Amy Adler Josh (Noah Centineo) and his single-parent dad are having a crisis. Their small store is being driven out of business by the new Ultramart in town, run by another divorced, solo father (Billy Zane), who is having a difficult time with his own daughter Ana (Courtney Briggs). Josh's father has informed him that they will have to move, will be apartment dwellers for a spell and will not be able to keep Josh's faithful golden retriever. Josh is distraught beyond measure. However, a legend exists in their California setting that a conquistador once left a hidden fortune in gold. What if Josh finds the treasure? He and his dad could start anew and keep their beloved canine. A chance meeting between Ana and Josh gives the young lad a new friend and gold-hunting partner. Trouble is, two petty criminals, Wade (Steve Guttenberg) and The Professor (Curtis Armstrong) have also been seeking the treasure for years. When Josh finds a significant clue, they are there watching the two young teens every move. Can Josh and Ana find the loot or will the two bungling thieves locate it first? And, since Josh's dad has forbidden him to wander in the neighboring woods, where the treasure may be, will Josh get into further trouble by defying his dad's orders? If you are searching for another family-friendly film, this one is good choice. It has adventure, history, and a darling dog, after all. The acting is a bit weak, with Guttenberg exhibiting too much ham, albeit still humorously, and the rest of the crew, Zane excepted, doing a merely average job. But, the sets, costumes, camera work, script, and direction have some winning ways and zest. So, while the movie is not "solid gold", it most likely will please most family members, young and old. Look for it.

Ross Brindley I am the sort of person who generally cannot understand why many movies are given bad reviews. Too many people seem to review movies purely in a technical sense, particularly kids movies.I watched this movie with two kids aged 12 and 14 and they begged me to stop it after about 30 minutes as they could no longer stand the torture.The acting was awful and the continuity so wrong that it overwhelmed the movie.*************** SPOILER ALERT **************** The part that sent me right over the edge was right near the end when the two kids scramble through a tunnel for a few seconds and emerge almost where they started. This might seem OK except for the fact that they had been walking all day before they entered the tunnel.Maybe a fairly young child might enjoy this movie but they would have to be under the age of 6.Definitely give this one a miss.

asperula10 Don't LET THE CUTE DOGGIE ON THE CASE FOOL YOU!!! Terrible movie, awful acting, LAME!!! Don't insult your children by mistakenly thinking this is entertaining. The set is amateur,audio and soundtrack seem like an afterthought, and none of the actors are appealing.The plot of kids looking for gold has been done(goonies).The sub plot of pre-adolescent first kiss, crush, is again, overdone. It tried to be cute, but sorry, the child actors are not good enough to pull it off. We can't even begin to like the characters because the poor acting. I rented this through redbox, and it was not even worth the $1. Even the older actors, who should be 'seasoned', are a joke. Steve Guttenberg as a crotchety scoundrel!? He can't do it.His limp and attempt at tough-guy speech are laughable. Save your time and money, and poke needles in your eyes for 1.5 hours, it will be less painful.

matthew-797-595919 OK so my initial impressions of the film was that it was going to be a modern day goonies so had high expectations for a really good family movie.Much to my disappointment this wasn't in the same school let alone class as the goonies,brief plot 2 kids go treasure hunting with a couple of badguys in tow.The acting from all characters was terrible and the props and locations were appalling, this must have been a low budget film to say the least.Do yourself a favour pass up on this one and get the goonies if your after a good family movie.