Ben Gates (Nic Cage) is back in action when an accusation is made that his great-great-grandfather helped plan the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Mitch Wilkinson (Ed Harris), the man who came forward with the accusation, has hand-written pages that have been torn from the dairy of John Wilkes Booth, who shot Lincoln in the theater on that fateful evening. Determined to clear his family’s name, Gates goes on another breezy adventure, which requires him to break into Buckingham Palace, and the White House. He recruits snarky electronics expert Reilly, along with his ex-girlfriend Abigail to help him find the clues he needs to solve another mystery.
NT2BOS is a fun romp, much like its predecessor. It’s your basic popcorn movie that’s been elevated by a superb cast--led by Cage, who’s in fine form as the go-getter Ben Gates. Diane Kruger returns as Abigail, as does Justin Bartha, and they’re both as sympathetic as ever. John Voight’s also back as Ben’s father, and Harvey Keitel reprises his FBI character in what’s basically a glorified cameo. New additions to the cast include Ed Harris as the villain, and Helen Mirren as Ben’s mother (Mirren, an Oscar recipient for her lead role in The Queen, reportedly turned down a meeting with the real Queen of England because she was too busy filming this movie).
NT2BOS suffers from plot holes galore, and the film, which has its characters running around yet another ancient temple, in which they must avoid various traps, often feels like a derivative Indy Jones adventure--which is probably why it was no coincidence that NT2 was released on video the very same week that Indy 4 opened in theaters. But it’s not as intense as an Indy film--which isn’t a big surprise, seeing how it’s been released by Walt Disney--thus making it an enjoyable viewing experience for the whole family. If you don’t mind watching a carbon copy of the first National Treasure--the good cast of actors really make this film watchable--then you should have a grand old time with NT2BOS.
--SF
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