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Like a Hardy Boys mystery on steroids, National Treasure offers popcorn thrills and enough boyish charm to overcome its rampant silliness. Although it was roundly criticized as a poor man's rip-off of Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Da Vinci Code, it's entertaining on its own ludicrous terms, and Nicolas Cage proves once again that one actor's infectious enthusiasm can compensate for a multitude of movie sins. The contrived plot involves Cage's present-day quest for the ancient treasure of the Knights Templar, kept secret through the ages by Freemasons past and present. Finding the treasure requires the theft of the Declaration of Independence (there are crucial treasure clues on the back, of course!), so you can add "caper comedy" to this Jerry Bruckheimer production's multi-genre appeal. Nobody will ever accuse director Jon Turtletaub of artistic ambition, but you've got to admit he serves up an enjoyable dose of PG-rated entertainment, full of musty clues, skeletons, deep tunnels, and harmless adventure in the old-school tradition. It's a load of hokum, but it's fun hokum, and that makes all the difference. --Jeff Shannon
| CATEGORY: | DVD |
| DIRECTOR: | Jon Turteltaub |
| THEATRICAL RELEASE DATE: | 19 November, 2004 |
| MANUFACTURER: | Buena Vista Home Entertainment |
| MPAA RATING: | PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) |
| FEATURES: | AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Extra tracks, Full Screen, Subtitled, NTSC |
| TYPE: | Action, Action / Adventure, Action Thriller, Adult Language, Adventure, Atmospheric, Caper, Color, Crime, Daring Rescues, Dishonor Among Thieves, Easygoing, English, Fathers and Sons, Feature, Feature Film Action Adventure, Feature Film-action/Adventure, Frantic, Humorous, Light |
| MEDIA: | DVD |
| MPN: | D35989D |
| # OF MEDIA: | 1 |
| UPC: | 786936242911 |
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National Treasure (Full Screen Edition) reviews by customers
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Walt Disney Pictures has sure hit a streak of massive live-action box office triumphs of late. Usually Disney does well with their animated films, but for the most part their live-action movies just don't quite add up to the same box office success. However, in recent years Disney's managed to change their luck, sure there've been a couple of flops here and there ("The Shaggy Dog" remake), but those have been massively overshadowed by their successful releases, such as "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" and the sequels that followed, "Remember the Titans", and "Hidalgo". One movie of Disney's that actually surprised both audiences by how good it was, and critics with how well it did at the box office, would have to be the Nicolas Cage, 'Indiana Jones' inspired, action/adventure film "National Treasure".
"National Treasure" is about a treasure hunter named Benjamin Franklin Gates (Nicolas Cage) who along with his partner Riley (Justin Bartha) are seeking this lost treasure of the Knights Templar that Ben's grandfather had told him about. It turns out the Gates family has been trying to find this secret treasure for years and have never succeeded, but Ben is getting closer. With clues hidden in numerous places, Ben and Riley are inching closer and closer to finding the treasure. However, Ben isn't like most treasure hunters, his only goal is to find the treasure and divide it amongst various museums so that all the world can see. But they aren't the only ones who know of the treasure, a rogue treasure hunter (Sean Bean), who used to work with Ben until he betrayed him, is searching for the treasure as well, and his motives are not nearly as pure. As both close in on the final clues, each man comes to the realization that the biggest clue lies in Washington D.C. on the back of the Declaration of Independence. Now, Ben will attempt to steal the Declaration of Independence for two reasons, one is that he hopes he can find the answers to solve the clues that has consumed his family for generations, and secondly, to protect the document from reaching his competitor's hands, who will use the treasure for his own selfish gains.
"National Treasure" is actually one of those movies that looks good from the trailers, but also leaves you wondering if it's just a knock-off of some previous hit movie ('Indiana Jones' trilogy, in this case). But surprisingly, even though there are elements that are similar to Steven Spielberg's classic trilogy, this film does deliver to audiences a truly engaging and entertaining escape that feels both fresh and new. Director Jon Turtletaub ("Phenomenon") and uber-producer Jerry Bruckheimer ('Pirates of the Caribbean' movies) have taken what was most likely a run-of-the-mill action/adventure and spiced it up to become better than it actually was destined to be. Truth be told, the basic story is fairly formulaic and easy to predict, but the solid performances, fun action sequences, and even some really funny bits of comedy give the movie a much more polished feel. The story actually did have some interesting bits of trivia about our nation's history sprinkled throughout as part of the clues, which I felt was a neat touch, and just the way each of the clues linked up was very well thought out, which also assisted in elevating the basic plot from your average action movie.
The actors all do very well with their roles Nicolas Cage gives a more low-key performance that doesn't appear to include his usual quirkiness that he's so well known for. Sean Bean is right on in the role of the rogue treasure hunter, villains are roles that Bean plays very well, and he always manages to entertain. Justin Bartha provides the bits of comedy that were used to break up the adventurous overtones, without them feeling out of place or forced. Cameo appearances by Jon Voight, Christopher Plummer, and Harvey Keitel are all entertaining and fun to see, although I guess Voight's role is a little more than a cameo but he's only in the latter half of the film.
"National Treasure" is a solid, action/adventure film that has a little something for everyone, and can be enjoyed by the whole family, and as a little bonus you may even learn some bits of trivia that you never even knew about our country.
"National Treasure" is rated PG for violence.
 Splendid action packed movie with Nick Cage
I love the plot of this movie. It's a thriller, a who done it, action packed with surprises around so many corners in so many directions.
My kinda movie. I'm thrilled to add it to my personal movie library.
great movie
This was very entertaining. It combines history and fiction in a believable way and makes us want to learn more about the subjects that we hear about. I definitely recommend watching all the bonus material on the disc. You'll probably end up searching the Internet for more information on the Knights Templar when you are done. I highly recommend this movie.
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