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National Treasure
2004
Running Time: 100 min
Directed by: Jon Turteltaub
Screenwriter: Marianne Wibberley, Cormac Wibberley
Studio: Touchstone Pictures / Jerry Bruckheimer Films
Cast: Nicolas Cage, Harvey Keitel, Sean Bean, Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha, Jon Voight, Christopher Plummer, Mark Pellegrino
Synopsis
A secret from our nation’s past will lead to the greatest adventure in history.
Producer Jerry Bruckheimer (“Pirates of the Caribbean,” “The Rock,” and “Armageddon”) and director Jon Turteltaub (“Phenomenon,” “While You Were Sleeping”) team up to bring you “National Treasure.”
Academy Award®-winner Nicolas Cage stars as the brilliant Benjamin Franklin Gates, third generation treasure hunter. All his life, Gates has been searching for a treasure no one believed existed: amassed through the ages, moved across continents, to become the greatest treasure the world has ever known. Hidden by our Founding Fathers, they left clues to the Treasure’s location right before our eyes … from our nation’s birthplace, to the nation’s capitol, to clues buried within the symbols on the dollar bill.
Gates’ life-long journey leads him to the last place anyone thought to look: a map hidden on the back of the Declaration of Independence.
But what he thought was the final clue is only the beginning. Gates realizes in order to protect the world’s greatest treasure, he must now do the unthinkable: steal the most revered, best guarded document in American history before it falls into the wrong hands.
In a race against time, Gates must elude the authorities, stay one step ahead of his ruthless adversary (Sean Bean), decipher the remaining clues and unlock the 2000 year-old mystery behind our greatest national treasure.
Announcement:
National Treasure Extended Preview to debut Tuesday, October 19 on Moviefone.com and AOL
‘NATIONAL TREASURE’ 10-MINUTE EXTENDED PREVIEW SET TO DEBUT WITH ONLINE "ROADBLOCK" EXCLUSIVELY ON THE MOVIEFONE.COM® AND AMERICA ONLINE® SERVICES
A 10-minute extended preview of Walt Disney Pictures’ National Treasure will debut as an online exclusive event next Tuesday, October 19, with an unprecedented launch across the America Online and Moviefone.com services. America Online will simultaneously premiere this exclusive feature on the AOL® Welcome Screen; the AOL.com® site; AOL Instant Messenger™ (AIM®); Red™ and KOL™, America Online’s stand-alone services for teens and kids; and the Moviefone®, Netscape®; AOL® CityGuide, AOL® Entertainment, AOL® Music and Video@AOL networks.
Commenting on the launch, Oren Aviv, President of Buena Vista Pictures Marketing, said, “National Treasure is a smart, exciting, original action-adventure with a rich mythology behind the story of a secret treasure – these extended scenes do a fantastic job of setting up the clues, action and mysteries that follow. We are pleased to offer this exclusive opportunity to our partner, AOL. They not only bring an unparalleled level of support to the table but also the perfect audience for a film that truly defines the term broad appeal.”
“The simultaneous launch of the National Treasure ten-minute preview across the AOL service and AOL Web properties, such as Moviefone and CityGuide, represents a unique effort to showcase a new movie to the largest audience of moviegoers on the Internet,” said Steven Yee, Vice President and General Manager, AOL Movies and Moviefone.com. “With our huge and diverse audience, we believe that this extended preview of National Treasure will have great appeal to all segments of our community.”
Thanks New Media Strategies!!
View It Now!
News & Updates:
National Treasure ended its foreign campaign in Japan and China.
The Nicolas Cage adventure was a solid No. 1 in Japan with $3.7 million. In China, it was spectacular with a $1.2 million debut, marking distributor Buena Vista's second biggest opening ever there behind Pearl Harbor. The total climbed to $153.9 million and will likely finish north of $165 million.
Source
National Treasure out on DVD on May 3, 2005
1-24-05
 The final artwork for Disney's National Treasure is now in as well as some details on the forthcoming DVD. The surprise hit stars Nicolas Cage, Diane Kruger, Jon Voigt, Harvey Keitel and Sean Bean and will bow on DVD on May 3 for a suggested price of $29.95.
Disney will release the movie in both full screen and widescreen editions. Each will come with Dolby Digital audio, deleted scenes and an alternate ending with optional director's commentary, an opening scene animatic with optional director commentary, a National Treasure On Location feaurette, a Knights Templar featurette, a Treasure Hunters Revealed featurette, a Riley's Decode This featurette and puzzles.
