If I may be able allowed to conjure up conspiracy theories of my own, then I will attempt an hypothesis how National Treasure came to debut on the big screen, based on opportunities which presented themselves at the right time. First, the popularity of Dan Brown’s controversial The Da Vinci Code, which was made into a movie of its own, but took a tad too long in making. Topping the bestseller charts around the world, it made Hollywood execs sit up and realize that wild goose chases and solving riddles and clues do make an interesting, workable formula. That, coupled with the fact that it seemed the Indiana Jones trilogy (at the time) probably would not have another sequel, may have led those same execs to craft a tale based on controversies with Indy Jones tendencies, with the expectation that chances were a new winner would be born.

Hence, National Treasure at the end of 2004, which made a decent dent in the box office, starring Nicolas Cage as an Indy-like clone, Benjamin Gates, embroiled in a mystery of the Templar’s treasure, with sidekick Riley Poole (Justin Bartha) as the tech wizard necessary to assist him, while he romanced Abigail Chase (Diane Kruger), who joined his band of treasure seekers against her wishes. The Indy references didn’t just stop there, they extended to a Henry Jones resemblance in Jon Voight as dad Patrick Gates. Deck Cage in a fedora, whip and gun and the references would be obvious.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. The important question is, is the sequel Book of Secrets as good as, or can it be credited with the rare accolade of being better than, the original? Well, in all honesty, it is still an entertaining ride, as this time we go around the world (OK, so perhaps just Paris and London), whereas the original story was US-centric. However, like the first instalment, the material, clues and riddles are still quite US history heavy, so if you’re well versed with certain characters (brought to life early in the movie) or events (thanks to paying attention during history lessons), then, yes, your identification with Book of Secrets will get an additional boost. Otherwise, don’t fret, as the casual moviegoer with popcorn in hand will also definitely not feel lost.

The narrative and plot still feel a little rigged for convenience (and run time, of course), as one event leads to the next and so on to the inevitable ending, but it is still a lot of fun watching how the characters go through the motions believing they’re onto something really big. While the first movie in the franchise had a lot of puzzles to solve, which kept some of us both guessing and playing along, this time round the number of riddles has been reduced significantly, and signs of Mission: Impossible creep in as our band of treasure hunters seek to perform against the impossible security forces guarding their mark.

In an excuse to make the sequel, we have Ben and Patrick Gates reuniting to clear the good name of their ancestor, who has recently been accused of being a co-conspirator, or even mastermind, behind the assassination of US President Abraham Lincoln. And, of course, help comes in the form of Abigail (now estranged from Ben), trusty tech sidekick with the witty lines Riley (and his red Ferarri), and Ben’s mom Emily Appleton, played by Helen Mirren, who is in the movie to contrast the relationship between her and Patrick with that between Ben and Abigail.

However, we’re not really interested in whimsical attempts to add depth to characters, are we? Sure, they have their issues with one another, and with Ed Harris’s Mitch Wilkinson being the token and very bland bad guy wanting to make his mark on history, the focus more often than not shifts to the next big stunt/chase sequence. Like the first movie, one of the highlights touted in the trailer involves the art of balancing, which unfortunately, was already done in the first movie. Don’t you just hate repeated stunts? And toward the end, I couldn’t help but compare this film to Jackie Chan’s The Myth, which in itself was somewhat of a treasure-hunter movie, involving the elixir of life (we’re still stuck with gold here, though).

Add in Harvey Keitel’s FBI agent, Sadusky, the office of the most powerful man in the world, and teases from the Book of Secrets, and we’ve got ourselves quite a handful squeezed into two hours. Without bypassing Nicolas Cage’s absolutely horrendous haircut, the final verdict is that this is a fairly decent end-of-year blockbuster primed for yet another sequel, if the box-office numbers prove favourable.

Stefan S