I guess I wish they had left Kevin Spacey in All the Money in the World because then I would have skipped it in protest of the serial sexual predator. Instead, I went.
All the Money in the World (Michelle Williams, Christopher Plummer, Mark Wahlberg, Charlie Plummer, Romain Duris) – This movie was doomed from the day Kevin Spacey was accused of sexual assault. I remember seeing the trailer featuring an almost unrecognizable Spacey as billionaire J. Paul Getty. Next thing I knew, Director Ridley Scott was announcing that he would re-shoot all the Spacey scenes with veteran Christopher Plummer and do it without jeopardizing the Christmas release. I wish he had just taken his time and released it later.
All the Money in the World is an overly long, boring mess. Yes, it has fine performances by Michelle Williams and the pressed-into-action Plummer. Both received Golden Globe nominations that are well deserved. It’s just too bad it had to be such a snooze-fest.
My wife sheepishly mentioned that she dozed off early in the movie. And the guy wheeling his wife out of the theater ahead of us told her the same thing. And it wasn’t just them. I nodded off a couple of times, too, in the first 45 minutes of this 132-minute marathon. That’s a sample size of three out of three.
For those who don’t remember the story: Oil magnate J. Paul Getty’s grandson, Paul (played by Charlie Plummer – no relation to Christopher), is kidnapped in Italy in 1973. The Calabrian kidnappers want $17 million to release the kid, who is not exactly your model citizen. His mother, Gail Harris (Michelle Williams), who is divorced from Getty’s son, begs the old man to pay the ransom. J. Paul, who sheltered almost all of his billion in a foundation, says no. Instead, he uses his fixer, Fletcher Chase (Mark Wahlberg), a former spy, to work for Gail to negotiate his grandson’s release. Working with the local authorities, they almost rescue the kid but, instead, the Calabrians sell young Paul to the Italian Mafia. Anyway, the bad guys are bad except for Cinquanta (Romain Duris) who really cares for young Paul. Mom is alternately stoic, tough, and vulnerable. Chase, if his character is portrayed correctly by Wahlberg, is useless.
Maybe … just maybe … people will go to see this movie to see how Scott replaced his lead actor just weeks before the movie opening. I, for one, would love to see the original with Spacey in it. Frankly, that is the only reason to waste your money on this film. Well, THAT, and if you need a nap.