All the Money in the World

Perhaps even more fascinating than this fact-based kidnap drama is how director Ridley Scott replaced scandal-ridden Kevin Spacey with persuasive Christopher Plummer as billionaire J. Paul Getty (after re-filming 22 scenes, Scott seamlessly edited old reaction shots with the new footage). In 1973, bohemian, 16-year-old John 'Paul' Getty III (Charlie Plummer) was kidnapped in Rome. His frantic mother, Gail Harris (Michelle Williams), was desperate to deliver the $17 million ransom that the kidnappers demanded, but obstinate grandfather Getty declined to pay, instead summoning an ex-CIA agent, Fletcher Chase (Mark Wahlberg)—the family 'fixer,' skilled in security and crisis management—to track Paul down. A pioneering oil tycoon, Getty was then the richest man in history, paying no taxes because his global estate was in a charitable trust, allowing him to invest in art work and antiquities. Notoriously frugal, Getty installed a pay phone for visitors at his baronial, 73-plus-room British mansion. The elderly Getty icily claimed that since he had 14 grandchildren, paying a ransom for Paul would encourage further kidnappings. Italian crime syndicate operatives, part of the Red Brigade, held the troubled teenager hostage in the countryside, at one point cutting off Paul’s right ear and mailing it to a Rome newspaper. Based on John Pearson’s 1995 book Painfully Rich: The Outrageous Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J. Paul Getty, this tense true thriller is recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include the behind-the-scenes featurettes 'Hostages to Fortune: The Cast' (10 min.), 'Ridley Scott: Crafting a Historical Thriller' (9 min.), and 'Recast, Reshot, Reclaimed' on replacing a character (5 min.), as well as deleted scenes (7 min.), and a bonus digital copy of the film. Bottom line: A decent extras package for a fine historical drama.] (S. Granger)