All the Money in the World will leave you dumbfounded

Movie Title: All the Money in the World

Grade: A

Rating: R, 2 hours 12 minutes

In a Nutshell: If you have ever been to the famous Getty Museum in Los Angeles, you’ll get a new appreciation for what you saw there. If you haven’t been, put it on your list of places to see next time you’re in California. What’s ironic is that the entrance ticket is free.

Inspired by true events, Ridley Scott gives us another compelling movie that has already earned him and the lead actors nominations for Golden Globe awards. As an added bonus, we learn that ransom money can be tax deductible if you do it right. Ha ha

Uplifting theme:

“Money is never just money; it always stands for something.” – Mark Walhberg
The value of life
Family
Money

Things I liked:

Christopher Plummer was absolutely fantastic, well deserving of the Golden Globe nomination he just earned. He did all of his scenes in only 2 weeks! You’ll notice on the movie poster above that it lists Kevin Spacey. He was replaced with Plummer as soon as sexual allegations made headline news against him at a cost of $10 million dollars to the picture. I’m sure Spacey would have been great in this, but Christopher Plummer was outstanding. What Ridley Scott was able to do in such a short amount of time deserves an A grade alone. Another movie Plummer was magical in during this year’s Christmas season was The Man Who Invented Christmas. I really enjoyed it, but it flew under the radar for most people.
Good for Michelle Williams for having two great movies in theaters at the same time! Her other film is “THE GREATEST SHOWMAN IN THE WORLD.” She does a great job in both and earned her 5th Golden Globe nomination for her role as Gail Harris Getty. I wonder if Angelina Jolie regrets declining the role.
Most of the movie is filmed in Rome, which I adore. There are beautiful vistas and scenery.
It was fascinating to see J. Paul Getty pay obscene amounts of money for artwork, yet he couldn’t see the value of human life. Twice, he admires a painting of the Madonna and child, saying breathlessly, “There you are…beautiful child”, while his own grandson was being tortured as a captive.
Oscar winner Timothy Hutton and Oscar nominee Mark Wahlberg also give excellent performances. Because of the reshoots, Mark Wahlberg had to be refitted for his suits. He had lost 30 pounds for another movie he was shooting.

Things I didn’t like:

Have you ever noticed that people who arrogantly say, “I can take care of myself!” are usually the ones who need to be rescued?
I thought it was interesting that J. Paul Getty thought he was a reincarnated Roman emperor. He sure lived like one. And yet, he was such a cheapskate that he had a phone booth installed in his house in case his guests needed to make a phone call. Yikes.
Sometimes I couldn’t understand what Cinquanta (Romain Duris) said, because he had such a thick accent and mumbled a lot.
Other than being young, we’re not given a lot of reasons to really care about Paul Geddy, the grandson who got kidnapped. He seems like a spoiled wanderer, so I would have liked to know more about him.
It is truly mind-boggling that a billionaire wouldn’t be willing to pay money to save his own family.

Interesting lines:

“If you can count your money, then you’re not a billionaire.” – J. Paul Getty
“I don’t have any money.” – Gail Harris Getty (Michelle Williams)

“Get it from your father-in-law. He has all the money in the world.” – Cinquanta

“Everything has a price. The challenge in life is to discover what that price is.” – Getty
“There’s very little in life worth paying full price for.” – Getty
“You never really know anyone until you get divorced.” – Getty
“You’re not a person anymore; you’re a symbol.” – detective
“Guns are for people who don’t have money.” – Getty
“Getting rich is easy. Any fool can and many do, but BEING rich is different.” – Getty
“There’s a purity in things that I’ve never been able to find in another human being.” – Getty
“What would it take for you to feel secure?” – Fletcher Chase (Mark Wahlberg)

“More.” – Getty

Tips for parents:

Some profanity and F-bombs.
Some spoken Italian with no subtitles. Otherwise, most of it has subtitles.
Lots of smoking and drinking.
Bloody, violent deaths.
Burned, charred body.
You watch bad guys slice the ear off of Paul. It’s bloody and disgusting.
Young children will be bored. This is a long movie with lots of talking and not that much action.