NATIONAL TREASURE: BOOK OF SECRETS
Reviewed by Sam Hatch
2004's National Treasure was a film that took me by surprise, and darned if that Disneyfied mélange of Indiana Jones adventure and Da Vinci Code crypto-madness wasn't ten times better than it had any right to be. It was certainly more entertaining than Ron Howard's big screen adaptation of Dan Brown's uber-seller.
The decision to crank out a sequel should surprise nobody, but considering Benjamin Franklin Gates (Nicolas Cage) and pals already discovered the biggest treasure trove in human history, what could they possibly do in a sequel? In this case they're pretty much doing the same thing over again, but now there are multiple parties after Cibola - a lost city of gold.
While the script (by The Wibberleys', I kid you not) still advances the state of Ben's idiosyncrasies (he's separated from his girlfriend Abigail because she uses the word 'so' too much), he's finally purged his system of the undying urge to discover storied masses of gold. Unfortunately, there are other people out there that still have this affliction, and one of them (Ed Harris' Mitch Wilkinson) makes his treasure hunt personal by impugning the good reputation of Ben's forefathers in the process.
As the film begins, Ben and his proud papa Patrick (Jon Voight returning) announce the official recognition of their ancestor Thomas as a Civil War hero. No sooner than the applause peters out does the abrasive Mitch pipe up from the back row with a damning page from John Wilkes Booth's diary. He too has family stories passed down from one generation to the next, and his information squarely points to Thomas as a co-conspirator in the assassination of President Lincoln.
While this dizzying accusation rocks the world of our kindly heroes, the supposition arises that if they can find another elusive treasure, it will somehow prove that their relative was merely cracking ciphers and not plotting murders. Ben's tunnel vision kicks into high gear, and it never occurs to him that yet another baddie is using him as a tool to get to the goods by following his every move.
The race for the spoils doesn't feel quite as urgent as it did in the original film, but there are enough moments of tension as Ben sneaks around forbidden facilities (such as the Oval Office) looking for clues. There are also a few gunfights and car chases, but Ed Harris isn't quite the villain that Sean Bean was. He's played more as a doppelganger of Ben he has the same drive and need for validation, but he lacks Ben's capacity for problem solving.
Also back for the ride is the wisecracking Riley Poole (Justin Bartha), who finds himself in dire straits as the IRS abducts his beloved Ferrari. He's written a tell-all book about the treasure hunt from the last film, but nobody seems to realize or care that anyone apart from Gates was involved in that adventure. This probably wouldn't rile him (he is named Riley after all, har!) if his plan of attaining celebrity status to score with the ladies wasn't backfiring so badly.
He and Abigail (Diane Kruger) both get sucked in by the vortex-like pull of Ben's hyper-enthusiasm, until they're once again breaking laws in the name of the greater good. Or gold. Each clue leads to another unfathomable scenario, and while Treasure uses Riley's computer skills much in the fashion of the Mission: Impossible films, the script invents wackier ways to accomplish the bulk of the unaccomplishable deeds.
Of course it's perfectly implausible for Ben to actually kidnap the President of the United States (Bruce Greenwood, playing a non-Dubya alternate-universe Prez) in one scene, but it's handled in such a way that makes us want to believe. By appealing to the President's own buried reservoir of childlike fascination, Ben lures him into a situation much in the same way that we're lured into believing this nonsense by the screenwriters (those darn Wibberleys again!). If you're unprepared to revert back into a ten year old, your time with this film will probably not be as rewarding.
Cage has gotten even wackier in this outing, and one particular scene in England sees him bouncing off of the walls as if he's in need of serious medication. Unfortunately, his dialogue in this scene reflects a simplistic view of the British people that is mainly present to invoke cheap laughs. I can't imagine that anyone across the pond will find this segment amusing once it makes its way over there.
Other comedic bits do pay off, however particularly in the eternal bickering between Ben, Abigail and Riley. Another interesting twist arises with the introduction of the Queen herself Helen Mirren as Ben's mother Emily. Ben and Abigail's strained relationship becomes mirrored in the extreme animosity on display in the post-marital cold war between Patrick and Emily. As expected, this emotional wall softens as the film progresses, and Voight and Mirren seem to have quite a lot of fun as a pair of older adventurers finding themselves young at heart again.
As most of the world's great conspiracies (Roswell, Freesmason Rituals etc.) get debunked one after the other, it's fun to remember a time when the concept of a book of secrets shared by all US Presidents sounded like something that could really exist. And once again, Nicolas Cage finds himself privy to some of the nation's greatest mysteries (as he did in the finale of Con Air).
Jon Turteltaub (TV's Jericho) returns as the director, and while his work isn't dripping with style, he fills the frame well and certainly knows how to set up glamour shots of famous landmarks. In this story we get to infiltrate the White House, the Library of Congress, Buckingham Palace and even Mount Rushmore. Former Yes guitarist Trevor Rabin returns as Bruckheimer's stabled composer, and while his themes are largely forgettable, they capture a certain level of 'important sounding-ness'.
At the heart of these stories is a sentimental yearning for a return to the patriotic mindset of our founding fathers. The Gates' are a family out of time, the only people around plagued with a code of honor that supersedes the law. Every criminal outrage Ben and his posse undertake is a reflection of the headstrong founding of the United States. The President himself points out to Ben that he's the only one around who supposes that great power is tied at the waste to a sense of dignity and honor. In a cute nod to our current state of the union, Ben counters with the statement that deep down the people still hope that to be the case.
This is all a bit simplistic, but that's what the National Treasure series is all about a single-minded determination to do what is right. And become famous in the process. The ride is just as fun as it was the first go-round, and it's a blast watching Gates and crew tossing around historical trivia while deciphering puzzles at the speed of thought. Certain elements of the ending section feel a bit rushed, and it's never made entirely clear how Thomas Gates' name will be cleared but the fact that just about the entire cast (including Harvey Keitel as pro-Gates FBI agent Sadusky) returns and the riddles are just as entertaining should delight most of us who thought Robert Langdon's big screen religion-rocking adventures were kinda dull in the long run.
The question still remains of what the hell will they be able to do if they opt to helm a third film? There are only so many more outrageously patriotic acts that Ben can possibly undertake. What other historical landmarks can he sneak into? Is there gold beneath the Statue of Liberty? Or perhaps they can utilize Riley's obsession with Area 51 to merge into the sci-fi genre with a tale of secret Alien booty! I'm thinking they should cast Jennifer Love Hewitt as a government agent guarding a golden bra (linked together using rare coins inscribed with obscure Templar lore) from villainous-minded folk. Call it National Treasure Chest!