Gold

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)

I didn't think a movie with this title and Matthew in a similar role - mainly visually - could captivate me much, but in the end, it turned out that the story was wonderfully acted and presented with a pleasant sense of humor, so I just enjoyed myself. Not right from start to finish, but I certainly didn't mind watching it one bit. (19/04/2017)

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)

The film reminds me more of The Big Short than The Wolf of Wall Street. It wasn't a bad film, Matthew McConaughey's performance is excellent and the overall idea is definitely intriguing, towards the end there is the expected stuffiness and trouble and only then does the film start to get interesting. For one viewing ok. 60%. (10/03/2017)

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. (09/12/2018)