Fool’s Gold Movie DVD Review
Sometimes even a great location, beautiful people and two mega stars can’t save a film. Case in point: Fool’s Gold, directed by Andy Tennant (Hitch, Sweet Home Alabama, Ever After), starring Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson (who, coincidentally, also costarred in 2003’s How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days).
Fool’s Gold is about Benjamin Finnegan (McConaughey) and his estranged wife Tess (Hudson), both of whom wind up on the same yacht owned by billionaire Nigel Honeycutt (Donald Sutherland) and occupied by Honeycutt and his daughter, Gemma (Alexis Dziena).
Ben and Tess are/were treasure hunters, and while Tess has moved on to more stable “employment”, Ben is still searching for the next big treasure. Which is why he’s in deep with Bigg Bunny (Kevin Hart), a rapper/”businessman” who has been financing Ben’s various hunts for buried treasure. Unfortunately, nothing has turned up, and Bigg Bunny wants a refund. So Ben is desperate for one last score—the Queen’s Dowry. And he recruits Tess to help.
What Fool’s Gold lacks in dialogue, it more than makes up for in action. McConaughey, of course, gets to run around shirtless a lot and flex his muscles, and Hudson relies on her “ditzy” thing, which she seems to fall back on quite a bit (if you want to see her really acting, try Almost Famous). McConaughey seems to be quite happy to hang his career on his abs, and while that’s worked for him up until now, I’m thinking that ride has got to end sometime. Then what? Maybe infomercials.
Sutherland, who is a veteran actor and amazing talent, has little to do in this film, unfortunately. The sub plot revolving around him and his daughter, Gemma, was thrown in I can only guess to give the film some heart–otherwise both Ben and Tess seem shallow and greedy, caring more about treasure than family and love.
Fool’s Gold is a lengthy 113 minutes and is presented in anamorphic 2.35:1, which allows colors to pop and the beautiful locations to take center stage. Sound is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1, with the film available for viewing in English, French and Spanish (with correlating subtitles). The extras are minimal and include a very short gag reel (2:44); and “Flirting with Adventure” (4:30), featuring interviews with Hudson and various crew.
The film is rated PG-13 for some violence, minimal nudity and sexual material, and some foul language. But let’s face it—kids aren’t going to enjoy the film, as both McConaughey and Hudson’s appeal skews toward adults. So if you’re looking for adventure the kiddos can enjoy, stick with a classic like the Indiana Jones’ series, and you can’t go wrong.
I barely made it through the whole film, and frankly didn’t care about what happened to any of the characters by about ¼ of the way in. Thus, Fool’s Gold gets a mere one star out of five from me.