National Treasure 2: Worth price of admission?
by Justin Westering, Guest Reporter
Car chases, a kidnapping and a hidden treasure. The sequel to the great movie "National Treasure" has it allâ?¦but so did the first. "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" has an incredible cast and a great story line. But as I sat in the theater I had a strange feeling of deja vu. Nicolas Cage stars in this thrilling adventure as the one and only Benjamin Gates, who once again is out to prove his family's innocence. When a missing page of Lincoln assassin John Wilkes Booth's diary is brought to the scene by a man named Mitch Wilkinson (Ed Harris), things begin to turn for the Gates family. This page allegedly links Ben's great-great grandfather to the Lincoln assassination. Ben is enraged by this and is out to prove his grandfather's innocence. He also believes that this diary page could be a treasure map to the mythical City of Gold.
Joining Ben on this quest are his sidekick and tech extraordinary Riley Poole (Justin Bartha), as well as his ex-girlfriend Abigail Chase (Diane Kruger). Each of these characters are played very well. Cage brings an intense, passion to his part while Kruger adds her sass and charm into their journey. And of course Bartha never ceases to keep you laughing along this enjoyable ride. This intense, search takes them from Washington DC, to London, and to South Dakota. Getting caught in many entanglements along the way, they manage to sneak into the Queen's quarters in Buckingham Palace, kidnap the President of the United States and spend some nice quality time in the Oval office. All of these are very fun and exciting adventures to watch in the movies, but slightly ridiculous in real life.
In addition to the other characters, Jon Voight plays Ben's father Patrick, and Helen Mirren has the role of Patrick's estranged ex-wife Emily. The cast in this film really is extraordinary. Director Jon Turtletaub captures the feeling of excitement, tension, and humor at the same time. Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, the bar was set very high for this action/adventure flick. Overall I think it reached it. Not quite beating out the original, but still holding its own. I greatly enjoyed watching this movie. Deja vu isn't such a bad thing when both movies are fun-loving, exciting adventures that any family would enjoy being a part of.