Source
In at sixth is solid earner National Treasure
12-19-04
The Nicolas Cage hit (and the film that will keep him in big movies) earned another $6.1 million this weekend, but dropped 38%. The Buena Vista film has also started its roll out internationally and opens in the UK on Boxing Day. So far, the domestic total for the $100 million production has reached $132.8 million.
Source
Nicolas Cage promotes National Treasure in Taiwan
12-17-04
BEIJING, Dec. 17 -- Oscar-winning actor Nicolas Cage showed up in Taiwan Wednesday to promote his latest hit National Treasure. The german-born actress Diane Kruger, the film's Producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Jon Turteltaub also attended the press conference last night and their smiles are splashed across most of the Chinese media.
Nicolas Cage, who has starred in such masterpieces as Hong Kong director John Woo's "Face off", said he wanted to make a good impression on Taiwan fans. The film National Treasure topped the U.S. box office for several weeks after its release.
Source
   
PRODUCTION NOTES
Photos from London premiere of National Treasure
Box Office Gold
12-11-04
Hollywood is spinning box-office gold by turning the Declaration of Independence into a plot device. In "National Treasure," the nation's No. 1 movie in recent weeks, Nicolas Cage plays an archaeologist-historian on a quest for "the most spectacular treasure in history." This fortune, he's told, was hidden by the United States' founders, who left clues "right before our eyes. ... The unfinished pyramid, the all-seeing eye...."
Those clues, of course, are the symbols of the Great Seal of the United States, reproduced on the back of the $1 bill. The dollar bill is ubiquitous, familiar beyond notice, yet few Americans understand the meanings of its words and images. In fact, instead of pieces of gold, the treasures they signify are the nation's core values and ideals.
National Treasure" retains box-office crown with $17.1 million
12-07-04
LOS ANGELES "National Treasure" remains atop the box office for a third straight weekend. Nicolas Cage's flick about a race to find a fortune hidden by the signers of the Declaration of Independence took in 17-point-one million dollars in ticket sales.
In 17 days of release it has earned more than 110 million dollars. Mike Nichols' caustic sex drama "Closer" opened strongly in narrow release. The National Board of Review places it third on the list of best 2004 films.
After "National Treasure," the top films are "Christmas With the Kranks," "The Polar Express," "The Incredibles," and "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie," which finished just ahead of "Closer."
CAGE CONQUERS US BOX OFFICE
11-22-04
NICOLAS CAGE's movie NATIONAL TREASURE is the surprise victor in America's box office battle, after opening haul of $35.3 million (GBP19.6 million). The movie just beat out THE SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS MOVIE, which opened in second with $33.5 million (GBP18.6 million). After two weekends in the number one spot, animated superhero tale THE INCREDIBLES slipped to third with $26.8 million (GBP14.8 million), bringing its three-week total to $177.8 million (GBP98.7 million).
TOM HANKS' Christmas adventure THE POLAR EXPRESS came in fourth with $15.2 million (GBP8.4 million) in its second weekend, after a cool reception from audiences. After widening its run following a limited-release opening, RENEE ZELLWEGER's BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON rounded out the top five with $10.1 million (GBP5.6 million).
Source
America flocks to see National Treasure
11-22-04
Nicolas Cage made his blockbuster comeback at the weekend with his new family film, National Treasure, opening at the top of the US box office with takings of more than €35.6m. Hot on his heels was that other great American movie star, SpongeBob SquarePants, who made a splash by bringing in about €34.2m. The Incredibles continued its incredible run with a third place finish and another €25.6m to make its overall gross so far €192.2m. Tom Hanks had another disappointing weekend with The Polar Express, which cost more than €185m to make, adding a lukewarm €14.2m to its total.
Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason didn’t do particularly well, either, taking about €10m to come in at number five. National Treasure is Cage’s fourth collaboration with producer Jerry Bruckheimer and centres on a plot to steal the Declaration of Independence to obtain the hidden clues to a colossal fortune stashed by the founding fathers. Sold as an action film for kids, it was said to have fared well with children and their parents.
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie is the first big-screen adventure for the cheery sponge who lives among his aquatic pals. Critics liked the film’s cheery message and it is likely to do well next weekend, which is part of America’s Thanksgiving holiday.
