gil 588096:

This is a follow-up to the first "National Treasure" with Nick Cage and Diane Kruger. If you enjoyed NT-One, you may enjoy this one as well. It was perhaps not quite as well-executed as the first one, but acceptable. It's a bit campy and completely illogical in concept, but makes for a compelling story. The best part of the movie comes in the last half as Cage and company attempt to locate the American city of gold via Paris, Buckingham Palace in London, the White House, Mount Vernon, and Mount Rushmore. It's all very implausible, but mildly entertaining for 124 minutes. It has a modern-day Indian Jones style about it, but isn't nearly as captivating. 01-27-09

awesomeredhead:

Ben, Abigail and Riley team up (again!) in the search for the truth about Abraham Lincoln's assassination in this sequel to the ever popular movie about treasure hunting. I must say, I found this one much more enjoyable than the first. This film had a great plot, lots of fascinating twists, it kept me in stitches because all the characters had great lines, as opposed to just a few in the first, and it didn't take as long to get to the point. I highly recommend this film for anyone out there who likes a good puzzle every now and then. You don't even need to see the first one to understand it! Awesome film. 12/24/08

SyfyFreak:

This sequel to ?National Treasure? is as thoroughly enjoyable as the original. Great story, the special effects are excellent, action packed and moving along at a good pace. It is hard to elaborate about the premise of the ?Lost Treasure? they are seeking, which would give away interesting plot developments, but I can say there are interesting scenes in Paris and London as well at a National Park.

frgodbeyjr:

What a great thrill ride of a movie. While there are parts to this movie that are farfetched, it entertains from start to finish. Nicolas Cage has this type of role down to a tee and the chemistry between all cast members is a pleasure to watch. Very much like the first NT with the added incentive of clearing an ancestor's tarnished name, doing whatever it takes to find the treasure and bring the Gates family name it's honor. This history ride is so entertaining that you never even notice it's a little over two hours long. The door is open for a third one and I for one can hardly wait! This movie is WELL worth the watch!

jmiscavish:

I'm pretty schizophrenic about this movie. All at once, it's exciting and big and adventurous. Then in the next second, it's silly and absurd and entirely impossible. To use a very strained (and completely outdated) metaphor, this movie is like the first resident evil video game. In order to get into the one locked room, you must go back and collect all the animal head stones and insert them into the fountain. However to get the animal head stones, you must put all the pictures in the right order to get a different key to unlock that other room where you have to solve yet another puzzle to get the first animal head stone. That's like this movie. It's too convoluted to get anything higher than 3 stars but, essentially, it's fairly entertaining if you don't think too much. Recommended for the average movie goer.

Skorpean:

Clean, wholesome fun for the whole family. This one was very much like the first one with the bad guy being less bad and more actually helpful. It means less threats and less violence but still had plenty of action and of course the puzzles to solve. Add in a meeting with the president and more puzzles and it's just a fun ride, no need to over-analyze, just enjoy. 6/08

jcranma:

(2.25/5) Book of Secrets fails in delivering the entertainment factor that its predecessor delivered quite well. While the first one gets off an action filled and premise grabbing start like a rocket, Book of Secrets accelerates in slow bits and pieces. This one fails in establishing why the audience should care about clearing the name of Ben's ancestors and the so called treasure at the start. In addition, it is unconvincing when showing that Ben is in a time specific dangerous situation that he must act upon. It makes it hard to believe that he really must do some investigating until a certain antagonist threatens him. Compare that to the first one that effectively hooks the viewer to a thrilling ride right from the beginning. To its credit, Book of Secrets has more elaborate sets and special effects. Cage delivers the same drowsy performance which is mitigated by Kruger who is extremely pleasing on the eyes. Despite the addition of some new characters, it sometimes feels like that didn't really contribute to the final product. The lack of an effective "hook" like the first 20 minutes of the first one sapped my interest in this one. The first National Treasure deserves a worthy sequel. Unfortunately, Book of Secrets could not live up to its entertaining predecessor.

