How to Make a Killing

★⯪☆☆

How to Make a Killing (2026)

Runtime: 105 minutes

MPAA: Rated R for language and some violence/bloody images.

Maybe I just don't get it. A person who plans and commits murders of all his family members to inherit a fortune seems like an interesting idea, and I did go in expecting a ton of fun in its action, satire, wit and snappy dialogue. I walked out thinking it was plain dull. 

Written and directed by John Patton Ford, Glen Powell plays Becket Redfellow, the son of disgraced member Mary (Nell Williams). The patriach Whitelaw (Ed Harris) kicked her out because of her teenage pregnancy, and when Mary fell sick and eventually died, leaving Becket alone, the family didn't bother to support or even reach out to Becket. In the present day, he's a luxury suit salesman in New York City, where he bumps into his childhood friend Julia (Margaret Qualley) who's married. Demoted from his current job because of store politics (nepotism!), he decides to go on a killing spree, eliminating his cousins, uncles, aunts and eventually Whitelaw, which includes an ensemble comprising of Bill Camp, Zach Woods, Topher Grace, Bianca Amato, Raff Law and Alexander Hanson. 

Becket is rightfully salty about the mistreatment, yet the motive to suddenly go sociopathic mode and embark on a killing spree is rather weak. Powell's performance doesn't help you root for his character to succeed too. Don't get me wrong - he's great in many charismatic roles like Top Gun: Maverick, but here he looks smug and self-satisfied in all of this. The first two-thirds of How to Make a Killing is essentially a standard homicide procedural, as Becket devises elaborate plans to stage the murders of his family members to make it look like accidents, all while burdened under increasing suspicion from the authorities. Somehow, while it's entertaining in very short bursts, especially in the kills, the narrative tissue in between is episodic and just uninteresting. The process of him meeting the person, conversing with them and setting up the scheme does get repetitive and the movie knows that, yet he uses repeated tricks in the murders, which is kind of unimaginative. You're right folks, after some point, even the action gets dull! 

There's something about eating the rich in here, but the family members are reduced to one-note caricatures, so it's unclear what the film wants to say about them. Intertwined with this is also a developing romance between him and Ruth (Jessica Henwick), the girlfriend of his cousin Noah whom he killed in a meticulously set up explosion, occasional interactions with Julia that lead to blackmail, and some self-reflection on whether money is happiness and what matters most in life. The few moments of introspection on the human condition and the last conversation with Warren are the most thoughtful aspects of the film, but flimsy too is the examination of Becket's current state and satisfaction, as he somehow continues through with the murders to get the inheritance. 

It all eventually reaches a crescendo with the meeting and showdown with Whitelaw, with sprinkles of pride, greed and family fortune mixed into the concoction. All is well, until Becket is framed for a murder that sends him straight to death row, something we know from the get go as he narrates the entire story to a priest before his scheduled execution. It's an unexpected twist that finally brings some vigor back into the picture, but it just keeps dragging and dragging, reluctant and extremely stubborn to end. It is the anticlimax of anticlimaxes, as the excitement slowly wanes down and you're wondering what it wants to say about human nature or the rich. By the time it ends, it's unclear what he and his living associates have learned, because they're simply terrible people. Maybe his fate is worse than death because he has to deal with true evil, and that money wasn't what mattered the most after all. I desperately wished How to Make a Killing knew how to convey that.