Source
North American Moviegoers Dig 'National Treasure'
11-21-04
By Dean Goodman
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Oscar-winner Nicolas Cage (news), who has not had a hit film in years, struck gold at the North American box office on Sunday with his new adventure movie "National Treasure" as family-oriented pictures led the field.
Walt Disney Co.'s "National Treasure" sold an estimated $35.3 million worth of tickets across the United States and Canada in the three days beginning Friday. It was followed closely by "The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie," Paramount Pictures' big-screen version of the kids animated TV favorite, which opened with $33.5 million.
Superhero cartoon "The Incredibles," the champ for the last two weeks, fell to No. 3 with $26.8 million. Disney distributed the Pixar Animation Studios Inc. -production, which has taken in $177.8 million to date. "The Polar Express," the Warner Bros. holiday fable featuring a computer-animated Tom Hanks (news) as a train conductor, fell two spots to No. 4 with $15.2 million, for a 12-day haul of $51 million. The film cost a reported $270 million to make and market, prompting much speculation about its chances of turning a profit.
"We're very pleased with the results so far," said Dan Fellman, president of distribution at Time Warner Inc's Warner Bros. Pictures, which partnered on the film with real estate heir and Democratic fund-raiser Steve Bing. "Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason," starring Renee Zellweger as a hapless "singleton," held steady at No. 5 with $10.1 million after expanding nationally in its second weekend. The film's total stands at $21.6 million. "National Treasure," from prolific producer Jerry Bruckheimer, revolves around a treasure-seeker hunting for a secret war chest hidden by the Founding Fathers after the Revolutionary War. It was directed by Jon Turteltaub.
Disney said the opening was on target and exit polls were very positive. The bow marks a new best for a Cage-Bruckheimer collaboration, beating the $25.3 million start for "Gone in Sixty Seconds" in 2000. Since then, 40-year-old Cage has worked in such under-performers as "Windtalkers" and "Captain Corelli's Mandolin." He won an Oscar for "Leaving Las Vegas."
Source
NICOLAS CAGE'S adventure-thriller
11-16-04 "National Treasure" will be screened Thursday at the 92nd Street Y. The intense actor will stay on to discuss the movie with the Y's Annette Insdorf and take questions
Source
Good Morning America...
1-15-04
I am the audience coordinator for Good Morning America. I would like to invite some of the fans into our audience on November 17,2004 If they don't have any specific questions no need to call - they should just stand on the line. I will be outside at 6:30 to welcome everyone into the studio. 44th and Broadway/ November 17,2004 / 6:00 a.m. / They should stand on the audience guest line.
Green, Samantha L
ABC
FANS CAN FOLLOW IN CAGE'S FOOTSTEPS11-15-04
Fans of NICOLAS CAGE's new action adventure NATIONAL TREASURE can retrace the actor's footsteps along the streets of Washington and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A week before the new film, in which Cage's character searches for lost treasure after discovering a map on the back of the Declaration of Independence, is released tourism bosses are hoping to cash in on the historical interest in the movie with guided tours of the landmarks in the film.
Fans will be able to visit all the place Cage's character does as he searches for the lost treasure, including the Liberty Bell Center and Independence Hall in Philadelphia and the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington DC. Ironically, Cage didn't get to film in the Independence Hall because filming is forbidden there. Instead scenes were recreated in a replica of the hall at California theme park Knott's Berry Farm.
Source
From a member - Emily Wrote
I went to a private press screening in Westwood on Saturday night for his new movie National Treasure. I was able to meet him after the movie. I exited the theatre out the side and Nicolas was waiting to for his car. I went up to him and told me I was a huge fan. He was very sweet and sincere and thanked me. He is beautiful, more beautiful in person. I still can't believe it.
Thanks Emily!!! - Lucky Girl!!
