National Treasure (2004)

Director:

Jon Turteltaub

Writers (WGA):

Jim Kouf (story) and
Oren Aviv (story) ...

Release Date:

19 November 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Thriller

Tagline:

The greatest adventure history has ever revealed.

Plot:

A treasure hunter is in hot pursuit of a mythical treasure that has been passed down for centuries, while his employer turned enemy is onto the same path that he's on.

Plot Keywords:

Treasure | Clue | FBI | Declaration Of Independence | Treasure Hunter

Awards:

1 win & 7 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sat. Dec. 5	9:00 PM	SYFY
Sun. Dec. 6	6:00 PM	SYFY

Cast

Nicolas Cage	...	Ben Gates
Diane Kruger	...	Abigail Chase
Justin Bartha	...	Riley Poole
Sean Bean	...	Ian Howe
Jon Voight	...	Patrick Gates
Harvey Keitel	...	Sadusky
Christopher Plummer	...	John Adams Gates
David Dayan Fisher	...	Shaw
Stewart Finlay-McLennan	...	Powell
Oleg Taktarov	...	Shippen
Stephen A. Pope	...	Phil (as Stephen Pope)
Annie Parisse	...	Agent Dawes
Mark Pellegrino	...	Agent Johnson
Armando Riesco	...	Agent Hendricks
Erik King	...	Agent Colfax

Also Known As:

Sonomo (Philippines: English title) (review title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for action violence and some scary images.

Runtime:

131 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | SDDS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:L | Malaysia:U | Canada:G (Quebec) | Denmark:11 | Netherlands:12 | South Korea:12 | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | France:U | Taiwan:PG-12 | New Zealand:PG | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Brazil:Livre | Chile:TE | Finland:K-11 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIA | Ireland:PG | Norway:11 | Peru:PT | Philippines:G | Singapore:PG | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Zurich) | UK:PG | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

DAR - Memorial Continental Hall.- 1776 D Street NW, Washington, District of Columbia, USA

Company:

Walt Disney Pictures

Trivia:

The movie suggests that something is written on the back of the Declaration of Independence. It is true that something is written on its back. The writing on the back of the Declaration of Independence reads: "Original Declaration of Independence dated 4th July 1776" and it appears on the bottom of the document, upside down. While no one knows for certain who wrote it, it is known that early in its life, the large parchment document (it measures 29 3/4 inches by 24 ½ inches) was rolled up for storage. So, it is likely that the notation was added simply as a label.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When the characters go underground, Ben pulls a torch off of the wall and lights it, and it burns instantly and brightly. Also when the heroes find the treasure room, a 'river of fire is lit'. There is no substance the 18th century colonials would have had access to which could have both produced instant flames of that kind *and* had it's potency last for 200+ years.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Young Ben Gates: Grandpa!
John Adams Gates: You're not supposed to be up here, looking at that.

Movie Connections:

References The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Soundtrack:

Forget It

Did The Illuminati Fund This Movie To Further Mask Their Nefarious Schemes?

NATIONAL TREASURE (3 outta 5 stars) After hearing some of the initial reviews I was expecting something of a train wreck here. Actually, the movie is not bad at all... in a cheesy kind of Saturday afternoon time-killing way. Some of the actions of the characters strain credibility at times... but if you just sit back and let the plot play out it's all quite entertaining. A pair of eccentric treasure hunters pick up a female ally along the way as they try to beat a rich bad man at finding the greatest cache of treasure of all time. Nicolas Cage gives an effortlessly engaging lead performance. His male and female sidekicks (Diane Kruger and Justin Bartha) play off him quite well. The main villain (Sean Bean) is a more low-key bad guy than we tend to see in movies these days... he doesn't go on and on ranting and raving and screaming to prove how bad he is... he just proves it quite matter-of-factly through his actions. Jon Voigt and Harvey Keitel do alright in a couple of minor roles that don't do much for their acting cred but probably gave their bank accounts a boost. It didn't even strike me until the very end that this was indeed a Disney MOVIE... one very much like the adventure movies they used to put out in the 50s. I was also pleasantly surprised that there were less dumb action stunts than I expected. The two major stunt scenes in the film (a car chase and a stairway cave-in) were pretty un-inspired... the movie wisely concentrates more on plot and dialogue.