Fool's Gold

Stars: Kate Hudson, Matthew McConaughey, Donald Sutherland, Ray Winstone, Alexis Dziena, Ewen Bremner, Kevin Hart

Director: Andy Tennant

Not so much National Treasure as Sunken Treasure here. But this script is so soggy it might have been buried along with the loot.

This is one of the few movies (think Samson and Delilah) where the leading man's chest is bigger than that of his female co-star. Man with the pecs here is Finn (McConaughey), whose obsession with treasure-hunting has cost him his marriage to Tess (Hudson, best thing in it), who is divorcing him for 'having no clue as to how to behave like a responsible adult'.

'You married the guy for the sex,' the divorce lawyer chides, 'then expected him to be smart.' Well yes.

At any rate, Tess is now a steward on a big yacht owned by billionaire Nigel Honeycutt. Why is Donald Sutherland adopting a terrible, Noel Coward-style British accent in this role? The actor is Canadian and the actress (Dziena) who plays his ludicrously air-headed daughter is a New Yorker.

This motley crew is soon joined by McConaughey, who involves them in a hunt for the 'Queen's Dowry', a Spanish treasure sunk in 1715. Other factions are after the Dowry too, consisting of villains who veer uneasily betweeen serious and comic. Alas, the action, like the dialogue, lacks any sort of spark. Despite the 12A certificate, you'd say this was suitable for children if you didn't think it might bore them to death.

David Quinlan

USA 2008. UK Distributor: Warner Brothers. Technicolor.
112 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 12A.

Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 0, Violence/Horror 0, Drugs 0, Swearing 0.

Review date: 12 Apr 2008