National Treasure: Book of Secrets is director Jon Turteltaub’s 2007 follow-up to National Treasure. Like the first film, it opens in the past, five days after the end of Civil War. We meet Ben Gates’ (Nicolas Cage) ancestor, Thomas, who burns a diary page belonging to John Wilkes Booth. In the present, the page is recovered, and Thomas’ name on it leads to him being seen as a conspirator in the Lincoln assassination. Ben joins forces with Riley (Justin Bartha), Abigail (Diane Kruger), and his dad, Patrick (Jon Voight), to clear his family’s name.
Similar to the first movie, it didn’t receive many favorable reviews from critics, but was again a huge hit with audiences. It was so successful that a third film was planned, and though it hasn’t been released yet, the AV Club reports that the script was recently finished. Book of Secrets follows the structure of the first movie, but makes it even better, delivering more adventure, fun, and humor that raise the drama and appeal to all ages. Here’s why Book of Secrets is one of the best sequels ever.
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It Convincingly Raises the Stakes
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As we catch up on the original characters, we see that everything hasn’t gone well in the wake of their last adventure: Riley, after losing his millions, has written an unsuccessful book about conspiracy theories, and Ben and Abigail have broken up. Things grow even worse for Ben when his family is accused of being part of Booth’s conspirators. This accusation makes the adventure personal; Ben needs to clear his family’s name, and the only way to do that is by finding what the diary page originally led to: Cibola, the city of gold. It lends a sense of importance and urgency, as Ben is hunting to clear his family and restore their place in history. The adventure is meaningful not just from a general view, but from a personal one too, making everything even more rewarding and emotional.
The adventure itself also has more stakes and thrills. Like the previous film, Book of Secrets involves the characters racing around for new clues, and expands on that by sending them across the pond, to see the Statue of Liberty in Paris and sneak into the Queen’s desk at Buckingham Palace. They also sneak into the President’s desk in the Oval Office; lead the President into a secret passage at Mount Vernon, and raid the Library of Congress, with the final clues leading them to Mount Rushmore. It’s a bigger scale for the adventure and involves more locations and the history attached to them. The sequel also has extra thrills in scenes like the car chase, or the traps under Mount Rushmore. According to IGN, most of the scenes were filmed on location, which adds authenticity as well.
It Adds Great New Characters
In addition to the beloved original characters, Book of Secrets adds two key characters that bring a lot to the movie. Ed Harris is Mitch Wilkinson, the man who initially accuses Ben’s ancestor. He tracks Ben’s every move and ends up coming along on their journey to Cibola. His seriousness makes a sharp contrast to the original trio’s zany humor, but he comes to help the others and even sacrifices himself, so they can all escape. He’s the catalyst for the higher stakes in the film, and though he starts as a typical antagonist, he’s shown to have a sympathetic side, as he too just wants to clear his family’s name and make his place in history.
The second addition is Helen Mirren as Emily, Ben’s mother and Patrick’s ex-wife. As an expert in Native American languages, she is needed to translate information on the plank from the Queen’s desk, and ends up at Mount Rushmore when Mitch kidnaps her. Her knowledge helps the group, and she also adds more depth to the family dynamic, fitting seamlessly into the great cast. Her bickering with Patrick is one of the highlights of the movie, as are their lighter moments when they begin to reconnect.
There are also new developments for the original characters. Ben and Abigail talk about what went wrong in their relationship, and spend the adventure enjoying each other again, restarting their relationship. Patrick explores what led to his and Emily’s estrangement, and their fun on the adventure eases the tension between them. Even Riley emerges with new confidence about his book and who he is. They all remain heroic and noble, yet still fun and relatable. The sequel succeeds in giving us great new characters while deepening the audience’s love for the originals.
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It Has Even More Fun
The wildly fun plot of the first film – stealing the Declaration of Independence to read the treasure map on the back – can only be topped by the plot of the second film: kidnapping the President of the United States to get information about his secret book, which leads to a city of gold. Simply put, Book of Secrets lets itself have even more adventure and fun than the first movie, continuing to walk that line between knowing how ridiculous it all is, and still treating that ridiculousness seriously.
The cast is great in every scene, convincingly portraying the urgency and desperation in finding the treasure while still having fun and making many hilarious moments. There’s fun in Ben and Abigail’s distraction fight at Buckingham Palace, with both actors going fully over the top. There’s absurdity in Ben arguing with a kid on the White House Lawn, and everyone pouring water bottles over Mount Rushmore to reveal a clue. Yet there are still emotional moments in Ben telling his dad that they found Cibola, and can clear the family’s name, and in Mitch realizing he has to stay behind, so everyone can escape through the flooding tunnel.
Like the first movie, Book of Secrets maintains its (roughly) historical basis, its great humor, and a fun adventure, then makes those better with new drama and new characters. It builds on the ideas of the first and adds just enough newness to stand out, while staying true to the fun, all-ages appeal of the original.