MattChance:

A low rating for this second movie in the National Treasure series may seem harsh, but it is completely necessary. I liked the first... it was over-the-top, but fun all the same. In this movie, the writers and directors tried to make something of substance out of nothing. Just because you can pick random historical facts out of a book, doesn't mean you should script a movie on that! Worse yet, Disney takes this movie in the way of the Pirates series... make the plot ultra-confusing and hard to follow - and hope the viewer will think you're smart because you thought all that up. I was bored out of my mind watching this... it's just all wrong. I really hope it is the last in the series, so that they don't tarnish it anymore.

tebes:

As far-fetched as the first National Treasure movie was, I really liked it - it was a great ride. This one, however, is even more ridiculous. Although the first half of the movie was a good ride and kept me interested, the second half got bogged down in one preposterous scene after another. I won't get into the details because that could be the fun part of this movie - watching it with a bunch of friends and yelling out when something stupid occurs - which will be often. Plus, the central premise of the movie fails - how does finding a lost treasure absolve a past relative of a guilt for something that they did or potentially did? Oh well, what do you expect from a sequel?

moviesorfilm:

This was an average sequel that tried to outdo the original but with little success. Somewhat confusing story revolving around the murder of Lincoln and a city of gold--a little hard to follow, especially for younger viewers. I spent alot of time during the movie explaining some of these plot points to my youngest child. Cast was good, Cage was entertaining and the addition of Mirren as his mother was interesting. Decent choice for a family movie night.

An Exit Worth Taking:

Missing much of the charm from the first film, National Treasure 2 makes a worthy sequel. First off, if you have never seen the original National Treasure, watch it first. You need much of that story to put this story together. The action is good, the puzzles are good, but much of the movie is simply a repeat of the first and it sadly is not done as well. Nicolas Cage reprises his role as Ben Gates and this time he is trying to clear his ancestor's name as one of the conspirators in the Lincoln assassination. This is wrapped up in trying to find yet another hidden treasure. I was impressed that they were able to retain all of the original lead characters from the last film, but as stated before, the thrills are less and what was new and exciting in the first film is more routine here. All in all, a good movie that is worth a watch and is enjoyable, but definately a sequel in every way.

ykf 483620:

C'mon... this is popcorn ridiculousness at its finest. This movie is so big and so broad... and so utterly absurd, how can you not love it? Seriously, you will not see a more fun film all year... this is the continuation of the National Treasure series which weaves stories through history that are not only implausible... they are fantastically entertaining. In this one, our fabulous treasure hunter slash historian played Nic Cage is on an adventure to clear his family's name from the assassination of Lincoln. So, you know fairly typical ground... anyway, this adventure leads him through a complete reinterpretation of all the history you think you know and takes him to many great landmarks all over the earth. The cast is good... actually, really good. Cage, Voight, Keitel, Mirren... I mean, this one is fairly stacked for this level of film. And they all seem to take glee in their relatively non-intensity roles. And the bottom line is that this movie is just fun... if you're someone who can just cut loose and watch a film to be entertained... you'll like this one. And if you're someone who likes a little green with their films, this one is ideal. I recommend this action fans and popcorn munchers everywhere.

VJ Purplequeen:

If one can overlook the plot holes and implausible scenerios, this is a thrill a minute type movie that has some beautiful landscapes amd shows some great views of the nations capitol, Washington DC. Riley, as the computer genius geek persona, brings some humor. OK for a light movie viewing experience. It was entertaining.

Spartacus84:

I'm always a little skeptical of sequels, but this film surprised me. Very much on par with the first film, the entire cast had amazing chemistry. One of the best action comedies in recent years. Justin Bartha's role is hilarious.

SUOrange!:

Just like the first one, it was packed with action and clues! I personally think it wasn't as good as the first but it was still worth watching. This movie was about finding a treasure (obviously), that Thomas Gates tried to hide from John Wilkes Booth and his men. With Ben and Franklin Cates trying to restore their family name to find the treasure. Hopefully after you read my review, you will click the play button on the left hand corner and watch it. This is a great family film!

Norm Gregory:

I am a big history buff. But I couldn't it through this distortion of history. I bailed after 20 minutes really bad acting too.

2BeeOrNot2Bee:

This is a good family movie. Just like the first National Treasure, it is a cheesy flick mixed with suspense, and a light sprinkling of history thrown in for good measure. Of course, they lead into a 3rd movie. Disney is famous for jumping on the "making bucks so make more of these" band wagon (i.e. see Pirates of the Caribbean). Not a bad movie, just not a great one. Good when there isn't something better on Tivo.

