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Each day, while most of us go through our daily tasks, juggling work and family and other responsibilities, the extremely rich lounge on their private yachts, while their low-paid staff takes care of the details of everyday life. And director Michael Winterbottom’s latest, Greed, explores the over-the-top life of one of the super-rich.
Greed stars Steve Coogan as Sir Richard McCreadie—or Greedy McCreadie as he’s often known. With his 60th birthday approaching, Sir Richard is gathering his friends, his family, and as many important people as possible to Greece, where he’s planning the greatest birthday celebration ever—complete with a concert, fireworks, and his very own amphitheater housing a real lion. He’s also brought biographer Nick (David Mitchell), who learns a lot about the fashion mogul, his past, and his rise to greatness through interviews with colleagues and staff members.
Though Greed may be marketed as a satire of the rich, it’s far from the wild and crazy comedy that you might be expecting. Yes, it does have some ridiculous moments—especially when Sir Richard’s melodramatic reality TV star daughter is involved. Sir Richard himself is definitely over-the-top, too—but in a way that feels shamefully realistic instead of laughably satirical. The character is ruthless and selfish and (true to his nickname) incredibly greedy. He decides that he wants an authentic Greek amphitheater for his birthday, and he demands that it be built in 10 days. He insists that a group of refugees be removed from the nearby beach because they’re ruining his view. His business deals result in lower wages for workers, yet he passes the blame to everyone else. And because he’s filthy rich, he knows how to work the system, so he can avoid paying taxes on any of his questionable earnings.
If you come into the movie expecting to be amused and entertained, then, you’ll end up with a sinking feeling in your stomach, knowing that the film’s portrayals of this character and his life aren’t really all that far from the truth. It has some entertaining moments, but it’s not especially funny. It has a message, but it’s not a very strong one. And it all seems random and unfocused.
While Greed has a thing or two to say about wealth and greed, it simply doesn’t know what it wants to be. It’s neither an outrageous comedy nor a powerful social commentary—and, in the end, it’s mostly just forgettable.
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