pure, uncut Hollywood fantasy, and you just have to roll with it. There’s a standard disclaimer at the end of the film, stating that certain liberties were taken with the historical record. I’d imagine that a lot of them had to do with placing Gail and her partner in misery, Getty’s business manager and former CIA operative Fletcher Chase ( Mark Wahlberg , who isn’t terrible but does not radiate intelligence and ultimately makes no particular impression). The movie often puts the duo at the sites of dangerous activities that they probably didn’t get anywhere near in real life.  

The film is a testament to the awesome work ethic of its 80-year old but still apparently tireless director, who fired Kevin Spacey , the actor who had originally played Getty, a month before the scheduled release date, after Spacey was accused of multiple accounts of sexual misconduct, deleted all of his footage, reshot the affected scenes with Plummer in the role and dropped them into the finished movie. This is not the best place to get into the particulars of the production—they’ll be nothing more than a footnote or asterisk in a couple of decades anyway—but they’re worth noting because the end product is much better than anyone could have expected, considering the challenges faced and met by all involved. 

In fact I wouldn’t be surprised if Plummer got another Oscar for this part. If he does, it shouldn’t be seen merely as an acknowledgment of good work under weird and unfortunate circumstances, but as recognition of how precise and fearless he is. There is nothing likable about the elder Getty, indeed very little that’s recognizable as anything but evidence of profound, maddening dysfunction. Plummer embodies the character so completely that his Getty transcends the movie he’s in, and starts to seem emblematic of the times in which the film was released, an era when money seems to matter more than mercy. 

Matt Zoller Seitz

Matt Zoller Seitz is the Editor-at-Large of RogerEbert.com, TV critic for New York Magazine and Vulture.com, and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in criticism.

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Review: Christopher Plummer Dominates ‘All the Money in the World’

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By Manohla Dargis

• Dec. 24, 2017

“The quality of mercy is not strained,” Portia tells Shylock in “The Merchant of Venice.” It is “twice blest; it blesseth him that gives and him that takes.” The billionaire J. Paul Getty would probably have disagreed with Shakespeare’s take. A hoarder of women, art, antiquities — and most of all, money — Getty also might have taken issue with Portia’s claim that mercy “becomes the throned monarch better than his crown.” Portia delivers her mercy speech as she tries to persuade Shylock not to take a pound of flesh. She would have had an even tougher time with Getty.

“All the Money in the World” is a story of towering greed and the absence of mercy, and an ideal 21st century morality tale. It’s about money and families and the ties that bind and cut, although because it was directed by Ridley Scott there isn’t a jot of sentimentalism gumming the works. In July 1973, John Paul Getty III (known as Paul), the elder Getty’s 16-year-old grandson, was snatched off a street in Rome. His kidnappers demanded $17 million in ransom, telling Paul’s mother, “Get it from London.” It was a reference to Getty Sr., who in turn responded, “If I pay one penny now, I’ll have 14 kidnapped grandchildren,” a kiss-off heard around the world.

Mr. Scott sets the scene quickly with a somewhat phantasmagoric meander through Rome’s crowded streets. It’s night, and pretty, boyish Paul (Charlie Plummer) is savoring la dolce vita, floating past the city’s flesh and marble beauties and its swarms of catcalling, hustling paparazzi. There’s sensuousness to Paul’s drift, which, as the camera silkily slips alongside him, suggests a casual luxurious attitude toward life, of being free to do anything, go anywhere, say anything. He’s kissed by fortune but also by youth. And when a streetwalker calls him baby and he smiles, you see just how young. Within seconds he’s been kidnapped.

“All the Money in the World” revs up beautifully, first as a thriller. But while the kidnapping is the movie’s main event, it is only part of a story that is, by turns, a sordid, desperate and anguished tragedy about money. When Paul is kidnapped, Getty Sr. ( Christopher Plummer ) has already amassed a fortune, one partly pumped out of oil fields both in the United States and in the Middle East. (The Plummers are not related.) He lives alone in crepuscular gloom in Sutton Place , a manor house built by a favorite courtier of Henry VIII. There, amid miles of rooms adorned with gilt-framed masterworks, Getty Sr. closely monitors the stock information on the disgorging ticker tape that’s both his leash and lifeline.

Mr. Scott is a virtuoso of obsession, of men and women possessed. He likes darkness, pictorially and of the soul, and in Getty Sr. he has a magnificent specimen. And in Mr. Plummer he has a great actor giving a performance with a singular asterisk: In early November, with the movie already done, Mr. Scott hired Mr. Plummer to replace Kevin Spacey , who has been accused of sexual misconduct. It was a bold move, an extreme variation on leaving a performance on the cutting-room floor. The 88-year-old Mr. Plummer isn’t fully persuasive when briefly playing the younger Getty Sr., even in long shot. But his performance is so dominating, so magnetic and monstrous that it doesn’t matter.

Like many contemporary movies, this one kinks up its timeline. After Paul is kidnapped, the scene shifts to Saudi Arabia in 1948, where Getty Sr. is laying the foundation for an even greater fortune. Written by David Scarpa — working from John Pearson’s 1995 book “Painfully Rich: The Outrageous Fortune and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J. Paul Getty” — the movie continues to jump around, filling in the back story while deepening the atmosphere and gathering the dramatis personae. One intimate scene takes place in the 1960s, where Paul’s mother, Gail (Michelle Williams, warmth incarnate), and father, Getty Jr. (Andrew Buchan), are going broke with four boisterous young children.

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• Cast & crew
• User reviews

All the Money in the World

The story of the kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III and the desperate attempt by his devoted mother to convince his billionaire grandfather Jean Paul Getty to pay the ransom. The story of the kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III and the desperate attempt by his devoted mother to convince his billionaire grandfather Jean Paul Getty to pay the ransom. The story of the kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III and the desperate attempt by his devoted mother to convince his billionaire grandfather Jean Paul Getty to pay the ransom.

• Ridley Scott
• David Scarpa
• John Pearson
• Michelle Williams
• Christopher Plummer
• Mark Wahlberg
• 293 User reviews
• 327 Critic reviews
• 72 Metascore
• 15 nominations total

Top cast 83

• Gail Harris

• J. Paul Getty

• Fletcher Chace

• Oswald Hinge

• John Paul Getty III

• John Paul Getty III (Age 7)

• John Paul Getty II

• Giovanni Iacovoni

• Il Tamia 'Chipmunk'

• (as Andrea Piedimonte)

• Kidnap Van Driver
• Prostitute Maria
• Prostitue #1

• Prostitute #2

• Nancy Getty's Secretary
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Did you know

• Trivia The re-shoots needed to replace Kevin Spacey with Christopher Plummer took eight days to film at a cost of $10 million. It also involved Mark Wahlberg and Michelle Williams having to return to the Rome set during the Thanksgiving holiday of 2017.
• Goofs When Gail and Fletcher drive past the autostrada tollgates, modern commercial vehicles are visible in the background.

J. Paul Getty : There's a purity to beautiful things that I've never been able to find in another human being.

• Connections Edited from Black Hawk Down (2001)
• Soundtracks Belinda Written by Chris Andrews Performed by Gianni Morandi Courtesy of Sony BMG Entertainment (Italy) S.p.A

User reviews 293

• Sober-Friend
• Mar 29, 2018
• How long is All the Money in the World? Powered by Alexa
• December 25, 2017 (United States)
• United States
• United Kingdom
• Official Site
• Official Site (France)
• Vụ Bắt Cóc Triệu Đô
• Hatfield House, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England, UK
• Imperative Entertainment
• Scott Free Productions
• RedRum Films
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $50,000,000 (estimated)
• $25,113,707
• Dec 31, 2017
• $56,996,304

Technical specs

• Runtime 2 hours 12 minutes
• Dolby Digital

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‘all the money in the world’: film review.

Christopher Plummer stepped in on short notice to replace Kevin Spacey in Ridley Scott's fact-based kidnapping thriller 'All the Money in the World,' which stars Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg.

By Todd McCarthy

Todd McCarthy

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Twilight years? Ridley Scott will hear none of it — he has just made the paciest, most dynamic film ever made by an 80-year-old director. And as for Christopher Plummer , he delivers the best screen performance ever given by an actor who, a month before the film’s debut, hadn’t even been cast yet. These two old pros show what they’re made of in All the Money in the World , a terrifically dexterous and detailed thriller about the Italian mob’s 1973 kidnapping for ransom of the grandson of the world’s richest man, John Paul Getty.

It may be that all the hoo-ha about Plummer replacing the disgraced Kevin Spacey at three minutes to midnight will actually increase public interest in a gripping film that otherwise had little advance profile and is unfortunately arriving on the scene too late to have been seen by critical awards groups. All the same, the Sony release provides a welcome alternative to the assorted franchise leviathans and long-ballyhooed specialty titles in release over the holidays.

