Gold & Greed: The Hunt for Fenn's Treasure Review
Director: Jared McGilliard
Date Created: 2025-03-27 17:03
3.5
Gold & Greed: The Hunt for Fenn’s Treasure Review:This three-part docuseries on Netflix is directed by Jared McGilliard and gets into one of the wildest real-life treasure hunts of our time. The series examines how the eccentric art dealer Forrest Fenn hid a chest containing gold and gems in the Rocky Mountains in 2010, leaving a poem as the only clue to its location.
What ensued was sheer insanity — thousands of people quit their jobs, drained their life savings and even risked their lives in an attempt to uncover this so-called fortune. And the craziest part? The treasure had indeed been real. But was this a fun adventure, or did it turn into something a lot darker? That’s what this documentary attempts to discover.
Gold & Greed: The Hunt for Fenn’s Treasure Review
Right from the start of Gold & Greed: The Hunt for Fenn’s Treasure docuseries, you can sense all the thrill and madness that the world felt over Fenn’s treasure. This wasn’t some internet rumour, this was a national fixation. All kinds of people became full-time treasure hunters, convinced that they had figured out the code in Fenn’s poem.
Now, if you’re familiar with this story, you may be asking yourself, “Why should I watch this? The treasure has already been discovered.” But honestly? That doesn’t diminish the entertainment value. The fun part is seeing how close (or absurdly far) some people came to cracking the case. It’s like a real-life game of hot and cold — one moment, someone believes they are just inches away from unearthing the gold, the next they realise they have been barking up the wrong tree. It’s infuriating, exciting and sometimes downright ludicrous.
My favourite part of the Gold and Greed The Hunt for Fenn’s Treasure documentary is the way it zeroes in on the people who became obsessed with finding the treasure. And let me tell you, their commitment was next level. We encounter a range of treasure seekers — some affluent professionals who were going into this as a fun challenge, others in dire financial straits who treated this as their one possibility of a better life.
Also Read: Caught Review: Yet Another Harlan Coben Thriller That Fails to Catch Your Interest
Certain of these individuals resigned from their positions. Some used up every penny they owned on travel and gear. Some even found themselves fighting legal battles because they thought they had been cheated out of the prize. I mean, can you imagine investing years of effort in solving a mystery only to get nothing in return? That’s heartbreaking. But what’s scarier is that a couple of people actually died searching for this treasure. That part really hit me. It was an expedition that began as an exhilarating adventure but turned dangerous and, for some, fatal.
Which made me wonder, was this whole thing really worth it? Or was Fenn simply playing a prank that ran horribly amok? Since we’re on the topic of Fenn, this documentary spends considerable time dissecting who he actually was. Some regarded him as a hero, a man who wanted to inspire adventure in people. Others viewed him as a manipulator who relished watching people race for clues.
I personally believe that he was a bit of both. He wasn’t a fraud (the treasure was real, after all), but he certainly loved to mess with people’s minds. If you see him in interviews, he loves the attention. He would give cryptic clues and then turn around and say, “Nope, that’s not it!” He was not lying but also not making things easy. And I think it was fun for him to see people have a hard time.
At first, it seemed harmless. But when people began to get hurt, you have to ask yourself — did he ever regret it? Or did he simply love the mayhem too much to care? Now, about how this documentary is structured. To begin with, it’s very easy to follow. You don’t need a treasure-hunting Ph.D. to follow what’s going on. It explains everything well enough to keep things interesting.
The pacing is also solid. It never feels a bit too slow or too rushed. Every episode continues to ratchet up the suspense, and it’s like you’re right there alongside the hunters trying to piece together the clues. You feel like you’re watching events unfold in real time because of how the real footage, interviews and news clips are mixed in. Honestly, it was a little reminiscent of The Amazing Race, except instead of a prize waiting at the end, there’s a very good chance you will leave with absolutely nothing.
Summing Up
I really enjoyed Netflix’s Gold & Greed: The Hunt for Fenn’s Treasure overall but came away little mixed feelings by the end. It’s exciting, and it doesn’t lose you the entire time. The personal stories are all fascinating (and occasionally shocking). It gets you thinking about human nature and obsession.” But it also sometimes felt a bit sad — watching people lose everything over a treasure hunt isn’t very fun. Even the conclusion feels somewhat incomplete. They found the treasure, but we remain in the dark about precisely where or how.
Gold & Greed: The Hunt for Fenn’s Treasure Docuseries is now streaming on Netflix.
Also Read: Tuiskoms Review: Surprisingly Charming Drama that Feels Real
