Greedy People - Gelegenheit macht gierig

Do yourself a big favor and skip the trailer. This is a fairly dark movie but I suspect the marketing department didn't quite know how to present it. So they put the lighter/funnier moments in the trailer and turned it loose, hoping for the best.

The movie itself was quite intriguing. A wide assortment of characters, of varying moral character, end up on a slippery downward slope of their own doing.

Excellent cinematography with good acting all around. Tim Blake Nelson? What can I say? I'd watch him read the phone book and he was superb as a slimeball.

Definitely worth watching, just be aware the trailer painted something a bit lighter.

There will be nothing like Fargo anymore. Even like Ozark. Risky scripts in general are dead. I was expecting something risky here, but after watching the first 30 minutes, I noticed I was wrong.

First, the script is predictable, so consequently the movie is weak. Ending is a joke. I do not know why producers and directors do the same kind of movie all the time. To add, they think some decisions are clever, and obviously they're not.

Second, acting here is the best because of one person. JGH does a masterclass here. All the other cast are just ok.

Last, settings and camera work are great too. I have enjoyed the rural aura.

So, if you have watched Fargo and/or Ozark, the movie Greedy people is just a cheap version of it. Think about it. Nothing great here, just empty entertainment.

After watching Greedy People, it feels like the kind of film that made you believe there was more in store, from its pulpy premise. The keyword here is "made you believe." Unfortunately, the promise ends at being thoroughly engaging and not much else. You already know from Act One that none of the characters are likeable, trustworthy-and that would've been totally fine if it were only meant to be a harmless comedy. The film gets darker with each passing scene, and the humour basically transitions into a standard thrill-fest. Joseph Gordon-Levitt puts in a good show, and so does Lily James (did anyone else notice how she ate from the same spoon she fed her dog with?). The rest are functional, playing their respective roles without going overboard-it was still hard to buy into Himesh Patel as a cop.

I really wanted to believe there was more to one particular angle (revealing it would be spoiler-ish) about "respecting borders." That had the potential to really up the comedy quotient, yet it's not even explored. The ending also feels rushed (i.e. For a 1h 52m flick), with a resolution that just doesn't hold a lot of weight. There are a lot of coincidental happenings in the third act, making the plot threads easier to tie up sans emotional heft. A film like this needs the deep, character-driven approach (which it tries to some extent)-where one bad decision really wears down the leads. Not a bad film by any measure, though you'd wish there was better detailing to the key characters.

It's probably a movie that well sail under the Grid of a lot of viewers, but it shouldn't be. It a fun and bold crime comedy that gets a little bit dark towards the end of it. It hangs on high branches as a vision and as an inspiration, but it manages to hold any expectations and pulls through a great, interesting, funny and compelling movie with same plot.

Its half mystery and half known. It has a classic format and movie template that is built on the foundation of one domino that is falling and causes the other to get their dance started. One event ignites a chin of hidden events that will reveal what ever needs to get up to the surface and grab you by the balls, to stay and watch the movie with a lot of interest.

It has a fine cast, that includes three main actors that has already built their name through the years and worth buying a ticket for the movie theatre. The one that is pulling the strings (Potsy Ponciroli) is less familiar but has his hands in some good Hollywood projects ("Old Henry", which was his first corporation with Tim Blake Nelson, before the current one).

Ponciroli is doing great work with the setting the paste of the movie and moves elegantly between the genres of comedy and drama until all is set to take the proper direction of thriller and seal the deal with it.

This movie is not perfect or even close to it. It imitates a lot of other the excelled in this genre, but is manages to surprise with its final result. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is stealing the show, as expected and the others are riding along properly, but no one is stealing the show from Ponciroli and his way of paying great tribute to other movies giants.

It is probably true that any black comedy is rarely laugh out loud funny, but I suppose that depends on your sense of humour? This starts off light hearted enough before turning to the theme of its title, and exploring the darker side of peoples natures when a bag of money comes into play. So the early, light hearted smiles and chuckles, give way to a more uncomfortable feeling as the bodies begin to fall, whilst avoiding becoming too morose.

The look and sound is at the higher end of B movie standard, the script is respectably tight and coherent, the characters are believably eccentric, likeable, and interesting. There are some great comedy performances delivering tight, well structured and funny/amusing dialogue.

Maybe not a Saturday night must see, but definitely a Friday night weekend opener.