“How to Make a Killing” Fails to Stand Out in Crowded “Eat the Rich” Genre

Glen Powell stars in A24’s latest thriller, How to Make a Killing, a film that joins a growing number of movies targeting the wealthy, but ultimately falls short of making a significant impact.

In recent years, films like Parasite, The Menu, Ready or Not, Triangle of Sadness, and Knives Out have tapped into the “eat the rich” subgenre, resonating with audiences eager to see the 1% face consequences. How to Make a Killing attempts to join these ranks, but struggles to differentiate itself.

A Familiar Premise

Written and directed by John Patton Ford (Emily the Criminal), the film centers on Becket Redfellow (Glen Powell), who recounts to a priest while on death row how he systematically eliminated members of his family to claim a $28 billion inheritance. This narrative structure bears a strong resemblance to the 1949 British comedy Kind Hearts and Coronets, starring Alec Guinness.

Becket, the son of a New York socialite ostracized for refusing an abortion, grew up knowing he was eighth in line to the Redfellow fortune. Driven by a desire for “the right kind of life,” he sets out to “prune a few branches from the family tree,” a line directly lifted from Kind Hearts and Coronets.

Uneven Execution

The film follows Becket as he dispatches various relatives – a Wall Street broker (Rafferty Law), a trustafarian (Zach Woods), and a televangelist (Topher Grace) – in darkly comedic ways. While Powell delivers a charismatic performance, he embodies a Bruce Wayne-esque quality rather than the chilling intensity of a Patrick Bateman.

Supporting actors Bill Camp and Zach Woods provide some of the film’s most enjoyable moments. Still, the script, while containing occasional pleasing quips, lacks the sharp social commentary present in Ford’s previous work, Emily the Criminal. The film also presents a contradiction by both mocking inherited wealth and simultaneously relying on its allure.

Lacking Impact

As Becket’s kill count rises, his life is complicated by a genuine romantic connection (Jessica Henwick) and a tempting femme fatale from his past (Margaret Qualley). By the time Ed Harris appears as the family patriarch, the film’s momentum wanes.

How to Make a Killing feels less like a fresh take on the “eat the rich” trope and more like a derivative work struggling to establish its own identity. The film’s reliance on Kind Hearts and Coronets lends a cruel irony to its subject matter, highlighting its inability to forge a unique path.