Fool's Gold

I wasn't expecting much as I drove through the icy cold night for the screening of Fool's Gold. I don't know why. It could be that I can't watch Kate Hudson without picturing her Mom, Goldie Hawn, who I love. Matthew McConaughey I took with a grain of salt because all I've seen of him has been on E! or other TV magazine shows like Entertainment Tonight.
I hadn't seen their previous movie together and thought I'd be seeing a cute formula movie featuring two very pretty people jumping through some acting hoops and that I'd maybe get a chuckle or two out of it. Boy was I wrong!

Fool's Gold is everything it's supposed to be and more. It grabbed me from the start and didn't let go until the ending, which I was reluctant to see approaching. It's part romantic comedy and part action adventure with a solid script behind it filled with surprises, twists, turns and a lot of laughs, giggles, chuckles, guffaws, that moves at a somewhat dizzying pace.

Here is a brief synopsis, courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures. "Matthew McConaughey plays Ben "Finn" Finnegan, 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 was lost at sea in 1715. In his quest, Finn has sunk everything he has, including his marriage to Tess Finnegan (Kate Hudson) 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 (Donald Sutherland), 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 (Alexis Dziena), to join him in the pursuit of the Spanish treasure. Against Tess' better judgment, the search rekindles her love...of discovery. But they are not the only ones after the treasure. Finn's mentor-turned-nemesis Moe Fitch (Ray Winstone) has also set out to claim the prize."

What follows is from me.

As you might expect from a story set in the Caribbean, Costume Designer Ngila Dickson had little to work with in terms of fabric and design with the exception of Donald Sutherland, stunningly attired and coiffed throughout and Alexis Dziena playing his celebutante, air head daughter, a model of conspicuous consumption. Sutherland and Dziena play multi billionaires to the hilt and are appropriately dressed for it. Clothing a beach bum is not that hard, especially when the male lead flaunts his magnificently sculpted chest and other body parts more than half of the running time. I knew before going in that McConaughey has a great body, but was pleasantly surprised that he can also act! He really, really can!

Kate Hudson is equally gifted and sails through her role with perfect timing, comedic savvy and the ability to pull off some very unexpected plot twists convincingly. She's a chip off her Mom's block and just as fun to watch. Just as Goldie Hawn and Chevy Chase created such good chemistry in their comedy-action-adventure movies I see the beginnings of a box office love match with more movies to come starring Kate and Matthew and promise I'll see every one of them at least once. I can only hope they're all directed by Andy Tennant with stories from the same writing team.

I especially want to praise relative newcomer Alexis Dziena who plays the lively Bimbo space cadet daughter to Donald Sutherland's billionaire father role. They have a relationship, his built on love and hers built on love of his money. Dziena is both loveable and hateful in a role calling for high-energy acting that include sight gags, and lots and lots of fast delivery dialogue. When told by her father that someone died of consumption, she eagerly expresses her understanding by replying, "So, he drank a lot, huh?"

So with all the eye candy going on and the salivating sounds of salacious audience members, who expects a good screenplay by John Claflin, Daniel Zelman and Andy Tennant? Watch out ... their collaboration all but surpasses the gifted actors who make up the cast of this perfect escape-from-reality flick. I really can't give it the praise it deserves but you'll be able to when you place it amongst your favorite DVD's the minute it comes out.

Fool's Gold will rake in tons of bucks and deservedly so. It's a perfect picker-upper when gloom and doom are at your door and you've got a bad case of the Blahs, but don't wait for that. You'll love it as much when you're in a good mood too.