Rated PG13

Directed by Andrew Tennant

Starring Matthew McConaughey, Kate Hudson, Roger Sciberras, Donald Sutherland, Ewen Bremner

Heidi’s Illustrious Rating: 2.75

Word of Warning: Matthew McConaughey shows off his ripped bod every chance he gets (I think it’s written into his contract). So if viewing nice abs for two hours will hurt your self-image, this isn’t the movie for you.

Originally I steered clear of this movie. Opening on February 8, 2008, “Fool’s Gold” stayed in our local cinema until last month. The critics hated it, but obviously it appealed to the masses so I put it in my Netflix queue. After a parade of dull or brain intensive (subtitled) movies, I slid “Fool’s Gold” to the top of the list.

This movie is reminiscent of one of my favorite childhood flicks, “Overboard,” starring the Goldie Hawn (Kate Hudson’s twin-like mother). “Overboard’s” overall plot differs, but there’s blue water, a yacht, a rather undignified, yet handsome leading male, the leading lady runs around in a skimpy bikini and there’s lots of flirty argumentative chitchat between the two main characters – all of which also describes “Fool’s Gold.”

In a nutshell, Tess (Kate Hudson) is filing for divorce from her husband of eight years. The two have been scavenging the ocean together looking for treasure, but for Tess, the excitement has become more like drudgery. She claims her husband does only one thing really well (insert imagination here) but it is no longer enough to keep their marriage together. Constantly in debt and always looking for another way to keep their dreams afloat (literally), she’s had enough. Husband Finn (McConaughey), however, isn’t done with the relationship. Through a chain of events that could only occur in a romantic comedy, the two are reunited on a fancy yacht and embark on their greatest adventure.

The plot is thin and completely unrealistic, but the writing isn’t bad and the dialogue is witty, perhaps even wittier than the characters. Donald Sutherland (Kiefer’s dad), is rather dull as Nigel Honeycutt, millionaire and yacht owner. Alexis Dziena (no, you’ve probably haven’t heard of her) is actually kind of funny as Honeycutt’s spoiled, celebutante daughter Gemma. I like Roger Sciberras as Finn’s sidekick Alfonz. You may remember Sciberrasfrom “Trainspotting” or “Death at a Funeral.”

Despite gaining the wrath of the critics who called it, “tedius and bland” (E Online’s Chris Farnsworth), and “dead in the water” (Entertainment Weekly’s Owen Glieberman), I thought the movie was watchable and even enjoyable. Show me a nice yacht, a bit of turquoise blue water and I’ll bump up the movie rating by at least 0.5 (Matthew McConaughey’s six pack didn’t hurt either, though most of the awe dissipates when he opens his mouth).