WillSushyMedia This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

Zlatica One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Phillipa Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Jack Bennett When 16-year-old John Getty III is kidnapped, his devoted mother attempts to get the ransom money from his billionaire grandfather - but he refuses to offer a dime.In 1973, oil tycoon John Paul Getty's 16-year-old grandson is kidnapped in Rome by a group of masked men and held to ransom for $17m. Throughout the film, reference is made to Getty's intense frugality; he washed his own underwear in a 5* hotel bathroom to save the $10 laundry service fee, he installed pay phone in his mansion for guests to use, he negotiated his own grandsons ransom to make it tax-deductible. He once quipped to reporters during the crisis that he refused to honour the initial demand (his equivalent to sofa change) since it would encourage the kidnap of his other grandchildren. It sounds ridiculous, but it really happened.The film plods along at a steady pace but is only interesting when Getty Sr is the focus of attention. If the role remained Spacey's, you'd always suspect he was up to something - that's just the type of character Spacey has become known for since the likes of Se7en, Usual Suspects and House of Cards - but Christopher Plummer trusted demeanour means his selfish intentions come as a constant surprises. Michelle Williams is phenomenal as a tested mother at her wits end, fighting against the reluctance and condescending indifference of most of the men in the story - the irony that her pay was a tiny fraction of Wahlberg's fee should not be lost.The only real problem is the ending - it's a mess of tired clichés, an unnecessarily tacked-on chase scene and a final 'twist' that obviously didn't happen in real life. It smacks of a last-ditch attempt to add quick-paced action where it simply doesn't fit.This film will be remembered for the miracle of its release - the fact it got finished at all following the career-ending allegations against Kevin Spacey and subsequent reshoots with Plummer just four weeks before its premier is a true testament to modern filmmaking and Sir Ridley's resolve in the face of immense adversity. It's hard to believe that Getty himself would've have been so open to the effort and expense.Best Quote: "It's been reported that you're the first man in history with a fortune in excess of a billion dollars." "I have no idea, but, if you can count your money you're not a billionaire."

dale-51649 The film is based on the real life kidnapping of John Paul Getty the third. He was the grandson John Paul Getty who was at the time the richest man in the world. The acting is good, especially by the mom and the kid who plays the victim. However, the writers take a very interesting story and turn it into a Lifetime Network knockoff. I was in middle school at the time the real story was unfolding, and we were all freaked out by how cheap the grandfather seemed, what with the severed ear and all. The fact he had a pay phone in his palace said a lot too. Over time I learned that he had a stable of eight girlfriends living with him, and he liked to see them fight with each other , over him. That the movie would leave this part out shows how far down the rabbit hole we are. Even the TV show, "Trust", included the girls, and it was far better for it. It's as though they had to portray the old man as miserable at all costs, because he wasn't that into kids and family."Those kids are my blood, AND SHE TOOK THEM," John Paul Getty scoffs...oh pleeeeze... he was chasing 8 hotties around the estate and is rumored to have had the first working pre viagra med. It was a different time, and people didn't used to even pretend they were obsessing over their kids. They portray the mom being the master mind of the ransom negotiation. They also show her living pretty well but never doing any actual work, so you wonder who is paying her bills. At the time all this took place, most people had an attitude that "children should be seen and not heard", but the writers airbrush this out and fill in today's social milieu. They also show the mom gaining control of all the money after the old man's death, so it fits perfectly into the narrative "evil man ends up dead and single mom gets his jack" (sound familiar?) They exclude many real life facts including moms marriage to a B movie star and living in a villa in Brentwood with him, so makes you wonder about accuracy of the story.The fact that Hollywood would edit out real life and airbrush in a current day PC version, complete with a moral is kind of ironic, considering the first casting couch is over 100 years old now, and divorce and kids being raised by nannies is their norm. Save your money and watch the TV series, it's more realistic anyway.

guylyonsntlworldcom My biggest issue with the film, was viewing it via pay per view television. No subtitle option was available, and hearing the voice of Plummer and others was none too easy. As for the work itself, I enjoyed it, and am glad it was not sensationalized with fantasy story telling. The main characters were odd people to say the least, so to get a true grip of this tale Ridley needed to tell us viewers, the truth rather than made up nonsense, for the crisps and coke watchers. Worth a look and with decent performances from all, with Plummer excellent as usual, the film did not disappoint .

jhsimms I hated this film. Michelle Williams butchered it. She was awful. It was hard to get through for me. It was boring and doesn't keep your attention. The kid was also stupid. Just bad acting I thought.