Georgetown (film)

Georgetown is a 2019 American crime drama film directed by Christoph Waltz (in his feature directorial debut) and written by David Auburn. It is based on Franklin Foer's 2012 New York Times Magazine article "The Worst Marriage in Georgetown", which details the 2011 murder of 91-year-old socialite Viola Herms Drath by her much-younger second husband in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Waltz stars alongside Vanessa Redgrave, Annette Bening and Corey Hawkins.

It had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 27, 2019. It received a limited release in the United States on May 14, 2021, by Vertical Entertainment.

Plot
The film opens with an on-screen disclaimer:"This story does not, in any way, claim to be the truth. Nonetheless it is inspired by real events." The plot is based on and is a fictionalized account of the 2011 murder of Viola Herms Drath by her husband Albrecht Gero Muth. In the movie, Ulrich Mott, an ambitious, grandiose, and dishonest social climber becomes the main suspect in the death of his wealthy and much older wife, Elsa Breht.

Cast

 * Christoph Waltz as Ulrich Mott (based upon the real-life murderer Albrecht Gero Muth)
 * Vanessa Redgrave as Elsa Breht (based upon the real-life socialite Viola Herms Drath)
 * Annette Bening as Amanda Breht
 * Corey Hawkins as Daniel Volker
 * Laura de Carteret as Eleanor Price
 * Saad Suddiqui as Zahari
 * Ron Lea as Detective Reid
 * Alexander Crowther as Matthew

Production
It was announced in May 2015 that Christoph Waltz would make his feature directorial debut with The Worst Marriage in Georgetown, in which he would also star as the main character Ulrich Mott.

In May 2017, Vanessa Redgrave was cast in the film, now titled Georgetown, as the wealthy socialite Mott marries in order to up his social status. Annette Bening joined the film in September, with filming commencing in Toronto between August 3 and September 16, 2017.

Release
It had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 27, 2019. Its earliest theatrical release was in Italy on June 16, 2020. It was released in the United States on May 14, 2021, in a limited release by Vertical Entertainment. It was released on video on demand on May 18, 2021, by Paramount Home Entertainment.

Box office
Georgetown grossed $2,132 in Italy.

Critical response
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of based on  reviews, with an average rating of. On Metacritic, it holds a weighted average score of 49 out of 100, based on eight critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

John DeFore of The Hollywood Reporter praised the film, noting that "it's the kind of serious but broadly appealing, modestly scaled picture that people love to say doesn't exist any more."

In The New York Times, Calum Marsh praised Waltz's performance, saying that "he is a pleasure to watch."