Release date: Dec 25, 2017

It should be said upfront that Michelle Williams is also outstanding as the heart of the film, the mother of sweet-looking 16-year-old Jean Paul Getty III (appealing Charlie Plummer, no relation, also seen recently in Andrew Haigh’s Lean on Pete ). In the opening scene, he is pulled off a Rome street and thrown into a van by Red Brigade ruffians, to be held until old man Getty, now a British subject, forks over $17 million for his return, a demand that is refused.

What follows is a tense thriller wrapped in one-of-a-kind circumstances. David Scarpa’s script, based on the 1995 book by John Pearson originally titled Painfully Rich: The Outrageous Fortune and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J. Paul Getty , efficiently supplies the nuts and bolts of the abduction and its aftermath. But the film is at its best charting the determined behavior of the mother, Gail Harris, who is grief-stricken but also imaginative and resourceful in her approach to numerous adverse circumstances. Given that her useless husband, John Paul Getty II (Andrew Buchan), is a dissolute druggy strung out in Morocco with Mick Jagger, it’s essentially up to the virtually penniless mother to try to free her son.

It’s a true-life yarn loaded with extremes, of wealth, personal eccentricities, grief, tension, daring, criminal means to political ends, maternal drive and luck, both bad and good. It is also a peek into a rarefied world where money knows no bounds and yet means everything.

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Ridley scott reveals how kevin spacey was erased from 'all the money in the world'.

The opening scene could scarcely be more intoxicating, as La Dolce Vita comes back to life while the camera moves slowly down Rome’s teaming Via Veneto late at night in glorious black-and-white. Boyish, long-haired young Getty seems very much at home here, sparring good-naturedly with some ladies of the night before being aggressed and whisked away.

The filmmakers take a risk by immediately interrupting the present-tense drama with flashbacks that both illuminate the sources of the Getty wealth (a scene showing the American oil man purchasing vast tracts of empty Saudi Arabian desert land in the late 1940s carries strong vibes of Lawrence of Arabia ) and provide a look at family life chez JPG II, his wife Gail and their kids, including then-7-year-old JPG III, in burgeoning hippie-era San Francisco (where, very anachronistically, the film has it snowing at one point).

However, the quickly dispatched glimpses of the past do provide useful insight into the old man’s eccentricities (he’s so cheap he installed a red London phone booth inside his country mansion, forcing guests to pay for outside calls) and his relationships with family members. “A Getty is special,” the tycoon confides to his little grandson, “a Getty is nobody’s friend,” while also showing him around Hadrian’s Villa, which he claims as a former home since he was the Emperor Hadrian in a previous life. Also revealed are Gail’s priorities: When she and her husband split in 1971, she forewent any money in exchange for full custody of her son.

Gail therefore has little but unending resolve and sheer pluckiness to call upon, other than for the services of former Special Forces and CIA operative Fletcher Chace (Mark Wahlberg ). This handsome, diffident guy knows how things work in the world of high-stakes good guys and bad guys and can get dirty things done. He can also provide access and protection she wouldn’t have otherwise, while she has surprising instincts and guts in the face of vast challenges.

Scott moves the dramatic story along at a propulsive clip that never flags. The young captive is initially kept at an isolated farmhouse by a faction of the Red Brigade, a violent left-wing urban-terrorist organization that specialized in kidnapping for large ransoms. Little time is spent on the internal dynamics of the group, which almost at once seems fraught with tension. But the young Getty is mainly looked after by a combustible ruffian named Cinquanta ( Romain Duris ), who rather takes a liking to his charge.

Commanding the most screen time is Gail, whose distress and frustration are increasingly surpassed by moods that encourage her to leaps of boldness and imagination. The woman’s background is never revealed; Williams affects what sounds like a very slight British accent, but what this protean performer most impressively does is to push Gail beyond the stock “I just want my son back!” type of hysterics to a point where the character seems to be oddly feeding on her anxiety in a way that makes her more creative and strategic.

Williams and Wahlberg develop some nice odd rhythms in their back-and-forth. Fortunately, any temptation to cook up an intimacy between them has been resolutely resisted, but a bit of layering in the script for Wahlberg’s seen-and-done-it-all character would have been welcome.

As it is, Gail and Chace are always on the move, sometimes to legal and press offices, other times out to see Getty at his country estate. Considerable appalling humor is generated by the old man’s staggering cheapness and orneriness, which make Scrooge look like a world-class humanitarian. But the filmmakers gratifyingly give him more dimension than this caricature. His initially astonishing refusal to pay any ransom at all is at least fractionally rationalized by his belief that, if he paid, it would provoke an open season on the kidnapping of his 14 other grandchildren.

To be sure, he’s a mean old crank, parsimonious and callous to an extreme. But he’s also a unique figure and a genius of sorts who’s not just held up to represent the far extreme of human privilege and disdain for others. Christopher Plummer confers Getty with an authority and sense of resolve so complete that we’re entirely seduced into thinking we’re getting a taste of the real man, of what it’s like to be so far above the fray of normal human concern. What could have been simply a tasty cameo is fleshed out just enough to go beyond caricature into something truer and deeper, to get a real sense of the power of a self-made man who has traveled so far as to have become something entirely singular. The fact that the actor could step into this role on a moment’s notice and achieve something so precise and resonant — and which will no doubt be remembered as one of his most iconic performances — is an astonishment to be prized.

Unavoidably, the scene in which the kidnappers , after four months of frustrated waiting, slice off young Getty’s right ear in order to press the seriousness of their demands is central, and it’s adroitly handled for requisite impact, but without sensationalism.

End credits acknowledge that some liberties have been taken with the historical record in the dramatization, but only specialists will likely take issue with them; there’s a shoot-out with the radicals, young Getty is seen escaping at one point, and the manner of the exchange of money for the boy seems oddly illogical. Most egregiously, the old man’s death is indicated as coinciding with his grandson’s return, which was not the case at all.

The locations are terrific, as are all behind-the-scenes contributions by Scott regulars, including cinematographer Dariusz Wolski , production designer Arthur Max, costume designer Janty Yates and editor Claire Simpson. Daniel Pemberton provided the fine score.

Production companies: Imperative Entertainment, Scott Free, Redrum Films Distributor: Sony, TriStar Pictures Cast: Michelle Williams, Christopher Plummer, Mark Wahlberg , Romain Duris , Timothy Hutton , Charlie Plummer, Charlie Shotwell , Andrew Buchan, Marco Leonardi , Giuseppe Bonifati , Nicholas Vaporidis Director: Ridley Scott Screenwriter: David Scarpa , based on a book by John Pearson Producers: Dan Friedkin , Bradley Thomas, Quentin Curtis, Chris Clark, Ridley Scott, Mark Huffam , Kevin J. Walsh Director of photography: Dariusz Wolski Production designer: Arthur Max Costume designer: Janty Yates Music: Daniel Pemberton Editor: Claire Simpson Casting: Carmen Cuba

Rated R, 132 minutes

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All the Money in the World Reviews

Overall, All the Money in the World is a finely made crime caper that suggests Ridley Scott and Christopher Plummer remain in their prime.

Full Review | Jun 22, 2023

It's a rollicking thriller through the worlds of oil tycoons, retired FBI agents and the moneyed masses of '70s Italy.

Full Review | Oct 7, 2022

Perhaps the biggest reason “All the Money” works is because Ridley Scott steps out of the way and puts his full trust in his actors and the script.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5 | Aug 19, 2022

"All the Money in the World" delivers on the promise of scintillating and satisfying tension in every bite and one of the most delicious portions of big-screen villainy this year.

Full Review | Original Score: 5/5 | Jun 26, 2022

The compelling story, along with Scott's usual skill and craft, do their best to overcome the circumstantial adversity, but All the Money in the World remains an uneven experience.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/4 | Mar 16, 2022

The film is compelling and informative.

Full Review | Oct 1, 2021

Someone should have told Sir Ridley Scott that it's not about the money. Also, that you cannot buy a masterpiece at those bottom-line prices.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Jul 29, 2021

All the Money in the World is not only thrilling, but it's a fabulous cautionary tale, reflecting the impact of money, the legacy of family, and how far a mother would go to rescue her son.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/4 | Jun 8, 2021

It's a half-hearted indictment of capitalism wrapped up in a thriller based on incidents from real life-nothing more, nothing less.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Apr 12, 2021

Isn't simply a real life crime story but a timely gaze into the lives of the super rich. "We look like you," says Getty III, "but we are not like you."

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5 | Feb 3, 2021

All the Money in the World manages to be a gripping thriller, a family drama, and a study of the pursuit of wealth with each component just as strong as the last.

Full Review | Original Score: 5/5 | Feb 2, 2021

All the Money in the World isn't a complete waste of time, but it's a by-the-numbers thriller that doesn't do anything particularly well...

