A family secret prompts a man (Cage) to embark on a far reaching adventure for a lost treasure hidden by the Fathers of the American Revolution. The Founders have left clues to the treasure including a map on the back of the Declaration of Independence, which Cage and other interested parties attempt to steal.

National Treasure has several things in its favor: a big star as the leading man, a great premise and nice photography. I was in love with the story, unfortunately the plot is of far greater interest than the characters. Cage isn't totally boring and his young sidekick (Bartha) is often entertaining, but the rest of the supporters are largely bland and under-developed.

Action sequences fall a bit short of hold-your-breath-excitement too, but the content is suitable for the entire family. I am in favor of most anything that can enlighten our citizens to the rich and interesting past of the United States and National Treasure will help do that. It is filmed among many of our country's most historic locations. But I’m still not sure how they made this movie without saying the words "Thomas Jefferson".

Directed by  Jon Turteltaub.