National Treasure
Release Date: November 19, 2004
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha, Harvey Keitel, Sean Bean Directed by: Jon Turteltaub
“When I tell someone the basic line, that there’s a treasure map on the back of the Declaration of Independence, they immediately start asking me questions,” says director Turteltaub (Disney’s The Kid). “Who put it there? How come no one has found it? Those questions come up not as skepticism but as excitement. And that’s how I know we have a good idea.” This Indiana Jones–flavored adventure “relies more on story than explosions,” says Cage, who’s making his fourth film with überproducer Jerry Bruckheimer (The Rock, Con Air, Gone in 60 Seconds). Cage plays archaeologist Benjamin Franklin Gates, who, along with his computer-savvy sidekick (Gigli’s Justin Bartha) and a sexy museum curator (Troy’s Kruger), chases clues and dodges the feds in an effort to find the riches, which, says the star, “somehow found [their] way to our founding fathers.” Gates also partners at first with a British entrepreneur (Sean Bean), but then realizes that the guy’s in it for financial instead of historical gain. “We disagree,” Bean says, “and it’s a matter of who gets there first. It’s a race.” 90210 REUNION: Cage and Turteltaub attended Beverly Hills High School together. “We were in the drama department, and he was a year older,” Cage says. “He beat me out for the lead in Our Town.”
Source
National Treasure Sound Track
Discover a Score of Monumental Proportions When Walt Disney Records Releases the National Treasure Soundtrack Available November 16th BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 9, 2004--On November 16th 2004, Walt Disney Records releases the soundtrack to National Treasure: the new, action-packed, film adventure from Jerry Bruckheimer. Composed by Trevor Rabin, (formerly of the rock band Yes and composer of such movies as Remember the Titans, Gone in 60 Seconds, The Banger Sisters, Enemy of the State, Con Air and many others) this soundtrack is an instrumental roller coaster ride of twelve tracks that set the tone for this wild treasure hunt, which opens nationwide November 19th.
A secret from our nation's past will lead to the greatest adventure in history. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer (Pirates of the Caribbean, The Rock and Armageddon) and director Jon Turteltaub (Phenomenon, While You Were Sleeping) team up to bring you National Treasure. Academy Award-winner Nicolas Cage stars at the brilliant Benjamin Franklin Gates, a third generation treasure hunter who has searched his entire life for a treasure no one believed existed: amassed through the ages and moved across continents to become the greatest treasure the world has ever known. Hidden by our Founding Fathers, they left clues to the treasure's location right before our eyes -- from our nation's birthplace, to the nation's capitol, to clues buried within the symbols on the dollar bill. Gates' life-long journey leads him to the last place anyone thought to look: a map hidden on the back of the Declaration of Independence. But what he thinks is the final clue proves to be just the beginning. Gates realizes that in order to protect the world's greatest treasure, he must now do the unthinkable: steal the most revered, best guarded document in American history before it falls into the wrong hands. In a race against time, Gates must elude the authorities, stay one step ahead of his ruthless adversary (Sean Bean), decipher the remaining clues and unlock the 2000-year-old mystery behind our greatest national treasure.
National Treasure soundtrack track listing:
1. "National Treasure Suite"
2. "Ben"
3. "Finding Charlotte"
4. "Library Of Congress"
5. "Preparation Montage"
6. "Arrival at National Archives"
7. "The Chase"
8. "Declaration of Independence"
9. "Foot Chase"
10. "Spectacle Discovery"
11. "Interrogation"
12. "Treasure"
National Treasure soundtrack will be available November 16, 2004 for a suggested CD retail price of $18.98. All Walt Disney Records audio products can also be ordered by visiting DisneyRecords.com.
Source
Cool link about National Treasure
http://www.christopher-plummer.com/nationaltreasure.html
Enter the Conde Nast Traveler "National Treasure" sweepstakes
In the latest CONDE NAST Traveler magazine on the first page there is a full page ad for a sweepstakes/contest Conde Nast is featuring concerning the movie National Treasure.
"Enter the Conde Nast Traveler "National Treasure" sweepstakes for a chance to win a four night.five day vacation in Washington, DC and Philadelphia for you and a guest."
To enter an for complete sweepstakes rules and regulations visit:
www.cntpromo.com/nationaltreasure
Thanks Bonnie for the news!!
10-25-04
NATIONAL TREASURE titled "The Secrets Will Be Revealed."
Please find below links to a new 60 second television spot for NATIONAL TREASURE titled "The Secrets Will Be Revealed."
Windows Media:
56.wmv media
0300.wmv media
QuickTime:
0300.MOV
1500.MOV
Another excellent early unofficial review from a screening postedOct. 21 at IMDB.
