All The Money in the World: Review

• This is a NON-Spoiler review for All the Money in the World. And if you want to keep away from spoilers, I'd also stay away from the true story. I wish that I hadn't known what the true story was going into this movie. And I'm also not going to talk too much about the controversy currently surrounding Kevin Spacey. I'm a fan of his work but I'm really disappointed to hear how he's behaved off-screen. But I'm here to talk about what I thought of the final film.

• Plot Summary: "All the Money in the World follows the kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer) and the desperate attempt by his devoted mother Gail (Michelle Williams) to convince his billionaire grandfather (Christopher Plummer) to pay the ransom. When Getty Sr. refuses, Gail attempts to sway him as her son’s captors become increasingly volatile and brutal. With her son’s life in the balance, Gail and Getty’s advisor (Mark Wahlberg) become unlikely allies in the race against time that ultimately reveals the true and lasting value of love over money."

• I enjoyed this movie. However, I think the only thing that is going to make this movie memorable is Christopher Plummer replacing Kevin Spacey. If you don't know what happened - Kevin Spacey was originally playing the role of Getty. There was even a trailer that we all saw. And Ridley Scott (who originally wanted Christopher Plummer) made the decision to replace Kevin Spacey with Christopher Plummer. And they reshot this major role in 9 days. 9 DAYS! It blows my mind how fast they did that. And watching the movie, it's kinda like Henry Cavill's mustache in Justice League. You spend the whole movie looking for the tiniest mistake. And that's a little bit unfortunate to the story. But I greatly respect Ridley Scott for making the decision to not let Kevin Spacey's actions to destroy this story and thousands of people's hard work. And they pulled a magic trick with the reshoots.

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• So as for my enjoyment of the movie. I thought it was fine. I think that the trailers are lying to you. That first trailer with Christopher Plummer was edited so fast like they were selling a ‪Mad Max‬ movie. This is not an action-packed movie. I think that there were some really good tense scenes. But overall, I don't think that the kidnapping plot was handled very well. Ridley Scott has been very hit and miss lately. Both movies he directed this year felt a bit like lazy directing to me. I think that he could have told this kidnapping story in a more interesting way for sure. To me, I didn't feel as much tension in the story as I think could have been there.

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• I'll get back into the story more in a minute. Let me talk about the acting. For me, the most powerful performance to watch was Michelle Williams. We've seen a lot of performances of a parent dealing with their kid being kidnapped. So Michelle Williams does a great job. If she had been nominated, I would have been fine with that. I just think that performances like Wynona Ryder in Stranger Things are WAY better than Michelle Williams in this movie. But Michelle Williams did great with the material she was given. I think she's probably one of the best parts of the movie. But also I think that the story could have enhanced Michelle Williams part in the story a lot more. So let's talk about Mark Wahlberg. I enjoy watching Mark Wahlberg. I just think that he often picks TERRIBLE movies. So I think this was a much better choice for him than Transformers. To me, he doesn't really stand out but I think he did fine. I think that actors like Charlie Plummer and Romain Duris actually stood out more than Mark Wahlberg (who's the highest paid actor on the set I believe).

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• Christopher Plummer has just been nominated for his role in this movie that took 9 days to film. I found Christopher Plummer's character to be VERY interesting. He's similar to Scrooge (who he just played). He's this super greedy businessman. But in a weird way, you also connect with him at certain points. He's a very mysterious character. And I thought he was very well written. And I think that Christopher Plummer deserves recognition for being able to do this ‪in 9 days‬. And I also thought he was excellent in the movie. I don't think he deserved a nomination over Patrick Stewart, but it's still a worthy nomination to me.

• So let me talk about the story again. I don't feel like the way that the kidnapping was introduced into the story was very interesting. It didn't ever feel like a thing that threw off the balance of the characters. It just sorta happened. I think that the kidnapping plot needed to be earned more for me to care. There were some really good tension-filled scenes. But overall, I don't find the story as compelling as I think it could have been made. So I think that this movie story could have been told better, but it does have its moments with tension and characters. But a super fast-paced thriller like the trailer was pitching I think is a lie. My grade for All the Money in the World is a B