Movie · 2017 · Crime, History, Thriller, Drama · 2h 12m · R · English
Curator score: 3.6/10 (164.9K ratings)
J. Paul Getty had a fortune. Everyone else paid the price.
Overview
The story of the kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III and the desperate attempt by his devoted mother to convince his billionaire grandfather Jean Paul Getty to pay the ransom.
Michelle Williams, Mark Wahlberg, Christopher Plummer, Charlie Plummer, Romain Duris, Timothy Hutton, Charlie Shotwell, Andrew Buchan, Marco Leonardi, Giuseppe Bonifati, Nicolas Vaporidis, Andrea Piedimonte Bodini, Guglielmo Favilla, Adele Tirante, Stacy Martin, Maya Kelly, Anna Devlin, Kit Cranston, Stanley Treshansky, Ginevra Migliore
Curator Review
Verdict
A polished, watchable true-crime thriller elevated by Ridley Scott’s visual control and Michelle Williams’ standout performance, but it’s also uneven, emotionally distant, and less gripping than its premise promises. The result is more compelling as a study of wealth and power than as a suspense film.
Best for
Viewers who like prestige crime dramas based on true events
Fans of Michelle Williams or Christopher Plummer
Audiences interested in money, class, and power dynamics
People who enjoy slick, adult-oriented studio thrillers
Skip if
You want a tense, fast-moving kidnapping thriller
You prefer emotionally rich character drama
You’re looking for a sharp political or social critique
You’re sensitive to films that feel cold or procedural
Overview
Ridley Scott turns a notorious kidnapping into a glossy, controlled piece of adult suspense, with period detail and wealthy-world texture doing a lot of the heavy lifting. The movie is consistently watchable, and it knows how to make boardrooms, villas, and private jets feel ominous, but it never fully ignites into the urgent thriller it wants to be.
Worth noting
Michelle Williams is the film’s emotional center, bringing real strain and intelligence to a role the script often underwrites. Christopher Plummer, stepping in late, gives the movie its sharpest charge; his Getty is both comic and monstrous, the kind of performance that instantly clarifies what the film is most interested in.
Bottom line
Even so, the drama remains somewhat muted, circling the same ideas about greed and leverage without digging deeply enough into them. It’s a handsome, competent film with strong performances and unmistakable craft, but it lands closer to intriguing than essential.
Top Letterboxd reviews
#1 gizmo fan (3.5★) · 462 likes
I will be campaigning for Michelle Williams to win all the awards because she is a force of nature and is probably the only reason this movie is interesting.
Dan (2.5★) · 334 likes
When future 5 time academy award nominee Michelle Williams hit Mark Wahlberg with the telephone... I felt that
SilentDawn (3★) · 287 likes
53
Mostly middle-of-the-road Ridley, but it's nothing less than consistently involving and self-serious, woven with an ensemble of fantastic performances. Craft is the key, however, as Scott's expressive, kinetic frames make the most out of wealthy spaces and period locations. Christopher Plummer is the MVP - great first-choice for the role.
matt lynch (3★) · 225 likes
A BAD YEAR
Never less than intriguing (if wildly fictionalized), but Scott's second movie this year that isn't really interested in what it's ostensibly about, which is an admittedly toothless message about how capital makes hostages of us all, blah blah blah. What this does have is Ridley's unparalled eye for decadence, holy hell this is gorgeous, but maybe needed someone with a bit more swagger and a lot more politics, like Bonello or someone. There's a cutting, sort of smarmy black comedy in here just waiting to be released from captivity.
stevie (2.5★) · 176 likes
As I was walking out of the theater this lady comes up to me and says “did you have a nice nap?” because apparently I was snoring so loud people stopped paying attention to the movie and just started laughing at me. That’s all you need to know about this film.