Geeks logo

'All the Money in the World'

A Review

By Marina Caitlin WattsPublished 6 years ago 4 min read
Like
Courtesy of TriStar Pictures

Ridley Scott's latest film ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD tells the story of the miserly Jean Paul Getty, and the kidnapping of his grandson. Based on John Pearson's 1995 book Painfully Rich: The Outrageous Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J. Paul Getty, the film follows the refusal of Getty's cooperation to pay a ransom for his abducted grandson in 1973. Gail Harris, Getty's daughter-in-law, gives her all to get her son back with the help of ex-CIA agent Fletcher Chase.

Starring Michelle Williams, Mark Wahlberg, Christopher Plummer, and Charlie Plummer as Getty's grandson, the tour de force has already garnered critics and the Hollywood Foreign Press' attention for several Golden Globe nominations, including Christopher Plummer as Best Supporting Actor and Michelle Williams as Best Actress.

Plummer's Golden Globe nomination would have easily been Kevin Spacey's. Amid sexual harassment allegations, Scott dropped Spacey from the film and reshot all his scenes in less than a month before the premiere, replacing him with Christopher Plummer, a more age-appropriate candidate for the role.

Courtesy of TriStar Pictures

Jean Paul Getty was born in 1892 and founded the Getty Oil Company. It started with his investing in oil companies during the Great Depression. In 1967, he merged several companies into the Getty Oil Company. His power stretched across almost 200 companies, and he learned to speak Arabic in order to keep tabs on his investments. He was also married and divorced five times, believing that "a lasting relationship with a woman is only possible if you are a business failure."

Even though he was the richest man in the world at one point, he was incredibly frugal. He infamously kept a payphone in his house for people to use for personal calls. All other phones had restrictive locks, which didn't allow calls to be made by anyone but authorized staff.

When his grandson was kidnapped, he refused to pay the initial $17 million ransom. “I have 14 other grandchildren and if I pay one penny now, then I’ll have 14 kidnapped grandchildren,” he said. After silence from the Getty family, a newspaper received a letter with a lock of hair and severed ear from the grandson.

He eventually negotiated a $2 million ransom to be paid off, and never came to the phone when his grandson called to thank him.

At his death in 1976, his net worth was over $2 billion. Much of his estate was donated to art collections around the world.

He was a very big investor in the arts, and established the J. Paul Getty Trust in 1953, the world's wealthiest art institution. The Trust operates the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Getty Foundation, the Getty Research Institute, and the Getty Conservation Institute.

Courtesy of TriStar Pictures

In the beginning of October, many sexual harassment and sexual assault allegations came out against Kevin Spacey. Because of this, the film canceled its planned premiere at the AFI Festival in November, and Scott ultimately had to rework the role of Getty. This isn't the first time that the director had to reshoot scenes and rework the making of a film. In 2002, much of GLADIATOR had to be reworked following Oliver Reed's death.

Although Scott saw Spacey as the ideal candidate to portray the coldness Getty possessed, the fear of the Academy being distracted by personal vs. professional lives led to a massive reshoot of the film. It took eight days to handle the 22 scenes. The release date was never pushed back to 2018, and Ridley Scott delivered.

The decision to reshoot, market, and distribute the film again cost millions in rush fees alone in order to meet the December 22 premiere date. Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg agreed to do their scenes again for free.

Courtesy of TriStar Pictures

Ridley Scott speaks very highly of David Scarpa's script. He says "this story was very, very provocative...Gail Getty was an exceptional character, and there are many facets of the man Getty that make him a really great study. There's this great dynamic. It was like a play, and not a movie." The story initially begins with a nonlinear storyline, giving adequate background to Getty, his success, and his family. This effectively pulls audiences in deep and quick.

Initially, even though Scott had Plummer in mind for the role, the studio insisted on using a "bigger name" like Spacey. Ultimately, Plummer stepped in, which turns out to be the best thing the film had going for itself.

One advantage that Plummer had over Spacey was meeting J. Paul Getty in the 1960s at a party he threw in London. He also didn't watch any footage of how Spacey portrayed Getty, this way he could become the character on his own terms. The final result was absolutely remarkable. Plummer is a cold force, smugly refusing to pay off his grandson's ransom. The Citizen Kane air about him is especially present in Sutton Place, a beautiful mansion full of art and empty of life.

Michelle Williams wows audiences. Ridley Scott did not originally plan on casting her, but she shines as the assertive matriarch, making deals to counteract the notorious Getty's negotiations.

Courtesy of TriStar Pictures

The end product of the film onscreen was magnificent, considering the incredible amount of work done in such a short time to produce such art. Making big moves so late in the distribution and marketing end of ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD is an impressive feat only someone like Ridley Scott could take on.

There are no plans for the film to be released for public forum with footage of Kevin Spacey as Getty. Images of him are unrecognizable (he spent five hours in makeup every day), and Christopher Plummer fell much more naturally into the role.

The stranger-than-fiction kidnapping thriller has impressed critics and audiences alike, and Plummer will make waves at award shows coming up quick.

movie
Like

About the Creator

Marina Caitlin Watts

Marina loves Frank Sinatra and hates decaf coffee. The native New Yorker and Cornell grad knows every word to "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and thinks Shakespeare is cool. If you need her, she's waiting for Godot. Twitter: @marina_caitlin

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments

There are no comments for this story

Be the first to respond and start the conversation.

Sign in to comment

    Find us on social media

    Miscellaneous links

    • Explore
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Support

    © 2024 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.