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This review may contain spoilers
Intense and gripping adventure drama about gold fever
An adventure drama that is intense and gripping to the max. The location and setting in the rain forest is magnificent and means a lot for the watching experience. We are practically there, in the jungle, at the deserted gold mine at the riverside, far away from roads and human habitation.
The plot focuses on how the prospect of finding the big gold nugget drives people to extremes. It gets in their head, and never lets them go. This depicts the gold rush madness in a realistic manner (see note). It depicts older and younger dreamers in the middle of jungle working at panning gold without machines. The work requires organization and rules and agreements, but we are shown how in the circumstances all ties and agreements dissolve as soon as they're made. In the end it's every man for himself. Gold madness makes stealing and killing seem like nothing.
All of the characters are various grades of selfish, dishonest and cruel. Or become that way, in the field. Our main characters are 3 youngsters, who come as newbies to the panning site, and form a friendship. Their bosses and site managers get as much screentime, since this is an ensemble drama.
This is very fast paced, and I felt this could have easily been twice as long. There are relatively few quiet moments. Those would have given us some more room to get to know the 3 friends and their backgrounds better. The ending of the drama is good, and exactly as it should be. The most experienced panners decide to blow up the mine, because they have seen enough of the madness. Based on earlier experiences, they know very well what would happen next with the discovery of the main big gold vein.
What I didn't like: the editing is somewhat choppy, and the shifts between scenes often feel quite abrupt. That's why I'm only giving this 8.5. although it could have easily been 10, with better editing and less rushing.
Note: Once, I was on a hiking in a trail in a gold panning area. The panners were very welcoming and asked us to visit their encampments. One panner had just that day lost all of the gold he had managed to dig up that summer. Someone had come when he was away digging and stolen it all. He was devastated but tried to be cool about it. Another panner had just opened a new area and he found a relatively decent sized nugget the very day we were visiting. He insisted on giving it to me as a gift. Because, he said, he didn't want to go crazy over the gold. And wanted to remind himself that whole point was to enjoy being there in the wild and in the nature. This is why I can honestly say Gold Panning is a magnificent and realistic drama about gold fever.
The plot focuses on how the prospect of finding the big gold nugget drives people to extremes. It gets in their head, and never lets them go. This depicts the gold rush madness in a realistic manner (see note). It depicts older and younger dreamers in the middle of jungle working at panning gold without machines. The work requires organization and rules and agreements, but we are shown how in the circumstances all ties and agreements dissolve as soon as they're made. In the end it's every man for himself. Gold madness makes stealing and killing seem like nothing.
All of the characters are various grades of selfish, dishonest and cruel. Or become that way, in the field. Our main characters are 3 youngsters, who come as newbies to the panning site, and form a friendship. Their bosses and site managers get as much screentime, since this is an ensemble drama.
This is very fast paced, and I felt this could have easily been twice as long. There are relatively few quiet moments. Those would have given us some more room to get to know the 3 friends and their backgrounds better. The ending of the drama is good, and exactly as it should be. The most experienced panners decide to blow up the mine, because they have seen enough of the madness. Based on earlier experiences, they know very well what would happen next with the discovery of the main big gold vein.
What I didn't like: the editing is somewhat choppy, and the shifts between scenes often feel quite abrupt. That's why I'm only giving this 8.5. although it could have easily been 10, with better editing and less rushing.
Note: Once, I was on a hiking in a trail in a gold panning area. The panners were very welcoming and asked us to visit their encampments. One panner had just that day lost all of the gold he had managed to dig up that summer. Someone had come when he was away digging and stolen it all. He was devastated but tried to be cool about it. Another panner had just opened a new area and he found a relatively decent sized nugget the very day we were visiting. He insisted on giving it to me as a gift. Because, he said, he didn't want to go crazy over the gold. And wanted to remind himself that whole point was to enjoy being there in the wild and in the nature. This is why I can honestly say Gold Panning is a magnificent and realistic drama about gold fever.
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