Full Review | Nov 10, 2020

Scott excels at creating tension and suspicion throughout with one unsettling character after the next.

Full Review | Nov 5, 2020

A soaringly gripping story that sucks you from the very beginning, transporting you on a thrill ride of unfathomable proportions.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Aug 19, 2020

Overall, All the Money in the World is a mediocre artistic effort. It displays Scott's propensity for unnecessary brutality...

Full Review | Aug 6, 2020

In all the talk of Plummer's exceptional work, it's almost been lost how the film belongs to Williams, giving one of her best performances to date.

Full Review | May 21, 2020

As for the movie itself, it's a handsome, solid thriller, with terrific performances throughout.

Full Review | Mar 24, 2020

Ridley Scott pulled a rabbit out of a hat just in the nick of time.

Full Review | Oct 10, 2019

Scott slowly draws you into Getty's world, ensconced in his mansion. That's the story that wants telling. The one we get is a technically rich, beautifully styled, decently performed and moderately interesting spectacle.

Full Review | Jul 29, 2019

It doesn't bother you to have seen it, but you get the feeling that it should have given much more of itself. [Full Review in Spanish]

Full Review | Jul 27, 2019

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Christopher Plummer Is Getting Headlines for All the Money in the World, But It’s Michelle Williams Who Deserves Them

The kidnapping drama All the Money in the World is an elaborate demonstration of the idea that the very rich are not like you and me — and also that the oil magnate J. Paul Getty was barking mad. In 1973, when the movie is set, the octogenarian billionaire was regarded as the wealthiest man in the history of the world. He was also an infamous skinflint who installed a pay phone for his guests at his baronial English mansion. The film centers on Getty’s apparent indifference to the life of his 16-year-old grandson and namesake, Paul III, kidnapped by Italian radicals who would, after several months, sell the boy to the Mafia. Getty was adamant in refusing to pay ransom or even to discuss the matter with his daughter-in-law Gail, who was divorced from Getty’s alcoholic, drug-addicted son, Paul II, and had no funds of her own. The kidnappers’ spokesman — who phoned her regularly with demands and threats — was actually more courteous to her than was her billionaire former father-in-law.

It’s impossible to divorce the film itself from its offscreen drama, which also turns on the abuse of wealth and privilege. As soon as the floodgates opened on stories of Kevin Spacey’s alleged sexual predations, the director, Ridley Scott, made the unprecedented decision to expunge all traces of Spacey’s Getty Sr. from what was an essentially finished film and replace him with (the more age-appropriate) Christopher Plummer . You’ll want to know whether the seams show, and the answer is they don’t, at all. But that shouldn’t be a surprise. Getty’s scenes are discrete entities — he’s not directly involved in the main suspense plot. And even normal films involve outlandish artifice. Because of shooting schedules, an actor entering a doorway might well come out of it six weeks later on a different continent. The only hint of Spacey I could discern was in Plummer’s readings. The lines were clearly shaped for Spacey’s icy, sneering intonations. His malevolent poltergeist hovers.

My guess is that there was one overriding factor in Scott’s decision to rebuild sets and summon back his actors: The fear that Spacey’s presence would distract the world (which includes Oscar voters) from the marvelous performance of Michelle Williams as Gail. It’s a real transformation. I’ve never heard this diction from her before — sharp, with a hint of North Shore (i.e., old money) Long Island and perhaps a Kennedy or two. (The real Gail grew up in San Francisco but was well acquainted with the cadences of the East Coast rich.) Through the tension in her body and intensity of her voice, Williams conveys not just the terror of losing a son but the tragic absurdity of bearing the illustrious name Getty when family ties confer zero power. After Gail, desperate, attempts to sell a valuable gift from Getty Sr. given to her son, Williams sags to the stairs outside an Italian art museum and can’t seem to settle on laughing or weeping. Her expression crystallizes the entire bizarre story.

The film needs her. Working from John Pearson’s Getty-family saga, screenwriter David Scarpa adds a couple of shoot-outs that never happened and eliminates some fascinating nuances — one of which was the elder Getty’s terror of the Italian Mafia. The movie’s Paul III is too much of a cipher. (I suspect scenes were cut.) The more disappointing change is in the nature of Getty’s top security consultant, Fletcher Chace, whom the billionaire finally brought in to negotiate for the best possible deal (i.e., one that would involve no money). In Pearson’s telling, Chace cocked things up, not only deducing that the kidnapping was contrived by the boy himself but also going to bed with a woman who turned out to be a carabinieri spy. The movie portrays some of Chace’s lapses but doesn’t milk them for mordant effect; and, as played by the reliably stolid Mark Wahlberg, he’s not the wild card you’d hope for. Wahlberg has a gentle presence, though, and partners well with Williams. But Williams’s true counterweight is the French actor Romain Duris as the Italian kidnapper who calls himself “Cinquanta” and shows an unpredictable mix of decency and business sense. (Trouble is not his business.) Duris almost brings off the suspenseful but ridiculous climax — which is laughable not because it didn’t happen in life but because it happens all the time in dumb kidnapping melodramas.

How is Plummer? Crafty, as he usually is. Sixty years ago, when he was a randy sexual adventurer and troublemaker (he confesses as much in his entertaining autobiography), he could hardly have dreamed he’d be the venerable, wholesome alternative to an alleged predator. But J. Paul Getty — an avid philanderer — is right in his wheelhouse. Plummer knows how to segue from whimsical theatricality in long shot to dead-eyed mendacity in close-up. Holding forth on the immortal beauty and escalating value of art and sculpture in contrast to the instability of people, he suggests both the clarity and tragedy of Getty’s tunnel vision. All the money in the world … to buy a life in a vacuum that corroded his soul.

*This article appears in the December 25, 2017, issue of New York Magazine.

• movie review
• all the money in the world
• michelle williams
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• kevin spacey
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Christopher plummer can’t quite fix ‘all the money in the world’.

“All the Money in the World” certainly earns points – and merits curiosity – for its sheer logistics, having replaced Kevin Spacey at the eleventh hour in the wake of sexual-misconduct allegations. Yet Christopher Plummer’s admirable performance and the high degree of difficulty aren’t enough to make director Ridley Scott’s movie about the famous 1973 kidnapping feel as if it delivers a wholly satisfactory payoff.

Inspired by the real-life abduction of billionaire J. Paul Getty’s 16-year-old grandson, the liberties that the film takes become especially pronounced during the climactic act. While Plummer’s portrayal of Getty as an imperious, penny-pinching plutocrat has a timely aspect in this age of income disparity, those very qualities border on caricature, as the movie’s sympathies reside with Getty’s daughter-in-law Gail, played by Michelle Williams.

Say this much: Excising Spacey and subbing in Plummer in a matter of weeks was no small undertaking. It’s a major role, and the movie (adapted by David Scarpa from a book by John Pearson) is actually strongest during its first third, when Plummer’s Getty figures most prominently in the story.

After that, the contortions surrounding the kidnapping, and Gail’s efforts to gain her son’s release with the help of Getty’s fixer, Fletcher Chace (Mark Wahlberg), become more conventional, building to a thriller-like conclusion that seeks to ratchet up the tension but proves so conspicuously crafted and Hollywood-ized as to sacrifice authenticity.

The young Paul Getty (Charlie Plummer, no relation to Christopher) is idling in Rome when he’s suddenly dragged into a van, with the kidnappers demanding $17 million in ransom.

But there’s a rather sizable hitch: Gail disinherited herself, as we’re shown in flashback, when she divorced Getty’s son. The elder oil baron, meanwhile, isn’t inclined to pay, citing concerns about the safety of his 13 other grandchildren if he knuckles under, and dispatching Chace to help settle the matter as quietly – and cheaply – as possible.

At 88, Plummer is closer than Spacey to Getty’s age at the time of the incident, and having just played Scrooge in a movie, he brings a similar quality to this, slyly dashing off lines like “If you can count your money, you’re not a billionaire.” The challenge is in keeping him from slipping past larger-than-life eccentric into something more akin to a Bond villain.

Without knowing much about Gail, it can be taken on faith that Williams has deftly approximated her clipped accent. Those speech patterns, however, prove something of a distraction initially, with the performance growing stronger as she displays her resourcefulness and grit while fighting battles on two fronts – one against the kidnappers, another versus her father-in-law and his legal henchmen.

The other standout is the French-born Romain Duris, playing the kidnapper who becomes most closely involved with Paul, doing what he can to mitigate the more harrowing aspects of his ordeal.

While the circumstances surrounding Spacey and Plummer’s late insertion into the film addition have surely heightened interest, those issues are among the movie’s strengths, ultimately separate from and secondary to its unrelated flaws.

“Everything has a price,” the elder Getty sneers. Weighing the benefits, “All the Money in the World” has its strong points, but it’s debatable whether they add up to being worth the price of a ticket.

