Fool's Gold (2008)
Directed by Andy Tennant
Written by Daniel Zelman
Starring Matthew McConaughey, Kate Hudson, Donald Sutherland, Alexis Dziena
Release Date February 8th, 2008
Published February 7th, 2008
Pirates, treasure, gangsters, guns. For the guys? Kate Hudson in a tiny bikini. For the ladies? Matthew McConaughey with no shirt on. The comedy Fool's Gold seems to have everything a movie needs to be a major success. So why does it suck out loud? It's probably because the movie doesn't add up to much more than that checklist of things that I, and I am sure some movie marketing department, just listed.
Fool's Gold stars McConaughey as Finn, a professional treasure hunter. Living in the Bahamas Finn spends his days in the crystal blue waters seeking shipwrecks containing unimaginable wealth all the while dodging creditors, loan sharks and lawyers, all of whom he owes something to. The lawyers were at first just process servers but once he was served they became divorce attorneys. Finn's wife Tess (Kate Hudson) is finished with his dreams of treasure. She wants a normal life back in Chicago where she can attend school and get her degree in history.
Needless to say, being married to Finn has been a barrier to her goals. Now, as the divorce is being completed he still manages to be a barrier. Incurring more debt and crossing some pretty severe gangsters, Finn costs Tess the chance to return to Chicago by accidentally blowing up the boat they own, the one she was selling for money to go back to school.
Left with no options she takes a gig working for a wealthy industrialist (Donald Sutherland) on his yacht. His name is Nigel Honeycutt and he is looking for adventure as a way of getting the attention of his daughter Gemma (Alexis Dziena). He finds just the thing when Finn arrives at the boat offering the opportunity to find some legendary Spanish gold.
No points for guessing Tess and Finn fight, make love, fight again and then walk off into the sunset happily ever after. That ending was coming the moment Hudson and McConaughey were cast in Fool's Gold. The only chance Fool's Gold has of being entertaining beyond the gorgeous Bahamian landscapes was to find interesting ways to tweak the form.
Director Andy Tennant is a master of formulaic junk, his last film was Hitch with Will Smith. It was Tennant who crystallized the absolute worst sins of the romantic comedy genre with his abysmal Sweet Home Alabama. Fool's Gold is right up his alley in terms of formula junk. Choosing to follow every expected scene, every predictable plot strand, every manufactured pre-packaged joke, Tennant crafts a movie so predictable you could set your watch by it. Interestingly, Tennant is a not a bad directorial craftsman. Say what you will about his inability to escape formula, he knows how to craft and cut a movie.
The landscapes, the scenery, the Bahamian settings of Fool's Gold are utterly gorgeous and were no doubt a welcome respite from the winter when this film was initially released. As it reaches DVD this summer Fool's Gold may actually inspire a few vacation choices. Unfortunately, movies can't skate on visuals alone. When looked at as a movie, Fool's Gold is far too predictable to be entertaining. Tennant and his cast do absolutely nothing to vary the format, to give the material enough of a twist to differentiate it from a dozen similar movies.
In that way, Fool's Gold floats by and disappears leaving no impression whatsoever. Harmless? Yes, but why would you want to pay for this experience on DVD or otherwise. You'd be better off watching Into The Blue on cable, Blue Crush, or Captain Ron. Each of these films while differing in plot and cast offer the same experience of white sand beaches, buff beach bodies and crystal blue waters. It really doesn't matter which one you watch, it's the same forgettable experience.
If you have the money, you might as well just go to Jamaica.
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