Review of Gold (2016) by Greatmartin — 01 Feb 2017

Matthew McConaughey can be hammier than any actor around as he is in many scenes of “Gold” but, at the same time, he can turn on a dime and touch your heart and brain as he also does in this picture. He can also turn himself into the anti romantic comedy hero which he started his career with and become a drunken, hair receding, funny middle age pot belly, looking like he needs a shave man who can still get the pretty girl. Yes he cleans up very good, but it really is hard to cover up the loose, dirty-whiteys, mainly wet, he shows in a few scenes, under a tux.

Though McConaughey is the center of the film many scenes are quietly stolen from him by Edgar Ramirez, who plays his partner in discovering a mountain of gold and they develop a believable bromance while wheeling and dealing the men in suits and on Wall Street. Another scene stealer is Bryce Dallas Howard as McConaughey’s long time girlfriend who believes in, and puts up with, him.

Based on a true story it tells of a dreamer whose dreams come true making him a very wealthy man but, as always is the case, has the same problems he had when he was poor. Like most dreamers it is the thrill of the chase and when you catch up with a dream and see it burst in front of you it is hard to know how to react.

While Matthew McConaughey, Edgar Ramirez and the cast do their best, and it is good, the writers of the screenplay, Patrick Massett and John Zinman, don’t quite deliver.

Director Stephen Gaghan handles the business scenes and the lushness of and in the Indonesian valleys but doesn’t quite connect with the performers in the Nevada scenes nor does he reign in when McConaughney gets too hammy.

“Gold” is an interesting enough movie that I want to read the true story but not good enough for me to recommend.