RedSun21:

Not quite on par with the original, and Ed Harris's villain just didn't compare with Sean Bean's, but still an enjoyable movie. Bringing back Harvey Keitel did seem like an afterthought. This movie left a lot of questions unanswered that don't seem like they would fit in a sequel. If this series does become a trilogy, it will take a very good script to keep it from going progressively downhill.

awl 189181:

This movie probably seems really clever and intelligent to stupid people. Me? I found it agonizing. Why? Plot holes! Plot holes! Plot holes! I won't detail each and every one, but the movie is full of them. It also fudges history quite a bit to make it fit their convoluted story. In fact, while I normally find Cage acceptable, in this movie he was insufferably bland and silly. The only actor worth watching was Helen Mirren, both because she's a brilliant actress, and because she was- as usual- beautiful. If you're a mundane-brained filmgoer who hasn't cracked open a book about history, civics, or physics in the past 20 years, then I'd say you'll enjoy the hell out of this movie. If you're at all intelligent or well-read, you'll find it agonizing that the writers couldn't do some basic research beyond that which they required to propel their plot forward in as awkward and convoluted a fashion as possible.

LaTonya Smith:

This movie was horrible. There are retarted things that make no sense and could never happen- ever. How about 2 people on a seesaw one with a backpack one with none. Both relativly the same wieght. How does Nick Cage make the concrete slab lift his burdened pal up the distance 3 people lifted 1. And if you remember they all seemed the same weight when 4 were on the platform. Oh then the old folks falling off the vine? Can you say broke hips and anger...definatly not a chuckle and a romance moment. There is the moment where the super rich bad guy pulls a knife and insists he goes first out of the watery chamber- soooo that means everyone else go turn the dang wheel while I go- not I go help while everyone else goes through... dumb. This dude breaks so many security violations that just one of them usually make whole movies by themselves. Nick Cage is getting worse and worse acting skills as time goes on. And all the other characters are horrid too. They should get actual actors and not models to do movies.

PS333:

I hated the first film, it was just too corny for me to sit through. Which is odd because I just really, really enjoyed this second outing. The addition of some great talent no doubt helped with Jon Voight and Helen Mirren.

Sagaepics:

This film is just plain silliness. It has a half decent story and some great action. I'm not going to review this film like it is Citizen Kane because obviously this film isn't trying to be an Academy Award winner. With that in mind, the film works on most levels. The problem I did have with the movie is the last 20 minutes of the film. SPOILER ******** Just as things are getting tense and we think the bad guy is going to ruin everything for the good guys he goes from being the bad guy to being the savior of the good guys. This made very little sense based on the character that Ed Harris was playing through out the rest of the movie. With that little problem aside, this film is very entertaining and is great escapism.

SB 1044769:

Was the plot far-fetched and outrageous? Absolutely. But it was also fun and entertaining, which is all I look for in a movie sometimes. Not as good as the first one though.

fuhr:

I'm at a loss for words with the unbelievable crap and leaps of faith a person has to put up with in movies anymore. Reminded me of a South Park episode that made fun of Jeff Goldblum and the writing in Independence Day (works with Transformers as well).

Motombo Lombo:

Romancing the stone...Indiana Jones...Rider Haggard. So much hokum about adventures played on the remains of dead and conquered cultures. Preposterous fun. So what about the over the top plot and the crazy conspiracy theories! Jeez...just escape

AtTheBeach:

If you liked the first "National Treasure" movie, this one will please you as well. The action is constant and moves along quickly; the script is similar to the first movie as the characters search for clues with historical significance. In this case, the primary reason for the search is to clear the name of an ancestor from the civil war era. The movie is fun and easy to watch. It is hard to take the movie too seriously as the scenarios are outlandish and fanciful. Nicholas Cage has a good time with the script and does a professional job but doesn't seem to be taking the whole thing too seriously either. Fun to watch, lots of action, and elaborate sets, make this a movie worth seeing for the pure entertainment value.

Jeremy Thomas:

While it's perhaps a bit too similar to it's predecessor, National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets does what it does very well. With an imminently talented cast, fun dialogue, and good action sequences, the film does exactly what it sets out to do, which is entertain.

