All The Money in The World - Review

R: December 25th, 2017 | R: 132 minutes | R: R

When I was growing up, my mom used to tell me to marry only for love... but specifically to fall in love with a rich doctor. It was in jest, but there was always this fire in her eyes that said, "you'll thank me later."
I'm 33-years-old now, and I can't imagine living off of someone else's fortune.
THAT SAID. Some days, ya get to thinkin'...
I'm kidding. I'm happy being the strong, independent woman that I am. We're seeing more and more of those in the movies, too. Finally. That was one of my biggest gripes about Wonder Woman. You've got this incredible gal who grew up on an island of amazons and her final power move is driven by the loss of her boyfriend.
That, my friends, is a story for another time.

All the Money in the World is the newest from Director Ridley Scott. It tells one of many stories from late billionaire Jean Paul Getty's life. The film depicts a tale of supposed true nature.

When Paul Getty III is nabbed by some men in a van one night, his mother, Gail (Michelle Williams) is asked to pay a rather handsome ransom of $17 million; a request that Paul the first refuses. Receiving mail from strangers on a daily basis asking for charity, Jean Paul is wary of giving away a penny of his massive fortune.

Young Paul's mother, Gail (Michelle Williams), is incredulous at her former father-in-law's unwillingness to help. Her ex-husband, J. Paul Getty II (Andrew Buchan) -- having spent the last who-knows-how-long in a drug-induced haze -- is of zero help, so OG Getty's head of security, Fletcher Chase (Mark Wahlberg) will velcro himself to Gail in an attempt to locate her son.

Unable to pay the 'nappers what they're asking and being stalked by the media, Gail is steadfast in the pursuit of her son's safe return home. Efforts to appeal to the billionaire are futile at best, but Paul III's captors -- becoming desperate and exhausted themselves -- begin to lower the price on Paul Jr.'s head.

It's fascinating the way the very wealthy think. My stepmom is an interior designer and has done some extravagant homes. She's told me stories and -- I've said it before and I'll say it again -- rich people do weird shit. Jean Paul Getty -- in real life -- published a book called 'How to be Rich'.

When Plummer's character named the title of the book, I thought it was a joke. I was wrong. But, then, having millions of dollars is something that I can't relate to. It's pressure that I don't understand. And, as Biggie Smalls once said, Mo Money, Mo Problems. Fortunately, Gail was never in it for the money. She only wanted her son back and would go to almost any lengths to get him.

Director Ridley Scott hit a bit of a hiccup when controversy forced him to replace the original actor cast as J. Paul Getty -- Kevin Spacey -- and re-shoot all of his scenes with Plummer. While Plummer plays the disenchanted billionaire quite well, I couldn't help but wonder what it looked like with Spacey under all of those elderly prosthetics.

The star of the show, Williams, is a Transatlantic dreamboat. She rivals Joyce Byers for concerned mother of the year. But then, I've never seen her in a performance that was less than sublime.

All the Money in the World is a fascinating story of greed, the reach of a mother's love, and more family drama than your family's holiday dinner. If you're anything like me, you'll particularly enjoy Charlie Plummer's Hanson-esque good looks -- cheers and happy holidays!

Rating: 3 out of 5

Katie (Contributor) is a cinephile and Chicago native who has been reviewing film for nearly a decade. Her heroes include Roger Ebert and Jay Sherman -- it stinks!
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