NATIONAL TREASURE

US, 2004, 131 minutes, Colour.
Nicolas Cage, Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha, Sean Bean, Jon Voight, Harvey Keitel, Christopher Plummer.
Directed by John Turteltaub.

Dan Brown has a lot to answer for. Even though he did not initiate religious and political conspiracy theories with mysterious codes to decipher (in fact, he is quite derivative of a long line of novels and studies), he has so popularised them with his Angels and Demons (which is a better read than its Da Vinci sequel, though both would fail any basic history or religion exam) and the extraordinary best-selling history of The Da Vinci Code that we can expect any number of books and films that set us going on codes. What is it about us that codes and conspiracies have more credibility than actual history?

This can serve as a prologue to a review of a very entertaining actioner, National Treasure. It works very well and can serve as a guilty pleasure if seen by workaholics or serious historians. And it is about code-breaking to find the Knights Templar treasure – again. But how can we believe that it was transferred to the US before the 18th century with no one, except Ben Franklin and a few of the Founding Fathers noticing, let alone in the quantities that were hidden in... but that would be to spoil it all. One had better not mention where the code is located either – even more ingenious than in Da Vinci’s works.

Nicolas Cage is a man with a mission, inherited from his grandfather, Christopher Plummer, but poo-pooed by his sceptical father, Jon Voight. But, once on his way to find the treasure (including a trip to a boat in the Arctic where he falls foul of his greedy buddy (Sean Bean) and his cronies, he picks up a dim associate (Justin Bartha) and an expert on documents (Diane Kruger). In the race against time and the greedy, as well as the authorities, there are plenty of adventures, as if Indiana Jones were operating in Washington and New York, including stealing the Declaration of Independence.

With tongue firmly in cheek, director Jon Turteltaub takes us on a heady, serious and comic chase which serves as top escapist entertainment. There was an entertaining sequel in 2007, National Treasure: Book of Secrets.

1. An entertaining adventure? Heist? action show? Detection, clues, puzzle?

2. The plot, ingenious, the story of the treasure, the Knights Templar, the transfer to North America, concealed, the Freemasons, the Fathers of the Declaration of Independence, conspiracies? The Gates family and investigation, the grandfather, his devotion to detection, the father and his scepticism, Ben as a boy, growing up, the clue about Charlotte?

3. The New York settings, Washington DC, the Declaration? Philadelphia and the Liberty Bell? New York and Wall Street? Boston and the church?

4. The cast, international, the score?

5. The prologue, the character of young Ben, listening to the stories of his grandfather, the tradition of his family?

6. The Arctic, Ben and Riley, Ian and his associates? The search, the finding of the ship, the identification, the interiors, the pipe, the gun powder? Ben
working out the clues? The explosion? Ben and Riley, their escape? Return?

7. Going to the FBI, to other authorities, not being believed? Going to Abigail and expertise on documents? Not being heard? The plan, Ian and his threat, wanting to thwart him by stealing the Declaration?

8. Riley, his technology, information, ability to get into the library? Issues of security? The party, Ben and his entry, the success, the basement, going to the shop, buying a copy of the Declaration, using his credit card – and detection?

9. Abigail, her character, listening with tolerance, not believing Ben? Seeing him leave, his taking her and the escape, her exasperation? The police, going into action? Ben and Riley and the escape?

10. Ian, his threats, the pursuit of Ben, thinking he had the Declaration?

11. The decision to go to Patrick, the father’s reaction to Ben and his theories? The discussion about the invisible writing, heat, lemons? The work, discovering the further clues? The arrival of the police, Patrick’s response?

12. The information, the codes, going to Philadelphia, the Liberty Bell, daylight saving, going up the tower, Ian and his pursuit, chasing Ben, Ben jumping?

13. Going to Wall Street, the story of the past, the church, Parkington Lane, identifying the grave, through the headstone, the vast interiors, the stairs, collapsing and the adventure, swinging to safety, going down, the dead end?

14. Ben, his ingenuity, saving the group, sending Ian and his friends to Boston with the story of Paul Revere? The going to Boston, the detective arresting them?

15. The breakthrough, the vastness of the treasure, the ability to get out? The lighting up of all the treasure through the flames?

16. The detective, the role of the authorities, skill in detection, following Ben, following the clues, coming to the church, the treasure? Ben and his giving away the treasure? In exchange for his freedom?

17. His father, being taken by Ian, present at the finding of the treasure, his admitting the truth?

18. The happy and romantic ending, the good deeds for all the museums? The end of a satisfying adventure?