There's only one thing Matthew McConaughey likes more than taking off his shirt — going on adventures. "My favourite things have always been getting on the road, taking a road trip or getting a backpack and heading off to Mali, Africa, Peru, floating the Amazon…" he sighs.

But while it might seem surprising the actor doesn’t combine work with pleasure and make more action adventure films, there's a good reason. It's called 'Sahara'. The movie flopped, losing something like $100-million and sending the 'Wedding Planner' star straight back to money-in-the-bank romantic comedies.

So he got to thinking — how about an action adventure romcom? Swimming, tropical locations, treasure hunting for him; kissing, arguing, and making up for the legions of 'How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days' fans. It's something for everyone. That, at least, is the theory. 'Fool's Gold', like all compromises, is a little more like nothing for anyone. 'National Treasure' meets Jessica Alba diving malarkey 'Into The Blue' meets every boy-meets-girl story, it falls a bit short on the madcap wild goose chasing, hot girls in bikinis, funny punchlines, and actual romance.

What the movie does have, though, is the always delightful Kate Hudson, beautiful scenery, Theo Huxtable from 'The Cosby Show', a hugely inventive opening sequence involving a spark and a very flammable boat, Donald Sutherland looking very bemused as he battles with a poncy British accent, and McConaughey taking off his shirt.

He plays a down-on-his-luck treasure hunter, Ben "Finn" Finnegan, whose obsession with finding the legendary 18th century Queen’s Dowry has certainly left him tanned, but also divorced and completely broke. So when he finally discovers a clue to the bounty's whereabouts, the smooth talker realises he needs a new benefactor, setting his eyes on eccentric billionaire Nigel Honeycutt (Sutherland). But Finn doesn’t know that his ex-wife Tess (Hudson) is now working for the wealthy Englishman — or that his arch rival is also after the treasure…

It's all a fairly elaborate (if contrived) premise for the two leads to bicker (Hudson is lethal with a walking stick) as they slowly realise there are still sparks. And while the actors certainly share a real connection, their relationship is, ahem, watered down by the story's quest aspect that, in all honesty, Indiana Jones could have completed in his sleep. A diver of Eastern European origin and an airhead socialite add some more buoyancy to an already frothy film.

Like Finn himself, 'Fool's Gold' has an infectious, childlike enthusiasm. But, for a film with so much underwater action, it really lacks depth…