Buried on Shine Mountain (2024)

Nigel Butler and Gunnar Dalton are Todd and “Duck,” two farmhands with 11 cents between them and itching for a change in life.

Then they meet Curt Carter (Kyle S. Brown), a veteran prospector, who offers them a chance for just that.

He wants Todd and “Duck” to accompany him back to Shine Mountain, where he discovered too much gold to haul back home.

At minimum, he wants them to help him carry back the bags of gold he buried on his last trip up the mountain.

But he’d far prefer they help him dig for more, promising them a chance to turn a few months of hard work into “a lifetime of riches and rewards.”

“Duck” is eager for the opportunity; Todd a bit more reluctant, though he finally agrees.

Once on the mountain, they grow concerned about Curt’s obsession with finding as much gold as possible.

They’re also concerned about the strange markings on trees, the strange sounds in the woods and the strange lights they see.

Nigel Butler as Todd, the young man reluctant to follow Curt Carter into the hills in Buried on Shine Mountain (2024)

Gunnar Dalton as Henry ‘Duck’ Mallard, facing accusations from Curt Carter in Buried on Shine Mountain (2024)

Review:

Kudos to the filmmaker’s for making a great-looking black and white film on what must have been a shoestring budget.

But, folks, this one is going to test your endurance. If you’re a fan of watching three characters walk, sit around a campfire, dig dirt and swish it around in a gold
pan … well, this is the film for you.

If you’re looking for action, or a thriller, or even captivating story, look elsewhere.

Oh, our lads make a grisly discovery after 50 minutes of screen time, leading you to believe an exciting payoff is coming your way.

But the payoff never comes. In fact, there’s more passion in composer Marie Selah’s film-closing version of “Weary Traveler” than there is in any scene that precedes it.

Kyle S. Brown as Curt Carter, back on Shine Mountain and eager for the gold-digging to begin in Buried on Shine Mountain (2024)

Nigel Butler as Todd, missing home and growing more concerned about Curt Cater’s gold obsession in Buried on Shine Mountain (2024)

Directed by:
Stewart Butler

Cast:
Kyle S. Brown … Curt Carter
Gunnar Dalton … Henry “Duck” Mallard
Nigel Butler … Todd
Pjaye Scott … Warren
Tom Whitley … Bartender

Runtime: 86 min.

Gunnar Dalton as Henry ‘Duck’ Mallard, encountering a strange sight in the forest in Buried on Shine Mountain (2024)

Kyle S. Brown as Curt Carter, suspecting someone in the party is stashing away gold for himself in Buried on Shine Mountain (2024)

Memorable lines:

Todd, contemplating Curt’s offer: “Isaying this might be too much change too fast … I’m just saying it makes no sense to abandon everything overnight like this.”
Duck: “But maybe there’s no sense in use doing the same thing we did today, yesterday and the day before that.”
Todd: “I want change too.”
Duck: “Then let’s go.”

Curt: “We’re not coming off this mountain til we’ve bled it dry of every drop of gold … We’re gonna dig and pan and swirl until our wrinkled hands peel and puss and bleed. That’s when we’ll come off this hill. When there is nothing left for anybody else. This gold is ours. This gold is mine.”

Todd, fretting about prospector Curt: “The love of money is the root of all evil.”
Duc k: “Not everyone who loves money is a murderer, Todd.”

Todd: “You still got the pickaxe?”
Duck: “Yeah, but you won’t need it. Grounds so soft up here, you can dig it with a shovel.”
Todd: “That’s not why I asked.”