N is for National Treasure

Someone mentioned that my A-Z was very… mainstream and family-friendly. Just wait until you get to O…

I don’t care – this is my A-Z! I got a bit carried away late last night and scheduled my O film for this morning. O is for ‘ooops’, it would seem, because I’ve missed out N! The alphabet is *hard*, man.

N then is for National Treasure. A pure ‘guilty pleasure’ film if ever there was one. That’s if you subscribe to the notion, of course. I *love* this film and every minute of its 131 minute running time. Yes, it’s long, but it’s a sheer joy from start to finish. 2004, a paltry 6.9 stars on IMDb, it spawned a sequel (Book of Secrets) which is fine, but the first one is where it’s at.

All his life Benjamin Gates has search for a treasure. No one believe to existed.
The greatest adventure history has ever revealed.
In order to break the code, one man will have to break all the rules.
The clues are right in front of your eyes.

Oh, this is *so* much fun. It knows *exactly* how silly it is, and plays it dead straight. The plot boils down to a standard follow the clues to find more clues to find the treasure, in the grand tradition of Indiana Jones. The parallels are writ large across the screen – imagine Indy in the 21st century and you’re not a million miles off. I’ve seen this film a dozen times, but would happily watch it now if it was on TV. I’ll even watch the last twenty minutes if it’s on. It’s pure saturday afternoon hokum of the highest variety.

The plot, if anyone cares:

Nic Cage plays Benjamin Franklin Gates, a historian searching for a lost treasure. There’s some gubbins about the Knights Templar and the American Freemasons who hid the treasure during the American Revolutionary War. Hijinks abound in good measure, and it turns out there’s a coded map on the back of the Declaration of Independence, which Gates and chums has to steal. Sean Bean turns up and tries to steal it too, and it’s a race to the finish.

It also stars stars Harvey Keitel, Jon Voight, Diane Kruger, Sean Bean, Justin Bartha, and Christopher Plummer, all of whom are also enjoying themselves immensely. Some critics feel that the sheer implausibility of it all spoils the movie, but for me the complete bonkersness of it all just adds to the enjoyment. This is not a film you sit and ponder, or examine in depth. There are holes in the plot you could drive through. Instead, just strap yourself in, hand Nic the keys to the car and brace yourself. We’re going on an adventure!

previously, on The A-Z Challenge
A is for Alien
B is for The Breakfast Club
C is for Catching Fire
D is for Die Hard
E is for The Empire Strikes Bank
F is for Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
G is for Goldfinger (and GoldenEye)
H is for Howl’s Moving Castle
I is for Inception
J is for Jurassic Park
K is for Kung Fu Panda
L is for Labyrinth
M is for Moon

Author: dave

Book reviewer, occasional writer, photographer, coffee-lover, cyclist, spoon carver and stationery geek.