Aubrey MaloneGold (15A)
This is basically a simple story about the burgeoning friendship between a young girl and a father sheís never seen until the film begins. Ray (David Wilmot) is a drifter who roams around the place with a sofa on the roof of his car a variation on the mobile home idea.
He comes back into the life of his teenage daughter Abbie (Maisie Williams), whom he hasn’t seen in over a decade, when his father becomes seriously ill. Ray has had a drug-riddled past which saw him attempt suicide at one point.
He now seems to be free of his habit but, when he turns up at the home of Alice (Kerry Condon), Abbie's mother, one wonders if he’s going to be like The man who came to dinner.
Alice is living with Frank (James Nesbitt). Frank is a PE trainer (a performance coach, as he prefers to call himself). He’s also a bit of an idiot. He advertises his services on a range of DVDs which have him literally exploding with energy as he advises viewers how to get the best out of themselves and win gold. He also wants this for Abbie.
Alice has two men in her life. She’s awkward with Ray but feels sorry for him because of his father. Abbie is more aggressive towards him, at least until he manages to procure some performance-enhancing drugs for her.
In an altercation with Frank during some training exercises with Abbie, Ray knocks him into a river. Frank is almost drowned and ends up in a coma. The stage is now set for a possible re-igniting of the relationship between Ray and Alice. But what will happen if Ray emerges from the coma? And will Abbie be discovered popping her pills?
Its an interesting storyline, similar in some ways to a hilarious film I saw years ago called Wild About Harry.
This also had Nesbitt in it, along with Brendan Gleeson. In that case Gleeson was the one who went into the coma. It also involved a love triangle.
I would have preferred Gold if it was more like Wild About Harry. Director Niall Heery would have been better employed to ramp up the satirical dimensions of Nesbittís personality rather than going for the nonchalance of Ray.
His downbeat emphasis means the characters tend to under-react to events, like Ray to the death of his father or Abbie to Frankís comatose condition.
Overall, Gold can't seem to make up its mind if it’s a comedy or a drama.
Finally, parents should note that the film includes quite a lot of foul language and one bedroom scene.
