National Treasure (2004)

Rating: 2 Stars (out of 4)

History Mystery

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Buy National Treasure on DVD.

Jerry Bruckheimer is the equivalent of one of those pulp writers from the 1940s and '50s. He makes the same garbage over and over again, but packages it with enticing posters and trailers. Time and again, movie fans will go, hoping that maybe this time the movie will deliver on its promises. Mostly they don't and National Treasure doesn't either. Nicolas Cage stars as treasure hunter Benjamin Franklin Gates, whose family has for generations searched for a boundless treasure stolen during the crusades and hidden by the founding fathers. Gates makes some headway by discovering the secret of his only clue, a ship buried in the arctic ice. That leads him to a map printed in invisible ink on the back of the Declaration of Independence, which leads to more clues. Sean Bean co-stars as Gates' former partner who betrays him and subsequently races against him for the treasure. Diane Kruger (Troy) and Justin Bartha (Gigli) are Gates' sidekicks; their bland presence doesn't do much except keep Gates from talking to himself. The film's trio of credited writers fails to generate anything in the way of character, and they create the largest and most unwieldy plot holes in a long time. Still, the film has an undeniable spirit that keeps it just a notch above the year's very worst. Jon Turtletaub (While You Were Sleeping) directs, and Jon Voight, Harvey Keitel and Christopher Plummer appear in insubstantial roles.

DVD Details: Disney's new DVD comes with an alternate ending (with optional director commentary), deleted scenes (also with optional director commentary), a making-of featurette, several other featurettes and an opening scene animatic with optional director's commentary. The film is mastered in 2.35:1 widescreen with 5.1 sound, plus an optional French language track and optional French and Spanish subtitles.

The disc also features several puzzles. If you select the image at the top of the main menu, you get a code entry page. You can go through the extras to find the code, or you can cheat and get it from the booklet. This brings you to a second set of featurettes. Watch "Riley's Decode This!", solve all the puzzles at the end, and you'll get a second, four-digit code. Highlight the Easter Egg on that menu and punch in the four-digit code. That takes you to a final screen, the option to watch the film with a "trivia track," as well as a three-digit "master code." This master code allows you to watch all the extras without having to go through the whole rigmarole again.

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Jon Voight, Harvey Keitel, Diane Kruger, Sean Bean, Justin Bartha, Christopher Plummer
Written by: Jim Kouf, Cormac Wibberly, Marianne Wibberly
Directed by: Jon Turtletaub
MPAA Rating: PG for action violence and some scary images
Running Time: 131 minutes
Date: November 19, 2004