5.9 | / 10 |
Users | 3.8 | |
Reviewer | 2.5 | |
Overall | 3.6 |
Ben "Finn" Finnegan is a good-natured, surf bum-turned-treasure hunter who is obsessed with finding the legendary 18th century Queen's Dowry — 40 chests of exotic treasure that were lost at sea in 1715. In his quest, Finn has sunk everything he has, including his marriage to Tess Finnegan and his more-rusty-than-trusty salvage boat, "Booty Calls." Just as Tess has begun to rebuild her life, working aboard a mega-yacht owned by billionaire Nigel Honeycutt, Finn discovers a vital clue to the treasure's whereabouts. Certain that his luck will change with the newfound information, Finn maneuvers himself aboard Nigel's yacht and, using his good-natured charm, convinces the tycoon and his Blackberry-wielding, celebutante daughter, Gemma, to join him in the pursuit of the Spanish treasure. Against Tess' better judgement, the search rekindles her love of...discovery. But they are not the only ones after the treasure. Finn's mentor-turned-nemesis Moe Fitch has also set out to claim the prize. Let the treasure hunt begin...
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Kate Hudson, Donald Sutherland, Alexis Dziena, Ewen BremnerComedy | 100% |
Romance | 76% |
Thriller | 19% |
Adventure | 18% |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.41:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
English SDH, French, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 2.5 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 1.5 | |
Overall | 2.5 |
Charisma is a valuable commodity in show business, but even those with it in large supply would probably tell you it can only do so much. Case in point: Fool’s Gold, a 2008 supposed “comedy” in the Romancing the Stone mold, with a bickering couple hot on the trail of untold riches. Stars Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson, previously a winning team in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, are virtually textbook definitions of charisma, and yet even their screen presence washes up on the sandy shores of this film like little more than flotsam and jetsam. Fool’s Gold was probably a project that had everything a producer could ask for on paper, with a newly divorced couple rekindling their romance on the high seas as they competed to find a long sought after Spanish treasure, working to beat a gangster cum music star named BiggBunny who had previously employed McConaughey’s hapless character, Finn. What could be better than tropical locales, McConaughey and Hudson wearing skimpy clothing, and Donald Sutherland doing a fey British accent? Well, judging by the results on screen in Fool’s Gold, virtually anything. This is a film which wastes what little comic momentum it ever manages to achieve with a hopelessly contrived screenplay that has Hudson’s character Tess so repeatedly put in the same “perils of Pauline” straits that most viewers are going to wish they’d come down with a quick case of the bends, just so they had a good excuse to stop watching.
You may be bored out of your mind by the story, angered that McConaughey and Hudson don't have more to work with, and wonder why every plot point is so predictable in Fool's Gold, but you won't have too much to complain about with this early days Blu-ray release from Warner. Encoded via VC-1, in 1080p and 2.41:1, Fool's Gold is more often than not gorgeous to behold, courtesy of some really lovely location shooting in and around Queensland. Brilliantly teal water glints against flashing yellow sunlight throughout large swaths of the film, and fine detail reveals every last ab in McConaughey's muscle bound torso. In fact colors throughout the film are often astoundingly well saturated and the entire film has the sort of pastel dreaminess that used to paint old episodes of Miami Vice with that sort of faux-Caribbean ambience. There are a few niggling artifacts to report, occasional shimmer and aliasing, but for an older Blu-ray release, this really looks quite good almost all of the time.
As one of the earlier Warner catalog titles to receive a Blu-ray release, Fool's Gold does not have any lossless audio options. That's a real shame, considering the many fine and fun source cues utilized as underscore, but also because there is ample opportunity for that lossless "oomph," especially on the low end, throughout the film. All of that said, there's really not a whole bunch to complain about with the perfectly fine Dolby Digital 5.1 mix. Surrounds are effectively utilized throughout the film, with good discrete sound effects well placed throughout the soundfield, and with all dialogue crisp and clear and easy to hear. There's actually a fair degree of dynamic range, as well as some decent LFE, throughout the film. Fidelity is excellent and balance between dialogue, effects and score is also expertly handled. Yes, lossless would have been better, but there are many other items about Fool's Gold you'll probably have listed higher on your complaint list than the lack of lossless audio.
This bare bones early Warner release doesn't even have a main menu screen, so don't expect an overwhelming supply of supplements:
You'll probably want to like Fool's Gold more than you end up doing, but that's not your fault. This is a film which really should have sparkled, but it instead barely manages to rise above a dull shine now and then. McConaughey and Hudson are an incredibly attractive pair, but they simply have little to work with here in a misguided and trite screenplay. The locales are certainly lovely, and the scantily clad stars are also an eyeful, and for that reason alone you may want to give this an evening's rental.
2011
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1985
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2023
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2006
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