Just a few short months ago, Ridley Scott’s new crime drama
“All the Money in the World” faced disaster when the career of Kevin Spacey — who
played one of the film’s major roles — imploded spectacularly in the wake of
several allegations of sexual misconduct. The behind-the-scenes shake-ups
threatened to overshadow the film completely, but rather than delay the release
or scrap the project entirely, Scott made the unprecedented decision to recast Spacey’s part, despite the fact that the film had already
been completed. Hiring Christopher Plummer, the director set about reshooting
and replacing all the actor’s scenes with less than two months before the film
was set to hit theaters. Watching the film, you’d never know the change had
taken place.
The film is
a stylish, glossy thriller inspired by the 1973 real-life kidnapping of John
Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer), the 16-year-old grandson of oil tycoon John
Paul Getty (the role played by Christopher Plummer). The scoundrels demand a
$17 million ransom, an amount that young John’s mother, and Getty’s former
daughter-in-law, Gail (an excellent Michelle Williams) has no hope of paying,
thanks to her decision a year prior to refuse the Getty family fortune in
exchange for maintaining custody of her children. But that decision now makes
her dependent on Getty, and the ruthless cheapskate refuses to pay.
As John’s
ordeal stretches on for weeks and then months, we follow Gail’s desperate
efforts to get her son back, with the help of Getty’s head of security, a
former CIA operative named Fletcher Chase (Mark Wahlberg — fine, if somewhat
miscast). Despite knowledge that his own blood relative is facing torture and
even death, the elder Getty remains monstrously nonchalant about the whole
thing. He has his reasons for his refusal, but at a certain point, the most
obvious appears to be his own deep dysfunction.
I was a bit
surprised just how large a role Christopher Plummer has — this isn’t just some
extended cameo. His presence is pretty seamless, and only one moment — a brief
long shot of Getty in the desert that appears to utilize green screening — looks
out of place. It’s a remarkable achievement (all the more impressive
considering “All the Money in the World” is the second film the 80-year-old
Scott delivered in 2017, after the underrated “Alien: Covenant”), and it will
be interesting to see whether the filmmaker is rewarded for his efforts come
Oscar time.
Plummer was
reportedly the director’s first choice for the role of John Getty, and he turns
out to one of the best parts of the film. It’s a cold, but fully-rounded
performance and he brings a gravitas to this engrossing and sadly relevant tale
revolving around a powerful, but unstable man to whom wealth matters more than
compassion. The backstory is fascinating, but his work stands all on its own.
This article appears in Jan 3-9, 2018.
