As basic entertainment it works - just don't go in expecting anything deep or memorable

Rating: 6/10 (31 August 2005)

"National Treasure" was a surprise hit for Disney and seemed to make quite a splash at the box office, which I didn't expect when I saw ads for it. Out of pure interest - and a few good things I had heard from friends - I figured I might as well check it out, since I'm a bit of a Nicolas Cage fan to begin with.
The movie focuses on Cage's character and his pursuit to find the Masons' treasure, which he believes has been hidden and leads to a map somewhere. Eventually after an ice dig he finds the next clue - which indicates the map is printed on the back of the Constitution.
After the bad guy (Sean Bean) sabotages his expedition and leaves to nab the Constutition for himself, Cage teams up with his Neurotic Comic Relief Character to take the Constitution, protect it, find the treasure, and so on and so forth. Conveniently, he teams up with a sexy woman (Diane Kruger) who just so happens to work in Washington, D.C. for a museum. How convenient.
The movie isn't nearly as good as "Indiana Jones" and I didn't like the beginning at all. For example the whole process where they plan how to steal the Constitution was poorly executed. I felt like I was watching a TV commercial. The entire bit with the computer and everything was just way too TV-style to be in a feature film.
Cage is good, Kruger is out of place, Jon Voight, Harvey Keitel and Christopher Plummer are all given very little to do. The movie ends quite typically. Spoilers are ahead, so do not read any further -- -- I don't usually give out spoilers but I felt this one should be addressed. At the end, Cage is given a lecture by Keitel on how sharing the treasure with the world is the right thing to do, and so on and so forth. It's a very contrived, silly, unrealistic conclusion because we all know that, in reality, America would hog the treasure for itself. (And one might say they have a right to, as the founding fathers supposedly buried it.) A few things like this rubbed me the wrong way. They seemed too preachy and unrealistic, and because of the PG rating and the Disney marketing it comes across as a very mild version of something that could be given a harder treatment in the future.
But as far as family films go, this one is better than a lot of others. Cage is always fun to watch and he has a good time with his role. It's not a great movie but it serves its purpose.