Better than I expected it to be...

Rating: 8/10 (14 May 2005)

I have to admit, I found "National Treasure" was a very pleasant surprise given how lousy I thought it was going to be. The trailers looked somewhat promising, but so far I hadn't been all that impressed with most Nicholas Cage movies with "The Rock" and "Con Air" being the only two exceptions. Add "National Treasure" to that list.
The subject matter is one that I've always been interested in, and I thought it was handled fairly well. I was disappointed they didn't go into some of the "darker" rumors about the Templar Knights and the Freemasons (ala some of Dan Brown's works like Di Vinici Code and Angels & Demons), and I kept waiting for an "Illuminati" reference or two to pop up somewhere but it never happened. Still, delving into the masonic background of the "founding fathers" of the United States was quite enjoyable and really a switch from most Hollywood efforts.
Cage handled the role of Ben Gates very well... enough of the "Stanley Goodspeed" ("The Rock") style without going overboard, and just the right subtle touch of a little "Indiana Jones" (any more would have made the movie unbearable). This is one of the few movies that I think his role meshed better with the other roles in the movie (particuarly the characters of Riley Poole and Abigail Chase).
Justin Bartha as Riley Poole was absolutely perfect, and while I wish they went more into the background of how he and Gates got together, Riley was the perfect comic foil/side-kick. Somehow, while watching him, I could easily see Bartha playing one either Merry or Pippin in LOTR. In fact, a movie based on Riley as the main character would have some great potential, providing Bartha remained in the role.
Diane Kruger is very lovely and a fine actress, and did quite well as Abigail Chase, but it wasn't until the end when I really thought her character finally stood enough on it's own.
Overall, quite enjoyable and one that I have already added to my DVD collection...