Starring Nicolas Cage, the original National Treasure, from 2004, was a throwback treat — one of those rare PG-rated adventure flicks that still legitimately work for audiences above 14 years of age. It was also something of a surprise smash hit, nearly perfectly halving its $347 million box office haul between domestic and international receipts, despite the fact that its plot centered around desperately American items and contrivances, like stealing the Declaration of Independence. To celebrate the theatrical release of its sequel, National Treasure: Book of Secrets, Disney trots out a new, two-disc special edition DVD this month.



Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and ably directed by Jon Turteltaub (Phenomenon, The Kid), the movie stars Cage as Benjamin Franklin Gates, the latest in a family of history buffs and crackpot treasure hunters descended from a secret society of Masons. An arctic treasure expedition with unexpectedly nefarious financier Ian Howe (Sean Bean) reveals that the next (and final) clue in Ben’s big search for a stash that will absolve the Gates family name lies on the back of the Declaration of Independence. That would seem to put a kibosh on things, but Ian has other plans. Ergo, along with his amiably exasperated friend Riley (Justin Bartha), Ben sets out to prevent Ian from desecrating American history by beating him to stealing the Declaration of Independence. Along the way, fetching archivist Abigail Chase (Diane Kruger, above right) gets unwittingly swept up in their case, along with Ben’s father (Jon Voight). Naturally, fantastically encoded adventure shenanigans ensue.

National Treasure is anchored by an invitingly dry turn from Cage, certainly, but also has the advantage of a superb ensemble cast, including fellow Academy Award winner Voight, Christopher Plummer and Harvey Keitel. Bartha, too, delivers a pitch-perfect supporting performance as Ben’s bubbly, increasingly incredulous sidekick. What National Treasure most has going for it is a sense of its own strengths and limitations, and how clearly delineated action set pieces can set hearts racing in adolescents and older generations alike. It’s a nimble piece of fanciful action work, but if ultimately lightweight then certainly also none the worse for its wear. National Treasure sells fun, pure and simple, and in that regard it succeeds. Parsing the implausibilities of its plot, or the specifics of its break-in, is a game for fools and cynics.

Housed in a regular Amray case with a slipcase with matching artwork, National Treasure comes presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen, with Dolby digital 5.1 surround sound and 2.0 surround audio tracks. In addition to all the imported supplemental extras of the original DVD release (an on-location featurette, a look at real-life treasure hunters, a puzzle challenge based around Riley's character, et al), this collector’s edition DVD includes a wealth of new bonus material, anchored by the requisite peek at the forthcoming sequel and four new featurettes which take viewers inside the making of this family-friendly flick. Bruckheimer doesn't sit for an audio commentary, which would score high in fascinating potentiality, but director Turteltaub provides introductions for an alternate ending, an opening scene animatic and a collection of deleted scenes. Strangely, the second disc houses even more excised scenes (it would seem to make sense to place them all together, no?), along with the aforementioned new tidbits. "On the Set of American History" and "Ciphers, Codes and Codebreakers" take an indulgent look at the potentially factually rooted nature of such history and treasure hunting, while "To Steal a National Treasure" and "Exploding Charlotte" delve more into the effects work and behind-the-scenes effort put into the film. A double-dip isn't necessary, but it is a nice upgrade for those without benefit of the first release, even if more input from Bruckheimer and Cage would have been welcome. B+ (Movie) B+ (Disc)