SYNOPSIS:
Filled
with hours of revealing bonus features, this 2-Disc Collector's
Edition DVD exposes a wealth of secrets behind the most spectacular
treasure hunt ever. Join Nicolas Cage on a heart-pounding adventure
that will have you on the edge of your seat in a race to find
the Lost City of Gold. Grounded in history, imbued with myth
and mystery, Disney's NATIONAL TREASURE 2: BOOK OF SECRETS takes
you on a globe-trotting quest full of adrenaline-pumping twists
and turns -- all leading to the final clue in a mysterious and
highly guarded book containing centuries of secrets. But there's
only one way to find it -- Ben Gates must kidnap the President.
MOVIE REVIEW:
Jerry Bruckheimer and Nicholas Cage are definitely
not favourable names with professional critics. The former
is well-known for producing high-octane, mindless action flicks
while the latter has in recent years washed away his past
track records with the remake of “Wicker Man”
and cheese balls such as “Next” and “Ghost
Rider”.
However,
the duo did manage to serve up something unexpectedly digestible
in 2004, “National Treasure”. The Jon Turteltaub’s
directed adventure movie about a modern day treasure hunter,
Benjamin Gates (Cage) who is after the legendary Knights Templar
Treasure was an instant success. Raking in almost US$340 million
worldwide, the sequel is undeniable.
With
the original cast reprising their roles and the inclusion
of Ed Harris as the villain and the incredible Helen Mirren
as Gates’ mother, “National Treasure 2: Book of
Secrets” rides on the same old formula as seen in the
original. There isn’t much of a time lapse between the
first and the sequel, the movie plods on pretty fast with
the Gates family being accused of involving in Lincoln’s
assassination and Benjamin has to prove his family’s
innocence, at the same time find the Lost City of Gold.
This
new adventure brings Gates and Riley (the I.T. geek played
by Justin Bartha) to places such as Paris, the U.K and Mount
Rushmore. What make the series so enjoyable is the fun in
watching them doing implausible things such as breaking into
the Buckingham Palace and the White House in search of clues.
And yes that includes kidnapping the President of the United
States. You might not be entirely familiar with the mentioned
historic references or should I say, the puzzles in the first
place could be just mere fantasies of the screenwriters but
this is the fun of it. Without taking itself too seriously,
Gates and his entire family (including his parents and bickering
partner, Abigail played again by the beautiful Diane Kruger)
will take you on a 2 hours boisterous ride.
You
got to truly credit Bruckheimer for his dedication to the
business by giving the audience the real treat. Meaning a
smashing car chase is choreographed on the busy business districts
of London and secondly, without relying too much on CG effects,
a gigantic physical set was built for the finale, something
even the recent Indiana Jones didn’t actually accomplished.
Director
Jon Turteltaub has proven his capability and confidence of
handling tentpole projects with this sequel. I’m sure
he will move on to even better materials in future. As for
Bruckheimer, the trade has stated his next blockbuster will
be the adaptation of the popular game, “Prince of Persian”,
like it or not Cage on the other hand already has a line-up
of cheesy projects. Think of it, isn’t it great when
you have the 2-disc edition of “National Treasure 2”
to hold on to?
SPECIAL FEATURES :
Jon Turteltaub is such an engaging speaker that his
Audio Commentary with Jon Voight is a delight
to listen to.
There
are several Deleted Scenes with intros by
Turteltaub. I’m sure you forgive Turteltaub for the
snipping because he sounds like a genuine nice guy.
Several
minutes of Bloopers and Outtakes are included.
No surprises here.
“Secrets
of a Sequel” is the usual making of feature
which covers interviews with the cast and crew.
This
is what true filmmaking is all about. Instead of putting a
fake CGI of the Eiffel Tower, the crew went all the way to
Paris to shoot the sequence. This and more is detailed in
“The Book of Secrets: On Location”.
I’m
in love with this one. Want to see how the crew setup the
London chase sequence? This is covered in “Street
Stunts: Creating the London chase”.
In
the seven minutes feature “Underground Action”,
the stars are shown attempting their own stunts in the finale.
If
you haven’t been to the actual location, this is a behind-the-scenes
tour of “The Library of Congress”.
It’s huge, grand and makes you want to be there.
The
production designer talks about how he authentically created
the Presidents’ Book in “Cover Story:
Crafting the Presidents’ Book”. Even
though it’s a prop, we love to have it.
The
last two features, “Evolution of a Golden City”
and “Knights of the Golden Circle”
delves into the myth of the legendary city, Cibola and also
the history of the real Golden Circle.
An
Easter Egg (which can be found on the menu
of Disc Two) is also included.
AUDIO/VISUAL:
The DVD is presented in Widescreen 2.40:1 and the transfer
is simply marvelous. I can’t imagine how nice it will
look in Blu-ray but this DVD version is already flawless in
the visual department.
Dialogue
is not over-empowered by the sound and score and with Dolby
Digital 5.1, the dynamic sound effects comes alive especially
during the car chase.
MOVIE RATING:
 
DVD
RATING :
Review
by Linus Tee
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