“All the Money in the World” opens Dec. 25 in the U.S. It’s rated R.

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All the Money in the World is a taut, stylish thriller — with or without Kevin Spacey: EW review

It’s not usually great news for a movie when what’s happening behind the scenes overtakes the thing itself. And there was hardly a bigger Hollywood curveball this year than the hail-Mary replacement of a disgraced Kevin Spacey in Ridley Scott’s prestige period drama All The Money in the World only weeks before its release. Following the radioactive fallout of sexual-assault allegations against Spacey this fall, fellow Oscar winner Christopher Plummer was hastily signed on to take over the star’s substantial central role — reshooting his part a nearly-unheard-of nine days, and delaying the scheduled delivery date to theaters by a mere three.

It could (and maybe should) have been a disaster. But All the Money is a smart, eminently watchable thriller, taut and stylish, and Plummer is remarkably good in it. Portraying the real-life industrialist J. Paul Getty, he looks like the avuncular silver-haired grandfather of 14 he was, but as a businessman — and a family man — he’s ruthless. It’s how he made his billions in oil, and why he infamously refused to pay the $17 million ransom demanded by the kidnappers who snatched his teenage grandson John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer, coincidentally named but unrelated) from the streets of Rome one summer night in 1973.

The senior Getty, a legendary skinflint who did his own hotel laundry to save room-service fees and haggled for dimes with street vendors, saw no reason to spend hard-earned, non-tax-deductible dollars on even his most favored grandchild when there were 13 more to spare. The boy’s mother (Michelle Williams), unsurprisingly, saw things differently: As Abigail Getty, a district judge’s daughter raised far from the kind of extreme wealth that ruined her drug-addled ex-husband, Williams still speaks in the fluty, anachronistic tones of a young Jackie Kennedy or Katherine Hepburn. But beneath her snug bouclé suits and debutante bouffant, she’s fiercely determined to bring her son home, and the actress makes you feel her desperation in almost every gesture.

Mark Wahlberg (who, like Williams, returned to Italy for the reshoots) seems less well cast as Getty Sr.’s strong-arm consigliere-slash-troubleshooter Fletcher Chase, an ex-CIA agent tasked with making good deals happen and bad things go away. His laid-back modernity feels off for the setting, and he has one late confrontation with Plummer in particular that feels like it was airdropped in from a different, much clumsier movie. But Scott maintains the tight coil of his narrative tension — even for those who already know the outcome from living through it, or from history books — for nearly two hours, toggling between the terrified young Getty and his captors (a consortium of gangsters and Communists fronted by a quietly sympathetic Romain Durais) and his increasingly unglued family.

It’s hard to say of course how Spacey would have filled the role without actually seeing him onscreen (aside from the fact that he did look odd in the heavy aging prosthetics shown in the initial trailers, like a refugee from a Dick Tracy villain camp circa 1990). But there’s none of the cold Keyser Söze snake in the 88-year-old Plummer’s performance; he’s pitiless, without question, but pitiable too: a lonely old man clinging to things — estates, objets , Old Master paintings — because he can’t trust a human heart, least of all his own. It’s already earned him a Golden Globe nomination (Williams received one as well, as did Scott, for best director), which may be the industry’s way of recognizing an achievement in logistics as much as in quality filmmaking. At its best though, Money makes you forget all that and surrender to a story that might be almost too strange to believe, if it wasn’t entirely true. B+

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All The Money In The World Review

05 Jan 2018

133 minutes

All The Money In The World

A looming deadline. Screaming newspaper headlines. The question of whether or not to pay out a vast sum of money. It’s a story for the history books — how Ridley Scott barely blinked before ordering the recasting of Kevin Spacey, one of his leads in kidnapping drama All The Money In The World , when the stories came out about Spacey’s alleged deeds of sexual misconduct. Out was Spacey, who had been caked in liverspotted latex to play octagenarian oil billionaire J. Paul Getty. In was replacement Christopher Plummer, with numerous scenes being reshot at frantic speed — and at the reported expense of £7.5 million — to make the film’s imminent release date.

May even end up getting all the awards in the world.

The story, happily for all except Spacey, ends in triumph. Plummer proves to be the best thing about All The Money In The World , grabbing the role of “not just the richest man in the world, but the richest man in the history of the world” by the throat. His performance ensures that what could have been a live-action Mr. Burns — Getty actually has hounds on one of his estates, presumably for the purposes of releasing — becomes the fascinatingly complex, icy heart of the film. Plummer has surely already been offered a reboot of K-Pax .

It’s not hard to see why this based-on-true-life story was not only seized by Scott, but is the subject of a forthcoming Danny Boyle TV series, Trust . Think a pulpy mash-up of Dallas and Ransom : in the early ’70s, the 16 year-old grandson of an uptight oil tycoon is kidnapped by Italian thugs and imprisoned in a grimy cell. His mother is desperate to get him back; his father is too drug-addled to care; his pennypinching pop-pop refuses to part with a single cent, unwilling to lose face or inspire further kidnappings. It’s juicy, juicy stuff, replete with grim face-offs in shadowy rooms, desperate phone calls and dark threats. Scott, who pulled off a somewhat larger-scale ticking-clock scenario in The Martian , goes for the slow burn. The pulse-pounding snatch happens in the opening minutes, but the tale then freezes, whizzing back in time to delve into the backstory and psychology of the man whose decision will seal the boy’s fate.

Perhaps Scott, an octagenarian workaholic himself, found himself relating just a little to Getty, a man who is never more joyful than when checking his stock-market numbers via ticker-tape. There’s a dash of sly wit to the character, mixed up with several measures of well-earned arrogance. “The mountain may not have come to Mohammed,” he says at one point, surveying his plans for a lavish new house in California, “but it sure as hell came to me.” There are perhaps a few too many stiff pronouncements of his objects-are-better-than-people philosophy, which sound like they may have been copied and pasted straight from the film’s source material, exhaustingly titled 1995 book Painfully Rich: The Outrageous Fortune And Misfortunes Of The Heirs Of J. Paul Getty . But Plummer is never hammy, despite the mausoleum greys of his various abodes, which make him look like Dracula in a three-piece suit.

Less effective is Mark Wahlberg, playing a man with an obscure job that has something to do with special-ops and involves him saying the word “deals” a lot. Basically the tough guy who Getty brings in to resolve the kidnapping, it’s a fairly one-note role, not enhanced by the fact Wahlberg keeps donning a pair of Serious Acting Glasses whenever a scene gets sufficiently intense. Michelle Williams is far more convincing as Gail, John Paul II’s ex-wife, acting up a storm as the browbeaten family outsider trying to make the numbers work before her dissolute son is turned into fractions himself.

Returning to Rome for the first time since Gladiator , Scott shoots the captivity scenes with a gleeful viscerality. Cicadas screech, the camera lurches, an ear-based torture scene is so graphically portrayed that it makes Reservoir Dogs look like Snow Dogs . Charlie Plummer (no relation to Christopher) is strong as the beleaguered, wide-eyed John Paul Getty III, though the film does miss a chance to flesh out his guardians in an interesting way, with only a ruffian-with-a-soft-side played by French actor Romain Duris given anything in the way of dimension.

As a thriller it’s consistently gripping, if sometimes a smidge reliant on cliché. As a study of how cold, hard cash can make a man’s heart cold and hard itself, it’s terrific. Scott and Plummer, meanwhile, deserve plaudits for their 11th-hour gambit. Who knows, the latter may even end up getting all the awards in the world.

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All The Money In The World Review

Director Ridley Scott has multiple classics on his filmography, but reflecting on his resume reveals what is really an unfortunately modest hit-to-miss ratio. Looking at his record post-2000, he's made some great movies, like the quick con drama Matchstick Men and the smart, thrilling The Martian , but his record is also tarnished with whiffs like Alien: Covenant , Robin Hood , and Prometheus . It's made it so that walking into any of his films is basically a coin flip when it comes to expectations. This is part of the baggage that comes with his latest, All The Money In The World ... but even that plays second fiddle to the major behind-the-scenes shake-ups that this film forever will be associated with.

Following recent horrific allegations against actor Kevin Spacey , Ridley Scott made the decision to alter All The Money In The World significantly. With only weeks leading up to release, Scott recast Spacey in the role of legendary oil tycoon John Paul Getty, replacing him with the great Christopher Plummer through extensive last-minute reshoots. Because of this, many movie-goers will be studying the movie for seams, looking for those specific edits. The impressive thing is that you won't find many, as the filmmakers did a tremendous job in that department. The less positive side of the whole matter, however, is that despite some standout performances, the film is ultimately mostly mediocre.

