Greedy People: A movie that doesn’t seem to know exactly what it wants to be. Right off the bat, it seems to very clearly be a buddy cop–type comedy, with themes of family and friendship in unfamiliar places. However, it quickly turns into something much darker, almost ditching the comedy aspect all together. It seems like the idea was that the movie would be a dark comedy, descending into chaos, though it came across more as uncertainty and indecisivness in its writing – the struggle to pick a general mood and stick to it.
Greedy People tells the story of a man named Will Shelley who moves to a small island town with his wife, and joins the police force. In a twist of fate, residents must navigate a murder and the discovery of a million dollars, creating disarray in the once quaint, peaceful town of Providence.
A light comedy turned dark comedy turned crime drama, Greedy People was surely an unpredictable ride. This varying tone, though, resulted in uneven pacing throughout the movie. A painfully slow start is eventually able to evolve into a very engrossing and well-written story, though many scenes felt unnecessary, and only seemed to dissolve tension from the scene before, sabotaging any sense of anticipation the movie began to gain for itself.
Directed by Potsy Ponciroli, known for “Old Henry” and “Jay and Silent Bob Reboot”, Greedy People features Joseph Gordon-Levitt (500 Days of Summer, Inception), Lily James (Baby Driver, Cinderella), and Himesh Patel (Don’t Look Up, Tenet). A product of Limelight, Boies Schiller Entertainment, and Hideout Pictures, Greedy People was written by Michael Vukadinovich, a writer and producer of Showtime’s “Kidding.”
In spite of its disarray, the movie was entertaining throughout its disorderly fashion. Full of well-known, seasoned actors, Greedy People was supported by strong performances from its leads, notably Patel and Gordon-Levitt. Both actors managed to ride the wave of chaos and provide both comedic-relief, and strong, dramatic characters. The movie manages to pull itself together and was certainly a fun and exhilarating ride.
In a final analysis, I would rate Greedy People a 3/5. While being a jumbled frenzy of crime, love, and comedy, the movie is able to endorse its chaos to create an entrancing story. Greedy People is available to buy or rent on Youtube, Google Play Movies & TV, Apple TV, Fandango at Home and Amazon Prime Video.
