Greetings again from the darkness. The grandson of J Paul Getty, the wealthiest man in the world, was kidnapped while in Rome in 1973. That fascinating story holds more than enough drama for an engaging movie, and certainly did not need the notoriety or artistic challenges brought on by the Kevin Spacey scandal. With filming completed and a release date mere weeks away, director Ridley Scott made the decision to erase all evidence of Mr. Spacey's J Paul Getty, and replace him with Oscar winner Christopher Plummer. The "do-over" is nearly seamless and it's not a stretch to believe the second version turned out better than the first.

The precisely descriptive titled 1995 John Pearson book "Painfully Rich: The Outrageous Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J Paul Getty" is adapted by screenwriter David Scarpa, and it's the storytelling instincts of Mr. Ridley, and remarkable acting of Mr. Plummer and Michelle Williams that keep us engaged for the 132 minute run time.

16 year old John Paul Getty III is played by rising star Charlie Plummer ("Boardwalk Empire", no relation to Christopher),and though this is the story of his kidnapping and violent torture, the movie mostly focuses on the contrasting personalities of his devoted mother Gail Harris (Michelle Williams) and his miserly grandfather J Paul Getty (Christopher Plummer),the wealthiest man in the world. She is a woman totally committed to her children while spurning the strings attached to family money. He, on the other hand, has devoted his life to money and winning, ignoring anything that might be construed as loyalty or compassion to family. Having just starred as Ebenezer Scrooge in THE MAN WHO INVENTED CHRISTMAS, this is just about the easiest transition an actor could hope for, given so little prep time for a new role.

The billionaire Getty refuses to pay the ransom, instead dispatching his security specialist Fletcher Chase (Mark Wahlberg) to negotiate the boy's release. As a former CIA operative, Chase misreads both the situation with the abductors and the strength and determination of Gail. We get periodic looks at the captors and the environment where the grandson is being held. Romain Duris (THE BEAT THAT MY HEAR SKIPPED) is excellent as Cinquanta, the captor who spends the most time with the boy. The "ear" scene is explicit enough to elicit groans and shrieks from the audience, so be advised.

"We are not like you" is what the younger Getty tells us as narrator, and he's right. The ultra-rich live in a different world than you and I (assuming you aren't one of "them"),and that's never more clear than when the elder Getty explains his preference for things over people. While we never empathize with the rich miser, director Scott at least helps us understand what made him tick. To him, life was a negotiation and it's all about winning - though his definition of winning could be debated.

The two octogenarians, Mr. Scott (80) and Mr. Plummer (88) work wonders with the outstanding Ms. Williams to make this a relatable story and captivating movie. The elder Getty died in 1976, two months to the day after Howard Hughes, while the grandson Getty had a massive drug overdose in 1981, and died in poor health in 2011, leaving behind his son, actor Balthazar Getty.

Saw 'All the Money in the World' due to that its subject is incredibly interesting. Ridley Scott has also some great films ('Alien' and 'Blade Runner' especially are masterpieces of their genre),the cast is a talented one (particularly Michelle Williams and Christopher Plummer) and the trailer was one of the best of the year.

It saddens me to say this, but 'All the Money in the World' is really not one of Scott's best and doesn't do this story justice. By all means not a terrible film, but 'All the Money in the World' is a classic instance of the trailer being much better than the film, other than the production values and some of the acting very little of what made the trailer as good as it was translated in the film.

'All the Money in the World' does have good things. Other than some hasty, artificial-looking moments (so understandably those scenes were going to be rushed due to having to be done at last minute) to accommodate original star Kevin Spacey's last minute replacement Christopher Plummer, it is a well made film. It is very slickly photographed, evocatively designed and the drabness and darkness suited the mood perfectly. The music has moments of haunting intensity but doesn't overbear things while still having presence.

Regarding Scott's direction, it is competent on the most part, excelling in the visuals and the direction of Williams and Plummer. You would never guess that Plummer was not the original choice for Getty and was brought in as last resort to replace Spacey, only some of the way the re-done scenes were done betrayed this but honestly this is ignorable as a flaw because it was understandable considering the circumstances. Judging from his powerhouse performance as this miserly and very enigmatic man, one would think actually that he was the original star all the time.

Williams is similarly brilliant, a raw intensely heart-breaking portrayal, where every kind of emotion is brought out and one of very few things in the film that shows any urgency or emotional impact for the situation. Romain Duris does his best but the writing works against him.

Not all the cast work. Mark Wahlberg just doesn't fit and takes one of the setting, also succeeding in making Chase bland and annoying. Charlie Plummer doesn't make one empathise with him much and plays John Paul in too bratty and one-dimensional a way. Those playing the villains suffer the worst of the writing, they are all sketchy ciphers that are never fully fleshed out and despite their increasing brutality there is nothing menacing about them.

The script is a really big problem here. Very rambling, some of it adding very little, and sometimes repetitive. It barely scratches the surface and never brings out the substance underneath, although Plummer and Williams do their absolute best to bring this out and succeed because they are such conscientious actors. This dilutes any emotional impact or tension completely.

Pacing also poses as just as big a problem. It is incredibly sluggish and too many scenes feel like over-stretched padding. The story is just non-stop emptiness and is very disjointed. The scenes with Williams and those with Plummer and the subplot with the captors and John Paul feel like two different films, sometimes confusingly done. The ending should have ended the film with a bang, instead 'All the Money in the World' had already petered out too early and provides a climax that is laboured, contrived and nonsensical (Scott's direction is also at its worst).

Overall, not a waste but very underwhelming considering the talent and the story. Getty may have been a notorious miser, the film manages to be more miserly than him, an unheard of feat one would think but it happened here. 5/10 Bethany Cox

ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD is a slow and ponderous retelling of the Getty kidnapping from the normally reliable Ridley Scott. This is a film that goes on forever and takes ages to get anywhere. The emphasis is on characters but they're all rather predictable and not at all interesting, from Michelle Williams as the conflicted daughter to Mark Wahlberg as the investigator. Christopher Plummer has the best role as the old miser but really doesn't have too much to do or say, and having just finished it I can't help but wonder what the point of it all was.