Samwar:

This movie totally brutalizes history. I was with them up until the point they started looking for the City of Gold inside of Mount Rushmore. Wasn't the city supposed to have been built and inhabited by Central American Indians? Why would they hollow out a mountain to built the city, how did they get all of that gold there? This movie was really just a poor man's Indiana Jones, and definitely not as good as the first National Treasure.

wef 1058399:

No movie with Diane Kruger in it should ever get one star. Much better than I anticipated. Fun adventure flick.

Kakaze:

Like the first movie this one suffers from being interminably slow to start. It wasn't even a half hour into the movie and I was already looking at the clock wondering when things were going to get off the ground. Once things did get going, however, they became fairly entertaining. There are several places where you really need to just throw your view of reality out the window to be comfortable watching, however. Not only do the heroes easily break into Buckingham Palace but they effectively do the same thing to the White House as well... After the movie was over I couldn't help but think that the whole thing would've been a lot easier--not to mention a lot shorter with less annoying parts--if the bad guy had just asked for help finding the treasure instead of creating such a complex plan involving violence and guns and a ridiculous car chase through central London.

96d143203b:

Excellent movie but I had to watch 10 minutes of commericals that I couldnt skip over before the movie started playing!

79c3c281a2:

Looks like they tried to "top" the first one rather than just equal it (which would have been plenty for me) so it's a bit over-the-top, but it's still interesting, exciting, complex (sort'a) and fun. Seemed more like watching characters in a live-action video game than the action-adventure thriller I remember from the first one.

DonJ1973:

Obviously Jerry Bruckheimer knows how to make a big budget, high octane action film and National Treasure: Book of Secrets is no exception. I originally heard that they didn't plan on making a sequel, but considering how successful the 1st film was, this was a no-brainer. Nick Cage once again plays Benjamin Franklin Gates and goes on another adventure to clear his grandfather's name as a traitor from the past and find a lost city of gold with the help of Justin Bartha and Diane Krueger. Jon Voight once again returns playing Ben's father. A really nice addition to this film was Helen Mirren, who plays Ben's mother. I really haven't seen many of Mirren's films, but she did a good job in this movie and had a pretty good American accent. Of course this whole story is ridiculous as hell, but are you really renting National Treasure for a believable story? There are some good location shoots in London and France along with Mount Rushmore and Washington DC. The movie is fun and doesn't take itself too seriously which makes it that much better. Not as good as the 1st film, but still a very fun movie.

Brenduh:

This movie was every bit as good as the first. The humor was there and the hunt was "fun". Riley could have had a bit more one-liners but it was enough. The scenery was gorgeous. The fact that they could make a movie that was entertaining AND clean is refreshing.

demonduck:

Nothing really to dislike here, not even Cage. The movie is a pretty standard popcorn flix jam packed with some pretty ridiculous scenarios that don't even attempt to be clever in its execution, but you won't really care. There are a few interesting historical references that'll give you something to google later. In all, there is enough to like about this movie to get you over what's not to like even Cage.

whitsbrain:

"Book of Secrets" is enjoyable but had me rolling my eyes throughout. For some reason, I am able to suspend my disbelief when a 200-ft. tall radioactive dinosaur tramples the streets of Tokyo, but am not for this movie. Nicolas Cage's character Ben Gates solves puzzles and deciphers codes at break neck speed. He could probably size up a Rubik's Cube in about 10 milliseconds. Somehow Gates manages to break into the Oval Office and escape from the White House, swipe artifacts from the Queen's study in Buckingham Palace and kidnap the President of the United States all while eluding capture while strolling around on top of Mount Rushmore. Incredibly, I still managed to like this movie. Most likely because of the fun I had trying to figure out how historical events and locations were distorted during it's runtime.

Rascal:

I really liked this movie. It is what you would expect. Obviously you need to see the first one ?National Treasure? before watching this sequel. It is a totally unbelievable movie but it is fun. They take you on another historical tour and visit Paris, London, the White House, Mt. Vernon, the Library of Congress and Mt Rushmore. I never really understood Ed Harris? character but ?so what?. This film looks real good on Blu-Ray. It is worth a rental.

SuperShortReview:

Yet another shoddy piece of garbage (is this the same Nick cage that did Leaving Las Vegas?), over two hours long, a ton of plot holes, and worse acting than you'll find in High School Musical 3.