Ulee's Gold (1997)

For me, 90 % of the american movies of the 1990's stinks. Ulee's gold is a part of the 10 % left of very good and intelligent movie. The photography is wonderful and the members of Peter Fonda's family are all great (the two bad boys are weak). For me, this is the cultural United States portrayed in a movie. Not all that Titanic or Star Wars stuff, but this kind of movie where people and realistic characters are important. And it's a great come back for mister Fonda.

Fmovies: Peter Fonda should have won the Oscar for this film. After he didn't, I boycotted the movies for a full 12 months. Fonda gave the performance of a lifetime in this film about a solitary Florida bee-keeper trying to keep what's left of his family together.

This is not light entertainment. This is realistic film-making at its best.

There is no Hollywood "fix" ending. These are real people with really serious problems trying to make their way through with the least amount of damage.

Forget the Academy....see this film and ask yourself who deserved the Best Actor Oscar....

The often forgotten member of the Fonda family will hopefully be well remembered for this role and henceforth! This was no big-budget film, not dependent on special effects, torrid sex, or terrorist-style violence, either. Thus the actors had to carry the day, especially Fonda, and he did. Hats off ! -- for a marvellous performance, a triumphal return to the big screen, and for his Golden Globe award ("Best Actor - drama") and Oscar nomination. The less than picture-perfect family in this film applies to many and was a story we could relate to: Believable, tangible, and very well done! (Rating 4.5 stars of 5.)

Ulee's Gold fmovies. A pretty good little movie. The pace is a little slow, and often not much seems to be happening. This is not a bad thing here. Hollywood is usually so formulaic that they must not be discouraged when they try something a little different. Everything worked well here, the acting, the photography, the direction. Yes, Peter Fonda turned in a fine performance. I wonder if as much would have been made of this if Fonda hadn't spent most of his career playing in total stinkers, though. The small-time crooks, Fonda must deal with (including his son) are such losers they seem directly imported from an Elmore Leonard novel. Special mention for the child actress Vanessa Zima (Penny Jackson). She performed wonderfully in her role, full of soulful and meaningful looks. Either she is a very good child actress, or the casting director did a great job finding a girl who looks the part.

Peter Fonda plays Ulee, a middle-aged beekeeper raising his incarcerated son's two daughters in rural northern Florida. Suddenly two of his son's partners in crime show up, dump the son's wife (who had abandoned the family years before) on their doorstep, and begin menacing around looking for lost loot. Ulee tries to do the right thing, but while "keeping it in the family".

Most directors and screenwriters today would go for tautness and intensity. Not here, though it is not lacking in drama. This is a study in family dynamics as three generations (and neighbors) try to pull it together and address the crises that confronts them.

Rent this movie. It is subtle, well-crafted, and the best work Peter Fonda has done in decades.

Now I see why this is such a good movie, the plot is simple and people can relate to these same problems that many families experience. I was very thankful to find this video on sale it's worth every gold penny! Ulee's Gold has Peter Fonda as a Florida beekeeper who returns to take care of family while his son is in prison. Problems are many dealing with the mother of his two granddaughters the mother is battling a drug problem, plus dealing with dangerous thugs who are former friends of his son. These problems all turn to gold in the end as you will find during this film that the Fonda character discovers his soul with the strength and courage that helps everyone begin life anew. Great performance from Peter Fonda a golden globe winner. This was the movie debut of Jessica Biel, believe me she is a future babe.