Gold

I was intrigued by the trailer and Matthew McConaughey's transformation (I thought it was a mask, but he was really set up that way...), I was impressed by Daniel Pemberton's soundtrack... I didn't know anything about the real story, I didn't know the director, I went to the movie theatre and I don't regret it. Gold is a light, breezy and ever so lucid film that beautifully mixes the adventure genre with the drama of a stubborn modern gold digger who searches and searches, although he may have already found it, and he just doesn't know it. Of course, it sounds like a huge cliché, but during the two hours it never occurred to me that I was watching something I'd actually seen many times before. On the contrary, I was constantly pleasantly surprised by the film, I appreciated that the main character is actually likable (and thankfully not a shark in the style of The Wolf of Wall Street), that it's not a problem to understand him and, thanks to that, to actually experience the whole story with him. I was very surprised by two things - the final fifteen minutes or so, which I won't write about, and the fact that Bryce Dallas Howard, whom I didn't recognize until the credits, was in the film. (17/02/2017)

After Syriana, it was hard for me to imagine a better plated table than the one I'm once again invited to join with a smiling Robert Elswit and Stephen Gaghan, along with McConaughey smoking in the background, whose acting method of taking his shirt off during the film is a particularly drastic experience here. But it's this overload of egos that makes Gold a first-rate, dynamic, and entertaining spectacle, though unlike Traffic, Syriana, or, say, There Will Be Blood, it lacks any socio-economic relevance and fails to bridge the character of a slimy little man who, while not evil, is ultimately not all that interesting. The only thing that makes him a distinct character is McConaughey's method of "A Slimy Creep in Three Steps; chapter Teeth, Baldness, and Pimples". I must confess, I ended up missing Elswit's brilliant framing of even simple dialogue scenes, never settling for three cuts of talking busts, characters entering the frame from uncharacteristic close by, or the camera gradually revealing the structure of a scene with its movement. But to set it in a bigger whole than an actor's Oscar-hopeful ramblings in a story based on a true event, I would have fallen asleep better. (23/05/2017)

Though Gold has a plot structure with the right punchlines, it has no drive and the director’s way of doing things is too detached. And the choice of songs used in the soundtrack is downright dubious. The movie would benefit from more skillful, faster storytelling and some vivacity like American Hustle had (both films take place in a similar retro America). (20/02/2017)

An above-average standard reconstruction (in the day) of the biggest gold fraud on earth. Unfortunately made by a director without the necessary knack. The acting is great, and tubby McConaughey rocks. The screenplay is excellent, but has no build-up of tension, and simply tells the story as it unfolds, which is a bit disappointing. And this is another important lesson we can learn from history. (08/12/2018)

A traditionally well-prepared McConaughey, giving his usual 100 percent to his role. Otherwise, however, this is a rather uninteresting film inspired by a true story, which follows in the footsteps of American Hustle in its retro style, but lacking vivacity and passion. Other than a couple of emotionally accomplished situations, it’s a real borefest. (08/05/2017)