Plot: What’s it about?
Call it what you will, but I really enjoyed “National Treasure”. Call it a rip-off of “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and the impending “The Da Vinci Code” but put Nicholas Cage in a role and odds are that I’ll come out a happy camper. Cage is one of the most talented and diverse actors working today who can easily pull off Comedy (Raising Arizona, Adaptation), Drama (Leaving Las Vegas, Windtalkers) and Action (Con Air, The Rock). One of my favorite of his movies is actually “Con Air” – a popcorn movie if there ever was one but I liked it. So it wasn’t really a surprise when “National Treasure” became one of the box office successes of late last year pulling in nearly $200 million. Couple this with the golden touch of Jerry Bruckheimer (“The Rock” and “Con Air” with Cage) and it’s most assuredly going to be a financial hit (a critical hit is something different, though). Look closely and you’ll see that even the cast is outstanding with Cage at the helm with Jon Voight, Harvey Keitel, Sean Bean and Christopher Plummer offering supporting roles. “National Treasure” asks the viewer to suspend their disbelief for 131 minutes and if you can do that – you’ll enjoy it.
The movie opens as we see a young Benjamin Franklin Gates (later played by Nicholas Cage) who is enlightened by a story from his grandfather (Christopher Plummer) about a treasure to end all treasures. Flash forward to “Present Day” and we see Gates with an entourage looking for another piece of the puzzle. As it turns out, it’s just that – another piece of the puzzle. Ian (Sean Bean), Gates’ counterpart, is frustrated by the search and only seeks the reward. As a result, he tries to kill Gates to pursue the treasure alone. Gates, along with his computer-nerd cohort, Riley (Justin Bartha), have figured out that the map is on the back of the Declaration of Independence and now they must beat Ian to the punch else the treasure will be lost forever. This is no small task, of course, and they enlist the help of Abagail Chase (Diane Kruger) who unwittingly gets involved in the search for the treasure.
Just like any good heist movie, there are plenty of thrills, mindless action and normal people accomplishing some pretty extraordinary things (i.e. two guys actually stealing the Declaration of Independence), but that’s the fun of it all. Cage is great in these sorts of roles and Voight and Justin Bartha (Riley) offer up plenty of comic relief. Bruckheimer has cast another flawless actress in the female lead though her part could have been played by just about anyone. I have to say that this sort of thing intrigues me and I’m now looking forward to “The Da Vinci Code” as it will surely be more accurate and probably just as exciting. No matter what your taste, “National Treasure” is a fun movie to watch with a fairly believeable plot (have you ever actually looked at the $1 bill?). Simply put, Cage + Bruckheimer = Entertaining movie. Highly recommended.
Video: How does it look?
The 2.35:1 anamorphic image on “National Treasure” is amazing. The wider scope allows for maximum action to be seen and if you don’t own a widescreen TV – this will help you change your mind. Colors are bright and vivid throughout with nearly no artifacts to be seen. I’d give this movie a perfect score, but a few of the darker shows seemed to be a bit on the soft side. If we had a “4.75” rating – I’d give it that. The movie looks great – a testament to Disney’s great transfer and a new to DVD title only helps matters. A very solid effort and one that won’t disappoint.
Audio: How does it sound?
With any action movie, it’s reasonable to suspect that the soundtrack will be pretty heavy on the audio. “National Treasure” is certainly no exception. The robust Dolby Digital 5.1 track is booming all the way through, even when things aren’t blowing up or people being shot at; the score is still pretty dynamic. The surrounds are active almost all the way through, adding some depth to an already active soundtrack. Dialogue is clean as well. You get what you expect here which is a great-sounding track.
Supplements: What are the extras?
The extras are fairly diverse and offer a little insight into the film’s production with “National Treasure on Location” in which we see where some of the movie was filmed (Utah and not Antarctica, by the way) and the interior of the Washington D.C. buildings. There is an alternate ending with an introduction and alternate commentary by Director Turteltaub and a few deleted scenes with the same option. Strangely enough, there’s no audio commentary for the movie?! Also included is an animatic version of the opening scene, which is fairly interesting. Also included is your own little “Treasure Hunt” in that you follow the clues and you’re rewarded with some more features. It must have been late because I didn’t get that far. Suffice it to say, they’re on the disc if you’re so inclined. All in all “National Treasure” delivers on everything it promises – it’s a great way to pass a few hours and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a sequel in the works…
