National Treasure: Book of Secrets

The original "National Treasure," a mix of historical mystery and modern adventure, was "Raiders of the Lost Ark" by way of "The Da Vinci Code," action-movie-lite built around founding father trivia and Masonic mythology. It becomes exceedingly silly in the sequel, an equally convoluted mystery involving a ruthless son of the South (Ed Harris) who smears the reputation of the heroic ancestor of Ben Gates (Nicolas Cage, once again a bundle of tics behind puppy dog looks of earnest purpose) and then races Ben and company to find Cibola, the fabled lost city of gold. Once again, arcane mind teasers and puzzles lead all to jump to wild conclusions. Director Jon Turteltaub tries to move it all fast enough to keep the audience from noticing the flimsy circumstantial evidence that drives them to break into the Queen's residence at Buckingham Palace, the secure rooms of the Library of Congress, and the Oval Office to follow the clues. As an encore he kidnaps the U.S. president (Bruce Greenwood), who turns out to be a real good sport about the whole thing. It all feels pretty tired this time around. The returning treasure-hunting crew –- sidekick Justin Bartha, girlfriend Diane Kruger and dad Jon Voight – are joined by Ben's mom (Helen Mirren), which leads to a lot more scrappy arguing. And Harvey Keitel is back as the FBI agent dogging the Gates expedition through the campaign of criminal trespassing that leads to Mount Rushmore, which turns out to be an elaborate façade in an age-old conspiracy. But of course!

Features commentary by Turteltaub, who uses every opportunity to crack jokes, and co-star Voight, who actually tries to engage in more serious dialogue about his fellow actors and discuss the actor's tools. Also available in a two-disc "Collector's Edition" with eight slight featurettes, the longest running 10 minutes, the shortest less than three. In addition to a light making-of overview and a whirlwind tour of filming locations, the supplements go into detail on the film's elaborate action scenes and take the viewer "Inside the Library of Congress." More interesting is "Pursuit at Rushmore: The Unseen Chapter," an entire seven-minute sequence deleted from the film. Turteltaub's explanation as to how and why it was removed makes it the most revealing supplement in the set. Also features four other deleted scenes and five minutes of outtakes and bloopers. Also available in Blu-ray format.