Primarily set in the early 1970s, the film centers on one of the richest families in American history, and the scandal surrounding them that shocked the world. At a time when J. Paul Getty ( Christopher Plummer ) was seen as the wealthiest man in the world, his favorite grandson, John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer, no relation) was kidnapped by criminals while living in Rome. With his prime captor, Cinquanta (Romain Duris), asking for a large $17 million payoff, the teen's mother, Gail Harris ( Michelle Williams ) -- who had divorced from the Getty family years earlier -- turned to the family's patriarch for help. When the oil magnate refuses to pay on the grounds that it could potentially inspire kidnappings of his other grandchildren, Gail works side by side with Getty's security man, Fletcher Chase ( Mark Wahlberg ), to find her abducted son and bring him home before it's too late.

Clearly All The Money In The World has an amazing story to tell based on true events, though it's in the bones of the script where the film finds its deepest issues. With a movie like this, steeped in a certain amount of history and requiring the audience to have a degree of background about the subject matter, you hope that it finds a creative way to help it handle the expositional load. Unfortunately, the whole thing winds up stalling upfront as that job is bungled. It always feels lazy when a feature leans on either voice-over narration or flashbacks to spew information unavailable in the straight narrative, and David Scarpa's script actually uses both liberally in the opening of the story without actually committing to either one as legitimate storytelling devices. The result has the film scrambling to find its feet as the second act begins, and while it eventually does, it also never entirely recovers from the rocky start.

Ridley Scott eventually does make All The Money In The World work as a captivating thriller, complete with high stakes and beautiful high-contrast photography from regular collaborator Dariusz Wolski -- but it also clearly helps that he's working with some of the greatest performers in the game. Hearing about the aforementioned behind-the-scenes changes, you might expect that J. Paul Getty has a small role to play within the movie and little impact on the larger story; but you'd be completely wrong, and it's honestly stunning to see what the production was able to accomplish in a limited amount of time with Christopher Plummer. It's a massively complex portrayal, with the character balancing on a razor-thin line between "frugal billionaire" and "capitalism-born monster," but Plummer delivers a stunning turn impressively reminiscent of Orson Welles' Citizen Kane .

On the flip side of this you have Michelle Williams' Gail Harris, who is made powerless by the situation she's facing, but battles through it with fortitude and grit -- provided to her with fantastic intensity by the performer. It's a transformative turn in its own right, with the actress putting on an interesting and very specific accent in the character, but it succeeds in rendering her invisible, the audience only seeing a grieving mother doing everything she can to try and get her child back. It's one of Williams' best pieces of work, which is actually saying a lot given her impressive resume.

All The Money In The World has fostered a great amount of attention and conversation thanks to its last minute casting alterations, and will probably always be remembered for exactly that. Of course, that's a double-edged sword. It's stunning to see what Ridley Scott was able to do with the inclusion of Christopher Plummer, but at the same time you are left wishing that there was more to the film to which the performance was added.

Eric Eisenberg is the Assistant Managing Editor at CinemaBlend. After graduating Boston University and earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism, he took a part-time job as a staff writer for CinemaBlend, and after six months was offered the opportunity to move to Los Angeles and take on a newly created West Coast Editor position. Over a decade later, he's continuing to advance his interests and expertise. In addition to conducting filmmaker interviews and contributing to the news and feature content of the site, Eric also oversees the Movie Reviews section, writes the the weekend box office report (published Sundays), and is the site's resident Stephen King expert. He has two King-related columns.

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All the money in the world.

• Common Sense Says
• Parents Say 2 Reviews
• Kids Say 7 Reviews

Common Sense Media Review

Violent but good thriller about corrupting power of money.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that All the Money in the World is a thriller from director Ridley Scott about the real-life 1973 kidnapping of J. Paul Getty's grandson. It's a very well-made film, with some relevant life lessons about the corrupting power of money, but it's also quite violent. Someone's…

Why Age 16+?

An ear sliced off, with spurting blood/bloody wound. Guns and shooting. Characte

Several uses of "f--k" and "s--t," plus "son of a bitch

A man "sexy dances" with his wife. Married couple kisses. A topless wo

A secondary character is an alcoholic/drug addict. Packet of pot found in the pa

Any Positive Content?

Most of the characters are troubled in some way, with their own versions of dark

J. Paul Getty is unbelievably rich, and yet he refuses to use his money to help

Violence & Scariness

An ear sliced off, with spurting blood/bloody wound. Guns and shooting. Characters are shot, with blood spurts. Grenade. More bloody wounds. Burned corpse shown. Kidnapping, teen grabbed and pulled into van. Man is hit in the forehead with telephone receiver. Fire started. Threats.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Several uses of "f--k" and "s--t," plus "son of a bitch," "damn," "hell," "balls."

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

A man "sexy dances" with his wife. Married couple kisses. A topless woman walks by in shadow; nothing sensitive visible. A married man cheats; he's shown lying with a prostitute. Prostitutes shown on street. Brief innuendo.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

A secondary character is an alcoholic/drug addict. Packet of pot found in the pages of a teen's book. Social drinking and smoking.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Positive Role Models

Most of the characters are troubled in some way, with their own versions of dark pasts, but Gail is a strong, interesting woman. She's trying to save her son, and the way she confronts the powerful men in her life and stands up to them is inspiring. Eventually, she does accept a man's help, but that doesn't detract from her character.

Positive Messages

J. Paul Getty is unbelievably rich, and yet he refuses to use his money to help anyone, even his own family. And he's so fully corrupted that he never grasps this. Fortunately, other characters do -- and audience members might, too, making it a message that viewers can learn from.

Parents need to know that All the Money in the World is a thriller from director Ridley Scott about the real-life 1973 kidnapping of J. Paul Getty's grandson. It's a very well-made film, with some relevant life lessons about the corrupting power of money, but it's also quite violent. Someone's ear is sliced off, and characters are shot and killed, with blood spurts and bloody wounds. There's also a burned corpse and other moments with threats and aggression. Language includes several uses of "f--k." A married couple flirts, and the husband is later shown in a brothel, lying with a woman (presumably a prostitute) as a topless woman -- obscured by shadows -- walks by. The same man is shown to be an alcoholic and is said to be a drug addict. Pot is found in the pages of a book on a teen's bookshelf. One of the main characters (played by Michelle Williams ) is a strong, interesting woman who stands up to the powerful men in her life in an inspiring way. The movie earned media scrutiny after star Kevin Spacey was accused of several counts of sexual misconduct and Scott decided to reshoot his scenes with Christopher Plummer ; it works seamlessly. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

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Parent and Kid Reviews

• Parents say (2)
• Kids say (7)

Based on 2 parent reviews

Really interesting movie with some tough scenes.

All the money in the world is intense and excellent, what's the story.

In ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD, the grandson of tycoon J. Paul Getty ( Christopher Plummer ), teenage Paul Getty ( Charlie Plummer ), is kidnapped from the streets of Rome in 1973. The kidnappers demand $17 million in ransom, but Paul's divorced mother, Gail ( Michelle Williams ), doesn't have it. She appeals to the elder Getty, who refuses to pay anything. Instead, he spouts ideologies about how to be rich and making good investments to avoid the taxman. But he loves his grandson, so he puts his top security man, Fletcher Chase ( Mark Wahlberg ), on the case. At first, Chase determines that Paul might have had himself kidnapped on purpose to try to trick the old man, but then they learn that he's indeed in danger. Getty finally agrees to put up the highest amount of ransom he can that's still tax deductible, but it's not enough. So Gail gets desperate and comes up with a reckless plan to save her son.

Is It Any Good?

Despite now-infamous last-minute tinkering, this fact-based tale emerges as a fine pulp thriller, bathed in director Ridley Scott 's trademark visual richness and with a few real-world life lessons. In an unprecedented move, Scott decided at the 11th hour to replace all of the J. Paul Getty scenes filmed with previous co-star Kevin Spacey (who was accused of multiple acts of sexual misconduct) with Christopher Plummer. But there's no evidence of this rush job in the finished film. Plummer gives a great, truly sinister supporting performance in All the Money in the World as the man to whom a tax write-off is more important than family.

But the bulk of the movie belongs to Williams, who deals quietly with rage and panic and who's accused by reporters of not weeping enough. The younger Plummer -- no relation to Christopher -- is fine as Paul; his relationship with a sympathetic Italian kidnapper (French actor Romain Duris ) helps his scenes come alive. Scott uses the Italian settings, the countryside, and Getty's palatial quarters as restricting places: They're spacious but lacking in freedom. As in Fellini's La Dolce Vita , the paparazzi are a constant, buzzing, attacking force here, adding tension at several turns. A few action-oriented set pieces, some chases and escapes, are close to masterful. It's not a perfect, or perhaps very deep, movie, but it's grippingly effective.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about All the Money in the World 's violence . How frequent or strong is it? Is it meant to be thrilling or shocking? How can you tell? What's the impact of media violence on kids ?

