By Fred Topel | Image property of respective holders.
National Treasure (Two-Disc Collector's Edition)
Since there's a new sequel out, there's also a new edition of the original National Treasure on DVD. This gave me an opportunity to put my theory to the test. Was Book of Secrets really a better movie, or was I just too dumb to appreciate the original back then.
DVD Review: National Treasure
I was not that dumb. National Treasure still feels like an utterly mediocre caper. The characters are flat, the pace is slow and the history isn't that compelling. They really upped the ante big time in the sequel.
Book of Secrets has Cage freaking out with joy, nuanced clue finding missions and outrageous set pieces. The first one's most tense moment was the crumbling wooden staircase, and the only hints of nuance were getting the fingerprints for the restoration room, which is a really old spy trick.
I mean this with all due respect to the filmmakers. They were onto something the first time around and the success gave them a chance to really perfect the formula. I'm happy they got through National Treasure to make bigger and better sequels. I've just given it a fair chance in retrospect and I stand by my review.
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