Poor Benjamin Gates. In the first "National Treasure," he was thought to be crazy for continuing a hunt for the Knights Templar Treasure that had been sought after by six generations of his family. And now, in "National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets," he must restore the name of his great-grandfather, who has been accused of being a co-conspirator in the assassination of President Lincoln. So much treasure, so little time. If only "National Treasure 2" had the spunk of its predecessor to make it worth the trip.
In an opening sequence that bares a gloss only a Disney historical recreation could bare, we see an interaction between John Wilkes Booth and Thomas Gates, great-grandfather to Ben (Nicholas Cage) that takes place four days after the end of the Civil War. Gates is instructed to decipher a code, but when Booth leaves to murder the President, Gates rips his findings from Booth's diary and throws them into the fire. With his last breath, he whispers a clue to his young son.
Ben and his father (Jon Voight) are in the midst of explaining how their relative kept Booth and his gang from finding the wealth of treasure hinted at on the map when they are interrupted by Mitch Wilkinson (Ed Harris), who reveals one of the diary's missing pages. According to this slightly burnt scrap, Thomas Gates was one of the conspirators.
Ben and Patrick, picking up Riley (Justin Bartha), Abigail (Diane Kruger) and later Ben's mother Emily (Helen Mirren) along the way, set out to find the hidden treasure that would prove that Gates was one of the good guys. The mission takes them to Paris, London, Washington, and finally Mt. Rushmore. With the help of the President, the Gates gang finds the presidential Book of Secrets, thought to be an urban legend, which includes a photo of the final piece of the map. It's no surprise that they once again find a secret room filled with golden artifacts, avoid arrest, and save the family's name.
I can't imagine how unbearable "National Treasure 2" would have been without the star power Disney can afford. It appears that the actors are having so much fun that it's hard not to want to join in. Unfortunately, "2" just doesn't have the same pizazz that the original had. Gates once again has all the answers, but he doesn't really have to work very hard to get to the treasure. Though the original found Ben constantly hounded by the bad guys (Sean Bean and pals), Wilkinson and his henchmen are always too far behind and not "bad" enough.
The story for "2" is just as convoluted as the first. We're supposed to believe that the guy who designed the Statue of Liberty left a clue that leads to an old ship that was made into two desks that currently reside in the Queen's study in Buckingham Palace and the Oval Office in the White House and contain secret compartments holding planks of wood with Native American hieroglyphs, except that one was destroyed but not before President Coolidge could write about it in the secret Presidential diary and how Mt. Rushmore was carved to cover it all up? Ok. And on top of all that, our main character has access to all of these because all of the security cameras have mysteriously disappeared.
Silliness of the story aside, I found myself constantly wondering, "Who the hell is building all of these secret compartments, stone trap doors, and underground tunnels?" The folks over at Disney still have a wonderful imagination, I'll give them that much.
Sadly, when it's all said and done, the ending is too perfect. The discovery has reunited Ben and Abigail (whose relationship was on the rocks at the film's opening) and also Patrick and Emily, who had apparently divorced because of Patrick's persistent but fruitless treasure hunting. Well, clearly nothing says "I love you" like a big room of treasure and even better, a way out of the flooded underground temple.
"National Treasure 2" is hard to hate since, let's face it, no one went in expecting high art. It's not great, it's not even that good, but it still manages to entertain, mostly due to Cage's determined Gates. This money-grubbing sequel from the same folks that have jammed 2 disappointing "Pirates" films down our throats reunites a fun and energetic cast for another fast-paced adventure, but fails to reclaim the spark that made the first "National Treasure" so much of a guilty pleasure.
Who knows, perhaps they'll fix the formula the next time around. Oh yes, did I mention the open ending? When the President tells Ben where to find the Book of Secrets, he asks him to take a look at page 47. At the end, he asks Ben if he took a gander, and he replies "Oh yes. It was life-altering." If that isn't enough to convince you that there's more treasure to be found, Disney has recently purchased the web domains for NationalTreasure3DVD.com and NationalTreasure4DVD.com. There's just no rest in sight for the Gates family.