Convinced that his ancestor was a hero and not a villain, Ben once again teams up with Riley (Justin Bartha) and enlists Abigail's somewhat unwilling help in clearing his family name. As they inspect pages of the diary, they find a secret message indicating that the Knights of the Golden Circle, the group who planned Lincoln's assassination, were actually seeking the fabled Cebola, Lost City of Gold. It seems that Thomas Gates burned the pages of the diary to prevent them from finding it because the code he was asked to crack was actually a treasure map. Of course, Ben and the gang jump on it and begin a globe-trotting adventure that will take them to London, Paris, Mount Vernon and finally Mount Rushmore in the Black Hills of South Dakota.
Ben soon discovers that he's not the only one after the treasure. Mitch Wilkinson is hot on his trail and seems to know his every step before he takes it. He even stoops so low as to kidnap Ben's mother, Dr. Emily Appleton (Helen Mirren), a well-known translator of ancient languages. As Ben follows clues that have him breaching security in Buckingham Palace and even the White House, he finds that the remaining clue lies within the Presidents' Book of Secrets, a book for Presidents' eyes only. To get to the book, of course Ben has to kidnap the President! That puts Agent Sandusky (Harvey Keitel) back on Ben's trail and further complicates things.
National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets is jam-packed with more action and more interesting locations than its predecessor. The addition of Helen Mirren as Ben's mom is terrific and she shines in her role. It's great to see everyone back together again on another adventure and Ed Harris is a perfect villain for this film.
What fans will really enjoy are the numerous special features included on this DVD set. Not only will you get deleted scenes that are explained by Jon Turteltaub, and the standard bloopers and such, but there are featurettes on every aspect of the film from the historic places they visit, to the special effects, to the action-pack chase scenes. There's truly a treasure trove of info here for the fan of the series to enjoy.
If you liked National Treasure, but haven't yet seen National Treasure 2, pick this disc set up and you won't be disappointed. If you have seen it, then what are you waiting for? Pre-order it! To get a quick peek, check out the video clips below.
