Gold (2013) Reviews

• Greedy German Gold-diggers Get Grief-stricken

  KnatLouie2013-09-20

  This movie (which I saw during the 2013 film-festival in Copenhagen), is a very atypical western, not only because of the (mostly) German-speaking cast, but also because of it's dark moods, and almost complete lack of conventional "western"-themes, which makes it more appealing to people that are normally not too keen on westerns, but still has enough western-elements in it to not disappoint genre-fans either. The beautiful Nina Hoss - known for her portrayal of "Barbara" (in the 2012 movie of the same name), as well as the vampire-movie "We Are the Night" - here plays Emily Meyer, a single woman who is determined to travel alone to Klondyke in the late 1890s, along with a motley crew of settlers and gold-diggers, who all have their own reasons for making the long and dangerous journey. However, they do not know what will await them during the trip, as both the harsh nature of the land comes as a surprise to them, as well as a couple of ruthless killers are on their trail, which takes its toll on the travelers. It is a slow-moving, but very gripping and dark tale about (among other things) trying to conquer both new territory, but also about finding yourself (and others), when placed in a bad situation. It also has quite a lot of stunning cinematography, which really captures the landscapes beautifully, and places the audience in the right mood. The director, Thomas Arslan, is still relatively unknown, although I have seen two of his films now (this one and "Dealer", which was also quite good), and he should definitely be a name to look for in the near future. "Gold" does have a lot of similarities to Kelly Reichardt's western-drama, "Meek's Cutoff", but with somewhat more action and excitement, all things considered. So even though both films are very similar, I have a huge preference to this movie, as the characters are also much more likable and well-developed. So go see this film, if you want a realistic story about people trying to make their way through rough territory, both physically and mentally. See it if you love westerns, and/or if you just like good movies, that might leave a lasting impact on you forever.

  More

• More profound than it looks like

  Nat642015-05-01

  I remember very well the feeling I had when I walked out of the theater after watching "Gold" : the movie was so realistic that I couldn't get out of my mind life's knocks during the particular era of the movie - and how lucky I was to live in Europe these days, have a secure job, a house and loving family. "Gold" deals with a common story of the 19th century in North America : a trek of settlers decide to go up north in search for gold. The variety of characters makes it easy to identify with a least one : there is the lonely guy, the intriguing girl, the elderly couple, the crook ... the harshness of nature and human behavior point out their vulnerability but can also reveal their pugnacity and strong character. Everything seems to match in "Gold" : the beautiful landscapes without any track of man, the very discreet music, the simplicity of these settlers' habits, the whole making this movie quite fascinating. I absolutely recommend it to anyone willing to see what a contemporary western could be.

  More

• Think Germany can't do western? Think again!

  Horst_In_Translation2016-07-20

  "Gold" is a 2013 western film from Germany and with this title, it is certainly not a film you will find too easily a couple years from now. So if you get a hand on it now, go check it out. It is not half as known as the more recent German (actually Austrian) western film "Das finstere Tal", but I personally believe it is just as good, probably better. The writer and director is Thomas Arslan and I find it a bit sad to see he has no new upcoming projects since 2013 apparently. Anyway, this is certainly his most known work to date, so maybe new projects will follow soon. This film is about a group of Germans who are in North America and go on a journey that is supposed to lead them to finding gold as the film takes place during the days of the Gold Rush. It is a very bleak and atmospheric watch. This is no western film where people are constantly shooting each other, even if some shots are fired. Instead, Arslan focused on depicting how rough and devastating life must have been back in the day, not only for people who go on such strenuous journey. I avoid the term "adventure" on purpose. I think that this film's biggest strength is not only the atmospheric touch, but it is also the actors. Hoss (pretty famous in America now too) and Mandic are probably the ones you can consider lead in here and they are good, but I must say that it was mostly the supporting players who made this so watchable. They were all great casting decision and all make their characters look so authentic and realistic with their quirks and characteristics. It was all fitting well. And this also includes Arslan's script. The way he wrote the characters and events fits very well with what happens to them. One example would be we never find out what happened to the original leader of the group. In a bad western film, he would have appeared at the end again trying to take revenge. Or the two protagonists never find Lars Rudolph's character again after he went missing. In a bad horror film, they may have found his corpse. Conclusion: This is not a bad horror film. There were only a few moments that I did not like as much about this movie. The last 10 minutes are certainly a bit difficult. I have seen the film way back when it was new and came to theaters and I disliked the way Mandic's character gets killed out of nowhere at the end. I liked it more on rewatch now. It somehow fits. This could have happened to anybody anytime back then. However, I still believe the moment when Hoss' character cries for him is when the film should have ended. That strong female-focused ending with her continuing the journey did not work well for me. First of all, it puts too much focus on Hoss after this is an ensemble performance and secondly, like I already wrote, the emancipation theme (everybody dies/gives up except her) at the end did not work well with everything that happened before. Of course, it's just my subjective opinion and maybe other people will like it more. But it left a bit of a bad aftertaste for me. Nonetheless, this is just a minor criticism and I enjoyed the watch a lot. The performances made me think about giving this one a ****/***** occasionally even. In the end, I decided not too, but it does not change my recommendation at all. Watch this film if you like westerns. You will certainly not be disappointed.

