Release Date: May 20th, 2008
Running Time: 131 minutes

The Film

The treasure hunter genre is ruthless. Ever since the Indiana Jones films no one can make an adventure film without it being unjustly compared to the epic trilogy. National Treasure may not have the timeless charm of the movies starring a certain whip-carrying professor, but it is undeniably fun and shouldn’t be written off as an Indiana Jones copy.

Nicholas Cage stars as Benjamin Franklin Gates, a part-time archeologist and history aficionado. He has been regaled since his youth with tales of the treasure of the Knights of Templar hidden by the founding fathers of America. Working together with his financier Ian (Sean Bean), Ben has frantically searched for this treasure. One day he discovers that another clue to the treasure is written on the back of the Declaration of Independence. Ian betrays Benjamin and a race is on to follow the clues.

With the help of his tech-savvy assistant Riley (Justin Bartha), his father Patrick (Jon Voight), and a National Archives official named Abigail (Diane Kruger), the group heads off on an adventure that takes them across continents in search of answers to one of America’s most hidden secrets.

National Treasure works because Nicolas Cage is an astounding character actor. Whether it is Face/Off or Ghost Rider, Cage always crafts a new character that is different yet embodies the same quirkiness audiences have come to expect from the eclectic actor. He isn’t imitating Indiana Jones, Benjamin Gates is an entirely new adventurer. However, if you are expecting a historically accurate storyline then you better stay away. National Treasure is all about fast-paced action. It is full of historical inaccuracies and moments that stretch logic, but it’s a freaking adventure movie! Grab a bag of popcorn and enjoy, don’t over-think it.

The Disc

The video is presented in a 2.35:1, 1080p High Definition transfer. The flesh tones are accurate. Colors and black levels have been bolstered for an immersive experience. The level of detail, as always in HD, is noteworthy, adding a sense of reality and age to parts of the film. Some video noise does appear in lower-lit scenes, but overall the Blu-ray edition is a major improvement over the previous DVD releases.

The audio is offered in English Uncompressed 5.1 (48kHz/24-Bit) Surround Sound as well as English/French/Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound with English/French/Spanish subtitles. This is a very active track, featuring countless panning effects, impressive bass rumbles, and plenty of rear-speaker action. You can hear every bit of sound detail in the action, from the loudest shot to the faintest crumbling effect. Even when the action isn’t dominant, the track creates a strong atmosphere to further draw you into the film. The mix is balanced ensuring the dialogue is never drowned out.

The Extras

The set contains all of the special features from the 2-Disc Collector’s Edition DVD.

A six-part Behind-the-Scenes Documentary runs 44 minutes and is a mixture of EPK nonsense and actual, interesting information. “Exploding Charlotte” covers the effects of the opening scene. “To Steal a National Treasure” documents the script development. “On the Set of American History” is a location piece about the Washington, D.C. sites used in the film while “On Location” covers the foreign location shoots. “Treasure Hunters Revealed” discusses real-life treasure hunters. Lastly, “The Templar Knights” is a far too short look at the history of the Templar.

“Ciphers, Codes, and Codebreakers” is a 12-minute look at secret societies and their intricate practices. C’mon, who doesn’t love secret societies?

Seven Deleted Scenes run 16 minutes with optional commentary by Director Jon Turtletaub. There are some decent dialogue moments, but ultimately they don’t move the story forward. An Alternate Ending is offered as well as the Animatic for the film’s opening.

Three special features are exclusive to the Blu-Ray release.

Commentary is offered with Director Jon Turtletaub and Justin Bartha. I don’t know why Bartha is on the track as Turtletaub would have done a better job by himself. Bartha just seems to lose focus and drag Turtletaub down with him. When Turtletaub does offer up information about the production it is well spoken and interesting.

“Mission History” is an interactive HD puzzle game that lets you use decoding tools to go over the Declaration of Independence.

An optional “Trivia Track” is the final special feature.

Final Thoughts

National Treasure: Collector’s Edition is a fun popcorn movie that brought a whole new generation into the treasure hunting genre. If you don’t compare it to Indiana Jones and can ignore logic, then you’ll have a great time.