Disappointing sequel still better than 90% of what's at the movies

Rating: 6/10 (22 December 2007)

NT2 contains some of what made NT1 so much fun, but is missing some key elements.
**BEYOND THIS THERE BE SPOILERS**
First, I got plot questions: Why doesn't Booth know how to decode his own coded letter when he even has the key? Why is the KGC subplot dropped from the film after the first half hour? Why doesn't Ben Gates have any cred with the powers that be after finding the world's biggest treasure in the first movie? He still has to sneak around and break into everything. (answer - so Riley can be a character in the movie) Why does his ex-girlfriend have the huge mansion? She didn't buy it, and they weren't married. And after all the jumping through hoops, why is Thomas Gates listed in Booth's diary as "mastermind?" If they explained, I missed it, and that explanation was what the whole thing was supposedly about. I guess these are minor.
What I really miss from part one is the appreciation of history. The most interesting characters in the film (Lincoln, Booth, Albert Pike, Queen Victoria) are little more than passing thoughts here. Nothing as grand as those opening montages in NT1, showing the origin of the treasure, the legend, the only surviving clue, etc. There is a scene of the Lincoln assassination, and it's one of the best things in the film. For two minutes.
There is also a very good car chase and a good deathtrap before the final discovery which was borrowed from the Republic serial Manhunt in the African Jungle, IIRC.
The performances are uniformly good, except maybe for Diane Kruger, whose German accent is much more noticeable than in the first installment. (I know, she looks good, so that cancels it out.)
Speaking of looking good, Cage's hair stylist has failed him royally on this one and should never be hired by him again. It's only three years since the last installment and he looks like 10 years before the mast/5 miles of bad road. Bad cut, bad color. He is a major movie star, people, can you help the man out for heaven's sake?
Still, the movie is fun and funny, fast paced and clean, and worth the price of admission if you're looking for some escapist fun.