  More

• Vain quest of a vein of gold ore

  guy-bellinger2014-05-09

  At the time when it was released - right in the middle of August - both in Germany and in France, Thomas Arslan's seventh film, 'Gold', appeared as the ugly duckling puddling clumsily around the pond of Summer movies. No cheap thrills, no big gags, no sultry scenes in this German UFO. Nothing about it to draw huge audiences. To begin with, it is a western, once a popular genre but today the ghost of what it used to be, at least in terms of box office (with the notable recent exception of 'Django Unchained'). Even worse, once again as far as box office is concerned, it is spoken in... Goethe's language! Okay, laugh you cynical money grabbers while it is still time! As for me, I would not be so surprised if this unusual effort should become a classic in the years to come. Agreed, associating the terms "German" and "western" looks incongruous at first sight but let's not forget there HAVE BEEN German "cowboy movies" before, mainly in the 1960's. Of course at the time they were generally nothing but undemanding adventure films meant for the young public, most of the time shot in Yugoslavia and aspiring to nothing higher than "to entertain". Whereas in the present case the ambition is different and while the end credits roll the viewer is now assured that the words "German" and western" can go together quite well. For 'Gold' is a little gem of a western movie, which is made apparent as of the first minutes through the feeling of authenticity it generates. For one thing, Arslan's rough and uncompromising work is shot entirely on location: all the places shown or mentioned (Baskerville, Clinton, Goldbridge as well as the wastelands of British Columbia) are the real ones. Moreover, the writer-director has worked from actual documents of the time (the Yukon gold rush of 1898), among which photographs, newspaper articles and pioneers' diaries. All that is shown is therefore realistic, not to say hyper realistic, from the horse tack to the weapons to the costumes to the train. Such a serious approach is commendable and would suffice to make 'Gold' a good film but there is even more to it than the true-to-life account of the journey of a group of German gold diggers, namely an allegoric dimension. Indeed, Beyond the facts reported lies a fable about the futility of man's efforts. Driven by the lust to get rich quick, the seven characters (with the one exception of the determined female hero... but for how long?) ride and suffer only to give up or die in the end. A sense of utter absurdity is thus gradually built, reinforced by the structure of the movie (almost all the protagonists disappear one by one in the manner of an Agatha Christie whodunit). I am pretty sure John Huston would have liked 'Gold' even if its tone is yet more pessimistic than his (for Huston, the final goal is absurd, only the adventure is worth living whereas for Arslan, the whole thing is purposeless). Well made, well interpreted by competent German actors (among whom Nina Hoss as the dark, untamed Emily Meyer), 'Gold' is an excellent surprise. Not totally flawless (a faster pace would not have gone amiss), it is nevertheless an outstanding achievement in its category. And quite an unexpected one at that!

  More

• High on realism

  MartinHafer2014-05-12

  This is a western…of sorts. While it's NOT about the American West and occurs a few years after the wild and crazy days of westward migration in North America, it looks like a western. It's actually about the Canadian West during those crazy and dangerous days of the Klondike gold strikes. While the American gold rush of 1849-1850 is more famous (especially when you look at the number of films devoted to both), the Canadian rush of 1896-1899 was far more dangerous due to the climate and terrain of both Alaska (through which many of the prospectors came) and the Yukon. Into this mad rush is a group of German-speaking prospectors —including a single woman, Emily Meyer (Nina Hoss). However, the trek turns out to be not nearly as trouble-free and easy as the leader of the expedition says at the beginning of the film. There are lots of surprises, tons of peril and plenty of death. In fact, watching the film reminded me of the computer game "Oregon Trail", as practically every sort of disaster that could occur does! In many ways, Gold should be commended. While about 95% of the westerns you see are historical nightmares, Gold is very realistic. The natives are NOT uniformly hostile, the gunfights are not glorious and the film is, at times, a bit dull—because life there was a bit dull! It's actually funny that it took a Bavarian (that's in Germany) production company to make a realistic film about the western migration! Plus, it did make sense as despite what you see in other films, folks who did not speak English and who were recent immigrants are the sorts of folks who settled the West. We SHOULD have been seeing people like this in our films long ago. As a retired history teacher, this sort of film really excites me. HOWEVER, and this is a big 'however', most folks probably do want to see a mythical portrait of the West!! They like heroes, fights with Indian tribes, fist fights, shootouts on the main street and all the mostly wrong trappings of a typical western. Realism, unfortunately, is not always so exciting and the film is the type of thing most viewers probably would struggle with enjoying because they want more action, happier endings and the like. So, Gold is definitely a film for a select audience—those who want realism, warts and all, instead of non-stop action and intrigue. As for the quality of the film, the acting and direction are just fine—very professional and competent. Also, while the film was apparently made in British Columbia and not the Yukon Territory (where the Klondike actually is), it's awfully close and the brown hills definitely look a lot like the ones in the Yukon (I've visited the area). Worth seeing though even I must admit this film isn't super-exciting and the ending is a bit of a downer.

  More