Greedy People

There is a specific kind of cinematic schadenfreude that comes from watching supposedly "good" people dismantle their entire lives for a stack of non-sequential twenties. It’s a trope as old as the hills—or at least as old as the Coen Brothers—but in Greedy People, director Potsy Ponciroli transplants that greedy rot to a sun-drenched, postcard-perfect island town. I watched this while nursing a slightly lukewarm ginger ale and trying to ignore a persistent itch on my left ankle, and honestly, the physical discomfort felt strangely appropriate for a movie that thrives on making its characters (and its audience) squirm.

In the streaming-dominated landscape of 2024, Greedy People is a bit of a curious beast. It’s a mid-budget, star-studded crime comedy that feels like it belongs to the late 90s indie boom, yet it was released into the "content" maw with relatively little fanfare. It’s the kind of film that risks being buried by the algorithm, which is a shame, because while it isn't reinventing the wheel, it’s spinning that wheel with a lot of dark, cynical energy.

Island Fever and Bad Math

The story follows Will, played with a wonderful sense of escalating panic by Himesh Patel. Will is a rookie cop on a small island who, within his first few hours on the job, accidentally kills a woman during a freak domestic disturbance call. His partner, Terry (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), is the kind of guy who probably has a "Live Fast, Die Fun" tattoo hidden somewhere. Instead of calling it in, Terry discovers a hidden cache of a million dollars in the house and convinces Will that they should just... keep it.

What follows is a classic comedy of errors where the "errors" usually involve body bags. Lily James shows up as Will’s pregnant wife, Paige, who turns out to have a much sharper (and darker) instinct for self-preservation than her husband. The chemistry here works because nobody is playing for laughs; they’re playing for stakes. The humor is found in the sheer, blinding stupidity of their decisions. I found myself shouting at the screen more than once, which is usually a sign that a crime thriller has successfully hooked my central nervous system.

The JGL Chaos Factor

The MVP here is undoubtedly Joseph Gordon-Levitt. He’s operating at a frequency I haven't seen from him in years. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is essentially playing a Looney Tunes character who somehow got a badge, a gun, and a very questionable mustache. He leans into the sleaze and the misplaced confidence of a small-town cop who thinks he’s the protagonist of a Michael Bay movie.

On the other side of the island’s moral spectrum, we have Uzo Aduba as the no-nonsense police chief and Tim Blake Nelson as a local seafood mogul who seems to be in a constant state of mild irritation. The ensemble is rounded out by Simon Rex, who has mastered the art of playing "the weirdest guy in the room" so well that I’m starting to think he just shows up on sets and starts improvising.

The film excels when it focuses on the mechanics of the cover-up. There’s a scene involving the disposal of a body that relies on the kind of rhythmic, visual comedy that requires a precise edit. Ponciroli, who previously directed the gritty western Old Henry, proves he has a light enough touch for farce, even when the subject matter involves multiple homicides.

A Mid-Budget Gem in a Blockbuster World

Why didn’t this movie set the world on fire? It’s a question we ask a lot at Popcornizer lately. In an era where audiences are conditioned to wait for the next "Legacy Sequel" or a $200 million CGI spectacle, a mean-spirited little crime caper like Greedy People can feel like an outlier. It lacks the cozy nostalgia of a franchise and the "prestige" branding of an A24 release. It’s just a solid, well-acted, darkly funny movie.

Interestingly, the film was shot in Southport, North Carolina, a town that has played "charming coastal village" for everything from Dawson’s Creek to A Walk to Remember. Seeing that familiar, bright scenery serve as the backdrop for a grisly murder and a million-dollar heist provides a nice bit of cognitive dissonance. It captures that contemporary feeling that under every manicured lawn and "Shop Local" sign, there’s someone one bad day away from committing a felony.

The script by Mike Vukadinovich is packed with sharp dialogue, though it occasionally gets a little too tangled in its own subplots. By the third act, there are so many moving pieces that the film has to sprint to tie them all together. Some might find the ending a bit cynical, but I’d argue it’s the only honest way to end a story with "Greedy" in the title. It’s basically 'Fargo' if everyone involved had a mild case of heatstroke and significantly less charm.

Greedy People is a reminder that the mid-budget crime comedy isn't dead; it’s just hiding out on VOD services waiting for you to find it. It’s a polished, cynical, and frequently hilarious look at how quickly a moral compass can spin when pointed toward a pile of cash. If you’re looking for something that respects your intelligence while also showing you a very stressed-out Himesh Patel, this is well worth your time. It’s the perfect "Saturday night with a pizza" movie for people who like their humor with a bit of a bite.