A character is shown to be abusing drugs and alcohol . How does he look and behave? Are there consequences for his behavior? Why does that matter ?

Is Gail a strong female character? Is she a role model ? Why, or why not? What about the other characters?

Why do you think J. Paul Getty wouldn't put up ransom money for his grandson? Does the movie let you understand his point of view? Does it make sense?

Did you know that Kevin Spacey had been replaced in the movie? How do you feel about that decision? How do you think Scott was able to make it happen so quickly?

Movie Details

• In theaters : December 25, 2017
• On DVD or streaming : April 10, 2018
• Cast : Mark Wahlberg , Michelle Williams , Christopher Plummer
• Director : Ridley Scott
• Inclusion Information : Female actors, Black actors
• Studio : Sony Pictures Entertainment
• Genre : Drama
• Topics : History
• Run time : 132 minutes
• MPAA rating : R
• MPAA explanation : language, some violence, disturbing images and brief drug content
• Last updated : June 29, 2024

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All the money in the world review: ridley scott goes citizen kane.

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Kevin Costner Addresses Cancelled Horizon Chapter 2 Release Following Chapter 1's Poor Box Office

Steve martin names his favorite character from his decades-long career, star wars introduced luke skywalker's clone wars mentor 41 years ago, & he's still canon, all the money in the world makes for a solid dramatic thriller, but falls short when it comes to being an insightful biopic about john paul getty..

All the Money in the World is the latest directorial effort from Ridley Scott and the filmmaker's second release in 2017, following this past spring's  Alien: Covenant . The true story of the Getty kidnapping in the 1970s might be a far cry from Scott's recent sci-fi projects, but the director is no stranger to historical drama/thrillers of this variety. All the Money in the World is in fact the second docudrama that Scott has made that's set primarily in the '70s, with the other being 2007's American Gangster . Both movies are similar in another respect too - namely, they are both biographical films about real life men of power, whose lives are explored through the lens of genre.  All the Money in the World makes for a solid dramatic thriller, but falls short when it comes to being an insightful biopic about John Paul Getty.

In 1973, then 81-year old oil tycoon and Getty Oil founder John Paul Getty (Christopher Plummer) is estimated as being the richest man in the world. On the night of July 10 that same year, Getty's grandson John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer) - who is sixteen at the time - is kidnapped at the Piazza Farnese in Rome and taken hostage, with the ransom set at $17 million. John's mother Gail Harris (Michelle Williams), having divorced John's father a couple years before then, quickly reaches out to Getty thereafter, in the hopes that he will pay the cost to save his grandson's life. However, much to Gail's shock and dismay, Getty publicly refuses to shell out even a cent to John's kidnappers.

Instead, Getty has his business manager and former CIA operative Fletcher Chase (Mark Wahlberg) assist Gail and serve as Getty's advisor on the situation - in order to allow Getty to make the decisions that will best serve his own interests. Gail, who has no interest in either Getty's massive fortunate or allowing her family to be a pawn in his schemes, does her best to convince Fletcher to prioritize her son over his boss' concerns and get John returned safely, before his kidnappers hurt him and, eventually, kill him. As the clock ticks, John's situation grows more and more complicated by the day, and thus begs the question: exactly what will it take to get the man who has "all the money in the world" to do the human thing, anyway?

All the Money in the World was written by screenwriter David Scarpa (the 2008 version of The Day The Earth Stood Still ), based on John Pearson's 1995 non-fiction book "Painfully Rich: The Outrageous Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J. Paul Getty". The film's narrative jumps around in time at the very beginning - in order to establish both how John Paul Getty made his fortune and how his grandson, John Paul Getty IIII, became an important part of his life - but unfolds in a linear fashion thereafter, zeroing in on the younger John Getty's kidnapping. Most of the major twists and turns that the plot takes from there are interesting enough to create a proper sense of tension and suspense, even for those viewers who are familiar with the broader strokes of the real story going in. Unfortunately, while the subject matter presented here is certainly intriguing and relevant as ever, All the Money in the World just doesn't dig deep enough into the story's players (especially, John Paul Getty and his warped priorities) to make for a compelling character study.

Christopher Plummer, as most everyone reading this no doubt knows, was brought in for last-minute reshoots to replace original star Kevin Spacey in the wake of Spacey's sex abuse scandal. The Oscar-winner Plummer helps to flesh out the film's thinly sketched portrayal of the elder J. Paul Getty with his performance and prevents the character from coming off as a caricature of a powerful old man (as he easily could've) with his naturalistic acting approach. All the Money in the World doesn't go far enough with its examination of what makes Getty tick, nor how being a lifelong businessman has skewed his perspective to the point of making him seem soulless from the outside. At the same time, the film doesn't come off as too ham fisted in its simple political commentary and peeks behind the curtain enough to make Getty feel (depressingly) like a real person.

Ultimately, All the Money in the World is more of a showcase for Christopher Plummer as J. Paul Getty than it is for any of the other actors playing main characters here. Nevertheless, Williams brings a quiet dignity and resilience to the role of Gail Harris, especially in the scenes where she is forced to put on a polite face and appeal to Getty's humanity for the sake of her son, rather than react honestly to his often heartless and sometimes downright cruel behavior. Wahlberg is also solid here, playing a real life person who's almost always in control and yet adheres to a much grayer moral/ethical code than the everyday heroes that the actor has taken to playing in true story-based docudrama/thrillers of late. Charlie Plummer (no relation to his onscreen grandfather) is less developed as Getty III, though the film does take the time to establish him as an intelligent young man in his own right. Beyond those four leads, French actor Romain Duris gets the most substantial role here as Cinquanta, one of John's captors who unexpectedly forms a bond with his young hostage.

From a directorial perspective, Scott and his frequent collaborators - including, cinematographer Darius Wolski and production designer Arthur Max - succeed in making Getty's world come off as garish and ostentatious rather than dazzling, through their use of muted colors and heavy shadows. All the Money in the World  expresses the unpleasantness of its story and characters through its visuals, relying heavily on moody lighting and emphasizing the unflattering details of the people and locations that it visits (especially during one soon to be infamously gruesome sequence). There are times when the film is a bit rough around the edges in terms of editing and camera shots, possibly as a result of Scott moving a little too quickly through his movie productions nowadays. However, when it comes to integrating the reshoot footage of Christopher Plummer with the rest of the film, All the Money in the World does a largely seamless job.

Taken as a whole, All the Money in the World is a perfectly solid awards season release, despite falling well short of being the sort of Citizen Kane -esque deconstruction of a powerful man (and his legacy) that it aspires to be. Those who are fans of Christopher Plummer, and would like to see him in a movie that makes proper use of his acting chops, may want to give the film a look in theaters, but otherwise it's not a must-see on the big screen. It will be interesting to see if FX and Danny Boyle's upcoming limited TV series Trust - which also focuses on John Paul Getty and his family in the 1970s - proves to be more of an insightful character study, by comparison. Even with all that said though, kudos should be given to Scott and his cast/crew for successfully revamping a hefty chunk of the movie less than two months before its theatrical release.

All the Money in the World is now playing in U.S. theaters nationwide. It is 132 minutes long and is Rated R for language, some violence, disturbing images and brief drug content.

Let us know what you thought of the film in the comments section!

All the Money in the World

Ridley Scott's All the Money in the World is a crime thriller based on the real-life kidnapping of John Paul Getty III in 1973. The film follows Getty's mother, Gail (Michelle Williams), as she tries to convince his grandfather, the billionaire J. Paul Getty (Christopher Plummer, replacing Kevin Spacey), to pay the ransom demanded by the kidnappers.

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'all the money in the world' and worth every penny.

Ella Taylor

Taking Up Spacey: J. Paul Getty (Christopher Plummer) and Fletcher (Mark Wahlberg) in All The Money In The World. Giles Keyte/All The Money US, LLC. hide caption

Taking Up Spacey: J. Paul Getty (Christopher Plummer) and Fletcher (Mark Wahlberg) in All The Money In The World.

In case you're wondering whether the last-minute dropping of Kevin Spacey ruined Ridley Scott's movie about the 1973 kidnapping of billionaire J. Paul Getty's grandson, I can testify that there's barely a technical seam showing in All the Money in the World . Scott is a master craftsman who re-shot Spacey's scenes in nine days without turning a hair. And Christopher Plummer, fresh off playing that other Scrooge in The Man Who Invented Christmas , brings a mischievous pinch of irony to his turn as the world's richest skinflint, who won infamy for refusing to pay the $17 million ransom demanded by Italian kidnappers of his favorite grandson, John Paul Getty III. Charlie Plummer, no relation but also very good, plays the vapid boy who's carried off in an ancient microbus while cruising hookers in Rome.

