Gold

Title: Gold
Rating: R
Runtime: 2hr & 1min

On the Scale from Bronze to Gold this Lies in the Middle as Silver

Opening:
Matthew McConaughey is always choosing interesting projects whether they are a small, intimate independent film or a giant blockbuster. I wasn’t really looking forward to this but, the diversity of McConaughey’s career and me being a fan, I was curious. It was better than expected but it was very average. Let’s get reel and break this down.

Plot:
Kenny Wells, a prospector desperate for a lucky break, teams up with a similarly eager geologist and sets off on a journey to find gold in the uncharted jungle of Indonesia.

Directing/Writing

Pros:
With the story based on true events, it does provide palpable interest and curiosity. The theme of greed, excess, and the harsh reality of business are throughout and keep the movie going, since us as a society love films with those themes. I will mention that brief love story we have between Bryce Dallas Howard and McConaughey was believable with good chemistry and was actually my favorite part. They made a good team. However…

Cons:
…the overall structure of the film is very bland, doesn’t have the punch and energy, and doesn’t really try anything new with a film based on the rise and fall of a character fueled by greed. Everything appears to happen really fast and there is no real breathing room and almost felt like the director needed to hit certain points without it happening organically. The actual characters themselves weren’t really developed and seemed very one note. McConaughey had some character traits, I guess, but considering he was one of the main characters, I didn’t feel as much depth as I was hoping. The other thing that drove me crazy was a character switch from McConaughey in the middle of the film. I won’t say what it is, but given the scenes that literally play before it, it felt out of place and did not make sense with his character.

Acting

Pros:
Everyone does give it their all and McConaughey does give a good performance physically and emotionally. Bryce Dallas Howard, who has been mediocre to me, was pretty good and the chemistry between her and McConaughey, like I said, was the best part.

Cons:
None.

Cinematography

Pros:
The semi-grainy look adds to the authenticity of the 80’s.

Cons:
The visuals didn’t have that pop and energy and was a bit stale.

Editing/Special Effects

Pros:
There were a couple of sequences that had my attention a bit more than the others.

Cons:
For the two hour run-time, it does feel dragged out. The lack of pure energy from filmmaking drowns the movie in a slump. The energy from McConaughey’s character didn’t match the editing.

Overall:
This isn’t a bad film but it’s also not very good film. McConaughey keeps the drive of the story going but it’s just not enough to make you remember it much afterwards.

Grade: C+
(Review by Chase Lee)