National Treasure

Nicolas Cage is back in action as Benjamin Franklin Gates (when a character has this name, movie expectations are further lowered) who is on a crusade to locate the hidden treasure left behind by the founding fathers of the United State of America. Watching the plot unfold is like reading one of those Da Vinci Code rip-offs. In Gates’ search for the treasure he follows a series of trails that point to where the treasure is supposedly buried. On the hunt also are Gates’ former teammates who as usual in a formulaic movie as this one turns sinister at the sight or just even thought of massive fortune. The film pretty much run in circles until finally the last clue is revealed. But because of the stupidity of the villain (actually, the screenwriter is to be blamed for this), the final scenes, revealing the treasure lacked the excitement it was building beginning from the start of the story. Diane Kruger, she was Helen in the movie Troy, is the token female partner of Gates along with the token techno-whiz sidekick Justin Bartha. Given all this and only if one suspends his incredulity and ride along with the story, the film seems fun and probably even thrilling. One can only hope that when the Da Vinci Code novel is brought to the screen by Tom Hanks and company, they will not succumb to the same failures this film have in loads.