Still, Spacey's replacement is not the story here, if only because All the Money is less a Getty biopic than a pounding thriller beefed up by Gail, Getty Junior's steely mother, who battles to secure her son's release. As such, it is very much Michelle Williams' place to shine, abetted — in a gratifying low key — by Mark Wahlberg as the former CIA agent and Getty sidekick who helps her recover her son in the teeth of Getty Senior's cunning recalcitrance.

Bouncing around in time and place (Getty had an abundance of scenic European mansions, we learn, in which to wash and line-dry his undies and charge visitors for their phone calls), the movie hits the ground running as a caper, with the grab carried out by Mafiosi who is at once vicious and comically inept. Young John Paul's minder, a sympathetic, if dimly-bulbed fellow, is played with artfully dabbed dirt on his face, and an oversized Italian accent, by Romain Duris, who's noticeably French. Pasta will be reliably guzzled while you're waiting to see how Scott handles the lopping of the young heir's ear, to be dispatched to his relatives by regular mail as proof that the young wastrel remains alive for now. I'll just say that the same orifice removal in Reservoir Dogs pales in comparison.

In its last hour All the Money ratchets up to an elegant thriller, albeit one that, the filmmakers openly admit, fiddles somewhat with the facts. But even with a screenplay (by David Scarpa, based on a book by John Pearson) that groans with backstory exposition, the movie is more slippery at completing the thought its title implies. From Citizen Kane to There Will Be Blood , American cinema is awash with filthy-rich monsters, and nothing could be timelier right now than an inquiry into the character of a man who sees all of life as a commercial transaction in which he must outwit adversaries he can't trust.

What shapes a man who is capable of using his grandson, already a hostage to unscrupulous evildoers, as a bargaining chip with which to settle scores with his daughter-in-law? Plummer's Getty is an operator at once wily and pathetic, a man whose only rule-book is the art of the deal, and whose every human interaction is guided by extracting more profit or outmaneuvering those he regards as adversaries. He craves family but treats his relatives with less care than he brings to the beloved paintings that never talk back.

All this is on the record, but we come to see Getty more fully through the discerning eyes of the only player in this tawdry drama who has his number and shows herself willing to stand up to him. Williams plays Gail as a woman under enormous, sustained stress, yet possessed of a maternal core so strong that no hurdle, especially those thrown up by Getty, can stop her efforts to rescue her son. Money can't buy her, and though there's no telling if Gail's role in the rescue's serpentine twists really happened this way, it's Williams' tightly wound, calculating performance that juices the movie's thrill ride of a last hour, and turns it into a revelation.

'All The Money In The World' Review: Christopher Plummer Dominates Ridley Scott's New Movie

Ridley Scott 's All the Money in the World begins with a monologue from John Paul Getty III ( Charlie Plummer ) in which he explains to the audience that the sheer amount of money that the Gettys possessed might as well have meant that they came from a different planet. "We look like you," he says, "But we're not like you." And indeed they aren't. When Paul is kidnapped and his mother Gail ( Michelle Williams ) tries to contact his grandfather ( Christopher Plummer ) for the $17 million ransom, J. Paul Getty refuses. As he tells his advisor ( Mark Wahlberg ), it's not that he doesn't have the money. It's just that he doesn't have the money to spare.

 It's important to contextualize this sentiment. J. Paul Getty was an oil man, and one of the richest men who ever lived. The J. Paul Getty Trust, which he established in 1953, is the world's richest art institution, and is responsible for, among others, the Getty Museum in L.A. In other words, this was not a man who couldn't afford to part with a penny. And yet, he installed a pay phone in his home in England for guests to pay to place calls, instead of being able to call on his dime. And he at first refused, and then negotiated, his own grandson's ransom.

For as long as Getty's callousness is framed as the truly horrific part of the narrative, rather than the kidnapping itself, All the Money in the World works. After all, this is the story of the man who waited until the kidnappers' desperation was to the point that they'd lowered the asking price to $2.9 million and cut off Paul's ear to pay the ransom. And paid the maximum that was tax deductible and loaned the rest — with interest — to his son in order to get it done. When the focus drifts elsewhere, the film becomes just another kidnapping movie in a genre that's full of better entries.

The key here is Christopher Plummer, who isn't villainous so much as he is ice-cold. Throughout, there's the sense that this movie could have been his There Will Be Blood if he'd had a larger part in it, and it's thrilling right up until the story capitulates to what's required for a happy ending. The details are historically accurate, broadly speaking, in that Getty eventually coughed up the money, but it's hard to imagine that it happened as it does in the movie, i.e. as the result of a moral dressing-down.

Plummer's performance is titanic, and though the rest of the film is good, it's still a comedown by comparison. That is, with the exception of Romain Duris as the kidnapper with a heart of gold, who does his best with an extremely strange part and is easily the second-best part of the movie as a result. It's just not a role that feels necessary — the ordeal of being kidnapped is harrowing as is — though Duris cranks the dramatic dial up delightfully high in order to compensate.

Williams and Wahlberg, who occupy the third and arguably the main storyline, similarly do their level best. Like Duris, Wahlberg is a little hemmed in by the script, as the subtler aspects of his character are gradually lost as the movie's clip begins to demand an action man, and a moral compass from a man who's been sold to us as lacking one. Williams fares a little better where consistency is concerned, turning in a fine performance as a woman struggling to take on a veritable institution on her own.

As long as the film focuses on money — and how it corrupts — it's a thrill. It practically feels like money, as it glides through black and white sequences to segue into the pale, sickly greens that are associated with the dollar bill. Even the score, by Daniel Pemberton, is propulsive, and swings in a way that's evocative of the kind of music that might accompany the entrance of a supervillain, not just a Scrooge. The movie is beautiful, as is apt given the man at its center's penchant for beautiful things.

It feels oddly of a piece with Scott's other film this year, Alien: Covenant , in that the ostensible villain is the most interesting part of it, and in that the most horrifying things are not necessarily the monsters that go bump in the night, but human impulses, and the shadow cast by legacy. It's terribly grand in the best way possible, and Plummer's final scene feels like it could have been ripped out of a gothic horror film.

Now, it's inevitable that any discussion of this movie will circle around to the replacement of Kevin Spacey as Getty. For the most part, Plummer's stepping into the role is seamless — there's only one shot that looks like it's been green-screened in. Otherwise, the part is Plummer's, and Plummer's completely, to the point that it's hard to imagine that Spacey had ever had the role to begin with. (And anyway, good riddance.)

What works, however, doesn't quite justify the existence of the film, which doesn't have much of a moral point, or at least not one that feels like we don't all know it already. The disconnect between the haves and have-nots begins to fade by the end of the film — it's not a real Hollywood movie unless the icy hearts thaw by the time credits roll — leaving behind a faint image of the more striking work that this could have been. One wonders what Getty would make of that.

/Film Review: 7 out of 10

All the Money in the World Review: Ridley Scott Takes It to the Bank

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Rebel Ridge Review: This Is How You F*cking Do It

Filming the substance was a real body horror experience for demi moore & margaret qualley, ocean's eleven cast knows how much fans hate its sequel.

All the Money in the World is a movie that was fighting seemingly impossible odds in order to find its way to theaters this holiday season. So how did it fare against those odds? Unbelievably well. Ridley Scott has asserted himself as a true master, with the help of the great Christopher Plummer, to bring us one of the year's finest movies. Never doubt what two brilliant men in their 80s can accomplish.

The movie chronicles the kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer) and the desperate attempt by his loving mother Gail (Michelle Williams) to convince his billionaire grandfather (Christopher Plummer), John Paul Getty, the richest man to ever walk the planet at that time, to pay the ransom. When he refuses, Gail attempts to convince him as her son's captors become increasingly violent and impatient. With her son's life at stake, Gail and Mr. Getty's advisor Chase (Mark Wahlberg) become unlikely allies in the race against time that tries to find where the balance between love and money lives.

2017 has been a year that Hollywood will always remember, perhaps not for the movies that came out, but for the harassment and misconduct scandals that have rocked the industry. Kevin Spacey, who originally starred as J. Paul Getty in All the Money in the World , was one such member of the former Hollywood elite who has been accused by many of sexual misconduct. At that point, it seemed this movie was doomed. Instead of allowing that to happen, director Ridley Scott did something that's never been done before. He recast Christopher Plummer in the role, reassembled his cast and crew and reshot a massive chunk of the movie in mere days and managed to get the movie ready in time, only delaying its release by three days. This all happened within a span of six weeks. And the movie he made is amazing. If this isn't the ultimate middle finger to the situation Hollywood finds itself in right now, I don't know what is.

