Gold Diggers: The Secret of Bear Mountain

If I could just say a few words about this movie they would be, "A Must Buy!". In fact, I don't know why I let this movie go for so long before getting it myself and watching it because it is very good -- a fantastic adventure and enough suspense to keep you watching it all the way through (at least the 1st time).

When this movie aired on the Wonderful World of Disney this past Sunday night (June 11, 2000) I watched it for the first time to preview it. I was also trying to do something else at the time, but it was so good that I could only continue what I was doing during commercial breaks.

The next day, I just had to go out and find it on video to add it to my own video library and then I watched it again later that night and one more time the next night. This is real good movie to watch over and over again, though, seeing it the 1st time is the best.

To sum all this up in a few words, this movie has surely become one of my favorites and will most probably be a heavily played video, too! An excellent movie! 10 Stars!!

I have seen this movie many times, watched it over and over and I never get sick of it. This is a wonderful story about friendship that has touched my heart. A brilliant family movie that children will especially love for the adventure, fun, and triumph that it presents.

It's 1980. Recent widower Kate Easton (Polly Draper) moves her daughter Beth (Christina Ricci) from L.A. to Wheaton, Washington into the farm inherited from her aunt. Beth struggles with small town life and befriends tomboy black sheep Jody Salerno (Anna Chlumsky). They don't get along at first but they bond over Winnie the Pooh and their dead fathers. Jody has a troubled home life with mother Lynette (Diana Scarwid) and her boyfriend Ray Karnisak (David Keith). Jody tells Beth about Bear Mountain and the legend of gold miner Molly Morgan.

This starts great with two charismatic child actresses in an outdoors adventure that is often left for the boys. Their relationship is interesting. They even get on a boat like all great adventures. The caves are the first signs of trouble. They are grim, artificial, and not magical. What starts as a great adventure turns into a melodrama. The adults are all dumber than the kids. I want this to be Goonies or even Stand by Me. Instead, it teases that but gives something less. In the end, there is still the compelling friendship.

Before Christina Ricci was truly established as the screen's indie queen, it seems that she mostly starred in what were viewed as family movies. "Gold Diggers: The Secret of Bear Mountain" is a prime example. It's one of those movies that seems really cool when you're young. My favorite part of the movie was the history of the woman associated with the cave. Otherwise, the movie isn't anything special (especially since 1995 also saw movies like "Smoke" and "Unstrung Heroes"). As for Anna Chlumsky, she also gravitated more towards serious roles as she aged. I'll give the movie that.

Also starring Polly Draper, Diana Scarwid (Christina in "Mommie Dearest") and David Keith (Drew Barrymore's father in "Firestarter").

How old was i in 1995..Who knows. Lets be honest here. This movie was made for only one reason. Not, not that 80% of the american teen population had a crush on at least one of these two, not THAT reason. To mop up the novelty of Anna post MY GIRL movies which everybody knew as those exploded as the defacto family movies of the era. And Christina was riding high following the ADDAMS FAMILY movies which too, were seen by all. Unintentionally both movie franchises followed a very similar release schedule. 91 and 93 for addams, 91 and 94 for my girl.

Somebody had the brilliant idea to combine these two together and put them in a movie. But it was the wrong movie you see.. Neither of these 2 were cut for adventure girly movie vanilla script and story. Ricci did nice with dark quirky roles and Anna was more of the girl next door person and required a male actor to get to project that image. Together they had no chemistry. From start to finish.

Here they put ricci as annas role, and anna became some tomboy that does not ooze a single sweat drop of toughness. If they reversed them, it would have worked better. The whole movie is forced and it feels so. It is supposed to be a childrens adventure movie and yeah at the time it worked because we all knew who these 2 were and nobody was going to say anything. But 30 years later i totally can because i watched it again I can see how bad it is. It is sad.

Yet i cannot be too hard on it because this is not supposed to be serious. It was simply combining 2 actors before they aged out completely and rolling out a quick family movie with all the elements of the 90s.

6\10 It is just average... and miscast.