Lives up to its predecessor

Rating: 9/10 (21 December 2007)

National Treasure: Book of Secrets was very good. It was not as good as the first one, but does not completely fail.
Plot: 13/15 The crew sets out to look for the City of Gold. Following clue after clue,(may be too complicated for kids), taking them to France, England, the White House, and Mount Rushmore, they also encounter their fair share of problems. The part I really didn't like (*spoiler*) was when they actually found the treasure. It was almost anti-climactic. Of course, they're happy that they found it, but they're also in a race to not drown. They didn't exactly "relish in their victory."
Villain: 14/15 Ed Harris was very good. He didn't overdo his character and played the part well. The villain was very similar to Ian from the previous film. He's always right on their tail, finding the clues they don't have, and playing with their minds. In the end, (*spoiler*) we find out that he's not exactly a villain, but just a guys that wants some respect for his family name. He wants to be part of history.
Comedy: 10/10. Like in the last movie, Riley delivers most of the brilliant one-liners, often hilarious. There were several laugh-out loud funny parts, such as Jon Voight and Helen Mirren swinging on a rope like Tarzan and Jane.
Action: 10/10. There was plenty of this. Everything a car chase on the streets of London (worthy of being in a Bourne film) to the depths of Mount Rushmore, plenty of action went on.
Romance: 7/10. Not too much of this (obviously, you don't really need too much for this kind of movie). But the romance that was involved was almost cheesy. (*spoiler*) In the beginning of the film we learn the Abigail and Ben have separated, though if you pay attention, you find out that if they hadn't split, the filmmakers would have lost a crucial plot point. Also, we see Ben's mother and father kiss start to come together towards the end. Even though they kiss, at the end we don't learn exactly if they get together again, which left me disappointed.
Music: 14/15 Most of the same music was used, thought not as much. This left me slightly disappointed considering the music from the last movie was phenomenal.
Characters and their development: 15/15 We knew most of the characters already, and they were very entertaining to watch. New characters: Wilkinson and Appleton (the villain and Ben's mom) The villain (as mentioned above)was great. Ben's mom is a lovely character. We learn, very obviously, that she hates her ex and cares about her son very much. She's very fun to watch.
Was it worth the ten dollars I spent and two hours of my day? Yes (10/10) Overall: 93/100- 9/10 Very good! (Note: there is also kind of a set-up for a third movie. I could be completely wrong about this but I got that impression)