Sharp satire on the world of millionaires and fashion, where silly and absurd situations accurately reflect a grotesque reality.
What is the plot of the film?
Sir Richard McCreadie is a millionaire businessman who for three decades has been the king of retail fashion, has built an empire, buying companies where he sells clothes, his stores are in the best shopping streets of London. But lately the empire is crumbling, with debts and being scolded for his negotiating tactics, his public image is suffering. To improve his image, he decides to organize a big party for his 60th birthday, hiring a replica of a Roman coliseum on the Greek island of Mykonos, where he hopes to have celebrities, fashion people and millionaire friends present. A writer elaborating his biography, the beach flooded with Syrian refugees and all disguised as Romans, the atmosphere seems a theater of the absurd.
Greed is a satire about the world of millionaires and the superficial world of haute couture. A cynical comedy with a critical message about the cruel side of fashion, unknown to many, and whose beneficiaries play the unwary.
I am surprised that this film does not have such an impact on the times we live in. But that has an explanation. The scathing criticism is directed at a very powerful sector, the same people who are ridiculed and who are the protagonists of this accumulation of absurd and grotesque scenes.
When you see the film, you will realize the hypocrisy of all those Hollywood artists, who have joined the current trend of extreme feminists, who are asking for better wages and equality. But they play dumb or look the other way on really important issues, where there is bloody inequality and exploitation.
The big fashion brands, those who dress the rich and Hollywood superstars, exploit cheap labor in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, etc., where 90% are working women, who earn three euros for working twelve hours a day, making clothes that are then sold in the prestigious stores or directly to fashion designers.
We constantly see famous women preaching equality in their work, but they are dressed in clothes made by exploited women on the other side of the world. Do you realise the double standard?
Is it inspired by someone real?
In interviews with the director, he made it clear that his main inspiration for the film was British millionaire Sir Philip Green, founder of the Topshop chain of stores and known for his extravagant parties. For one of his birthdays, he moved more than 150 people to a resort in New Mexico for a four-day celebration that included celebrities like Leo Di Caprio, Naomi Cmapbell and Simon Cowell and musical acts like Rihanna, Sobbie Williamns and George Michael. In addition, absolutely all guests and workers had to wear custom-made, tropical-style clothing. A grotesque spectacle that we mortals can never imagine.
Phillip Green spares no expense for his crazy parties, for other of his birthdays the guests had to wear dresses and for the party of one of his sons, he moved 200 guests to France and had Beyonce's presentation.
Like the character in the film, Green channels all the money through his wife who resides in Monaco, where it is tax-free territory, freeing him from having to destine part of his fortune to British taxes. But this is not only what he does, it is thousands of millionaires and businessmen who use these tricks to avoid paying taxes, and in reality they are not doing anything illegal, they are only taking advantage of the system. The owners of Zara and H&M also use this strategy.
Filmmaker Michael Winterbottom makes a film that flies by, dominating the rhythm of the film, with constant journeys to the past and the present, to tell us the whole story, from the origins of his character, the creation of his empire and explain how he managed to become a millionaire.
Scenes and situations that at first seem to be on the verge of ridicule, work as an element of comedy, to capture a reality that must surely be more absurd than that shown in the fiction.
For example: The daughter of the character in the film is doing a reality show, which is filmed at the same time as her father's party is being organized. In real life, Phillip Green's daughter appeared in a British reality show, but she also fell in love with Jeremy Meeks, the man who became famous, when his mug shot (he was a criminal) went viral on the Internet, where he was catalogued as the most beautiful criminal in the world. Do you realize that reality is crazier and more absurd than fiction?
I have laughed a lot with this film, there is a lot of cynical humor, black humor. This may be another reason why the film is not so well known. People want humor that is easier to digest.
The actor Steve Coogan is very well known in England, he started his career as a comedian and both in film and television he has achieved a lot of success. He was nominated for a Golden Globe and has won the Bafta award as a screenwriter. This acting chameleon plays Sir Richard McCreadie, the self-made millionaire. The fleshless entrepreneur, he is nicknamed the greedy one, because his greed knows no bounds. The character is a very real parody of how these beings who have so much money behave, that nothing is impossible for them. A great performance that is fun throughout the film.
The cast is completed by Isla Fisher, Asa Butterfield, Shirley Henderson, David Mitchell, Sophie Cookson, Stephen Fry, Sarah Solemani among other actors, the list is long, I invite you to see the file of the film on IMDB so you can see who is involved in this production.
The film is funny, with black humor, and launches a strong criticism to the world of fashion industry millionaires, showing us a hidden part of this whole business, the one that media and celebrities keep quiet, while they parade down the red carpet, wearing valuable clothes.
If you have strange tastes like me, I recommend this movie.
My Ranking: 3.8/5