Thomas E. Rothman, Sony's movie chief, was recently quoted as saying the tale of putting this movie together became about "two octogenarians kicking absolute ass." I couldn't possibly have said it better myself after having seen All the Money in the World . This is a case of brilliance being executed with precision both in front of and behind the camera. Ridley Scott at 80 has the experience of a man his age, but the audacity and balls of a man a quarter of it. As for Christopher Plummer ? 88 years on this Earth and some 200 or more acting credits led him to this glorious moment. His moment. His time to shine. Give the man his Oscar, please. It's clear now it belonged to him even when Kevin Spacey's name was still on the poster.

Christopher Plummer will and should be remembered as the on screen hero of this movie. That said, the rest of the cast is truly outstanding and, since the elder Getty is not on screen for the entirety of the movie, that is crucially important. However, this really is a showcase of Ridley Scott's talents as a director. All the Money in the World shows his willingness to step up to the plate and swing incredibly hard at every ball that comes his way. Even when he misses, he misses with a huge swing. But All the Money in the World was him connecting with the ball in the biggest possible way and truly cements him as one of the all time greats. He deserves his place on the mount Rushmore of excellent directors. He's earned it in 2017 and, age be damned, he's not stopping now.

Whether or not you know the story of the Getty kidnapping , All the Money in the World tells a truly fascinating story, brilliantly executed that winds up being wholly entertaining and a massive showcase of heavy-hitting talent. Not only that, but the story of what went into this movie is equally fascinating and, even knowing a bit, makes this movie even better when watching it. Because of the unprecedented efforts of some talented people, and Sony's willingness to pull this crazy plan off, this movie will no longer have a question mark associated with it. Ridley Scott made sure this movie can be enjoyed for the excellent piece of cinema it is for years to come.

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What critics are saying about ‘All the Money in the World’

The new film opened christmas day..

By Kevin Slane

One of the biggest surprises of the  75th annual Golden Globe Award nominations  was the trio of nods for “All the Money in the World.” The movie, based on the real-life 1973 kidnapping of John Paul Getty III and his billionaire grandfather’s refusal to pay the ransom, carried high expectations heading into awards season . Of course, that was before one of its stars, Kevin Spacey, faced allegations of  sexual misconduct , some involving  teenage   boys .

Instead of scuttling the film — or pushing it to a later date — director Ridley Scott re-shot every one of Spacey’s scenes, with Christopher Plummer replacing Spacey as billionaire oil tycoon John Paul Getty I. The decision to erase Spacey from the film and re-shoot most of the film in a little more than a month was unprecedented . The end result garnered Golden Globe nominations for Best Director (Scott), Best Supporting Actor (Plummer), and Best Actress — Drama (“Manchester by the Sea’s” Michelle Williams).

The Golden Globes don’t always reflect the critical consensus. At the time of this article’s publication, “All the Money in the World” had a 79 percent freshness rating on critic aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes, with reviewer reactions running the gamut from celebration to relative disappointment.

Here’s what some critics had to say about the film, which also stars Dorchester native  Mark Wahlberg alongside Plummer and Williams.

Many critics came away impressed with Plummer’s performance and Scott’s direction, given the time constraints. The San Francisco Chronicle’s Mick LaSalle went into the film assuming that Plummer would show up in only a few pivotal scenes, and was amazed when it turned out that Plummer played such a significant role.

Plummer delivers brilliance in what had to be record time, and every person sharing a scene with Plummer — Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg, in particular — comes in fresh and spontaneous, responding anew to another actor’s completely different energy.

New York Times film critic Manohla Dargis briefly commended Wahlberg’s performance as ex-CIA agent Fletcher Chase, but saved most of her detailed praise for Plummer.

Mr. Plummer can be an aloof, fairly cool screen presence and he chills Getty Sr. with cruel glints, funereal insinuation and a controlled, withholding physicality.

The Hollywood Reporter’s Todd McCarthy lauded both Williams and Wahlberg, but led off his review with a full-throated celebration of octogenarians Scott and Plummer.

Twilight years? Ridley Scott will hear none of it — he has just made the paciest, most dynamic film ever made by an 80-year-old director. And as for Christopher Plummer, he delivers the best screen performance ever given by an actor who, a month before the film’s debut, hadn’t even been cast yet.

The Boston Globe’s Mark Feeney praised Scott as a professional, writing that the director’s steady hand makes “All The Money in the World” feel “smoothly assured.” But Feeney also said that “All the Money” suffered from trying to do too much at once, giving the film two and a half stars out of four.

A better title might have been “All the Movies in the World.” We get a thriller, of sorts, and a crime movie, of sorts (Romain Duris, as a kidnapper, gives the most appealing performance). It’s also a morality tale crossed with family melodrama.

Associated Press film critic Jake Coyle called Michelle Williams’ performance as Gail Getty the film’s “saving grace,” and said he felt that the film would have been better served with more of her storyline.

“All the Money in the World” ought to have aimed more ambitiously for the complete tragedy of the Gettys, or stuck more resolutely to Gail’s perspective. Instead, it bounces erratically between its main players and loses steam every time Williams leaves the screen.

The Globe and Mail’s Barry Hertz said that Plummer’s performance was the only redeeming part of “All the Money,” which he said would be “an absolute bore” without him.

Ironically, the most shoddily executed scenes are the ones in which Plummer is nowhere to be found. For a film that revolves around a high-stakes kidnapping, it is suspiciously bereft of dramatic tension. For a story that purports to strip away the flash of wealth and examine the greed that lurks underneath the world of privilege, its script is entirely surface-skimming. For a project that aims to hook mature and discerning adult moviegoers that other studios have left behind,  All the Money in the World  is, frankly, so very stupid.

CNN’s Brian Lowry said that Plummer’s performance and Scott’s race against the clock weren’t enough to make the movie worth seeing for most people.

“Everything has a price,” the elder Getty sneers [in the film]. Weighing the benefits, “All the Money in the World” has its strong points, but it’s debatable whether they add up to being worth the price of a ticket.

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All The Money In The World

Wealth, envy and blood swirl in Ridley Scott's propulsive kidnapping drama, based on a world-famous case that shed light on the rich and callous.

Time Out says

The arrival of a top-notch new thriller – pounding with excitement and suffused with the kind of mote-flecked grandeur that director Ridley Scott seems to conjure effortlessly – should be news enough, but there’s something that must be addressed first. Christopher Plummer, as the billionaire J Paul Getty (‘All the Money in the World’’s thorny antagonist of sorts), is a wondrously stubborn and ominous presence. An evil magician pulling a fortune out of the Saudi desert yet turning a blind eye to the 1973 kidnapping of his grandson, Getty is a hissable figure but Plummer makes him impossibly magnetic: petty, consumed with money, prone to self-mythologising, the lord of a dusty English mansion he seems to occupy alone.

Unless you’ve been kidnapped yourself, you’ll know that Kevin Spacey, beleaguered by scandal and suddenly toxic, was digitally removed from the movie and replaced, last-minute, by Plummer. Any curiosity you may have should now be rechannelled to Scott, who, almost brazenly, has pulled off one of the most seamlessly entertaining dares of his career (one that includes such post-production nightmares as ‘Blade Runner’ and ‘Gladiator’).

A wizardly conductor of mood and technique, the director drops us into a ‘La Dolce Vita’ Rome – teeming with paparazzi that will become a scary human wave – as well as a chilly corporate boardroom where Getty’s feisty daughter-in-law, Gail (Michelle Williams, well-suited to the pantheon of tough-jawed Scott heroines), extracts herself from a ruined marriage to a wastrel. She leaves with custody of the children but some years later, after teenage John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer) is snatched off the street, she has to enter into negotiations with the criminals, as well as the man who holds the purse strings to a $17 million ransom.

‘All The Money In The World’ nails the sun-bleached Italian countryside, where the intelligent kid is jailed by a grimy crew of extortionists (including one with a touch of sympathy, well-played by Romain Duris). David Scarpa’s nail-biter of a screenplay – based on John Pearson’s 1995 account ‘Painfully Rich’, adapted with a free dramatic licence – amps up the tension with phoned-in demands and impulsive raids by knuckleheaded local police, yet it never loses the bitter, fascinating taste of imperious wealth: the Gettys are ‘from another planet’, Paul says in a voiceover and the movie turns that alien remoteness into a liability.

Is it too catty to suggest that perhaps some cash could have been spent on digitally replacing Mark Wahlberg? As Fletcher Chase, an ex-CIA spy and Getty’s security expert who bonds with Gail on her quest to get her boy back, he feels too modern for the otherwise pitch-perfect period effort. It’s a small quibble. The film reminds us that, onscreen and off, bumps along the road of life can often be surmounted by carefully applied money, but a tenacious mother (or director) is what ultimately makes the difference.

Release Details

• Release date: Friday 5 January 2018
• Duration: 133 mins

Cast and crew

• Director: Ridley Scott
• Screenwriter: David Scarpa
• Christopher Plummer
• Michelle Williams
• Mark Wahlberg
• Charlie Plummer

Been there, done that? Think again, my friend.

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