Running time: 2 hours (not counting closing credits.) As Jerry Bruckheimer films go, this is not going to have the wide mass appeal of Pirates of the Caribbean, but it’s not offensive like Armageddon or Pearl Harbor, and quite entertaining.
Nicholas Cage comes off as quite sympathetic as Benjamin Franklin Gates, the seventh in a line of archivists, treasure hunters and history buffs stretching back to a confidant of President Andrew Jackson. As a child, Ben was imbued by his grandfather (Christopher Plummer) with not only a love of American history, but a love of stories of knight quests, secreted treasures, maps, and clues hidden deep within the grooves of American history trivia.
Ben’s father (Jon Voight) does not approve of his father encouraging such nonsense in his son, and his dialogue strangely reads like a non-Bruckheimer fan in the audience voicing his skepticism of the absurd plot to follow, but Ben nonetheless comes to believe his grandpa’s story about how the treasure discovered by the Knights Templar within the Great Pyramid in Giza, Egypt during the Crusades was hidden in America to keep it out of the hands of Britain.
30 years later, Ben and his partner Ian Howe (The Lord of the Rings’s Sean Bean) and comedic foil Riley (Justin Bartha) come to conclude that there may be an invisible map written on the back of the Declaration of Independence leading to the treasure, and when Ben refuses to go along with Ian’s plan to steal it, and the authorities refuse to listen to him, Ben is forced to foil Ian’s crime, and ends up with the stolen document himself, with Abigail Chase (Diane Kruger from Troy), the beautiful archivist in charge of the National Archives (because naturally, archivists working at the National Archives tend to be such lookers) dragged into the chase against her will. With FBI agent Harvey Keitel on their trail, Ben and his partner Riley (Justin Bartha), along with Abigail, race to find the treasure before Ian.
What follows is a series of chase scenes as the treasure hunters find and search for clues leading them from one historic place to another across three different states, clues that are steeped in the minutiae of American history lore (I have no idea of any of these points is based in historical fact, but in a movie like this, it hardly matters), with Jon Voight again providing the sole voice of reason as he questions whether these clues are just an endless series of arrows pointing to other clues rather than to any real destination. The action isn’t too implausible, the characters are likable, and the movie is just plain fun. The planning and machinations that the film supposes on the part of the Founding Fathers seems wildly implausible, but it doesn’t matter. This is a Jerry Bruckheimer film, and one of the better ones.
It’s take on history may be fluff, but at least it endeavors an interest in it as a prerequisite for the plot, and a medium through which the audience may think to themselves, “Ooh, I didn’t know that about Benjamin Franklin.” If you’re an expert in history bothered by the mistakes or flaws about Liberty Bell, or the Masons, or the hidden secrets on our currency, or who just plain doesn’t buy the technological sophistication required for some of the artifacts uncovered by the characters, then perhaps you’re watching it for the wrong reasons. If you don’t know one way or the other, then it doesn’t really matter. This is a popcorn film, a modern day Indiana Jones-type film, and if you know anything about Jerry Bruckheimer, you should know going in what you’re getting. Bruckheimer was in attendance last night (as was Harvey Keitel), and gave the brief speech before the movie began (which is not usually the case outside of premieres—this was just a press screening), and right before leaving when the closing credits started, I complimented him, saying it was very entertaining. If you like to sit back and have fun, I recommend it.
By Nightscream
10-21-04
When the Walt Disney Company's "National Treasure" arrives in theaters on Nov. 19, it will tell the story of an adventurer, played by Nicolas Cage, on a hunt for riches, with clues hidden in pieces of Americana, like the back of the Declaration of Independence and the weird images on a dollar bill. Mr. Cage's mission is not unlike that of Disney, which hopes "National Treasure" will help crack the code for a new, edgier kind of family entertainment that is meant to become the hallmark of its cherished Walt Disney Pictures brand. Previous Walt Disney films typically relied on youths on screen, as in "Heavyweights," "Freaky Friday" and "The Princess Diaries." So far, "National Treasure," a big-budget film directed by Jon Turteltaub, has had a relatively low profile among a welter of holiday releases that will include Warner Brothers' "Polar Express" and Disney's "Incredibles," from its animation partner, Pixar. But that is about to change, as the studio unleashes the kind of promotional push clearly meant to polish a family jewel, the Disney brand. On Tuesday, the company will take the unusual step of unveiling 10 minutes of "National Treasure" scenes on America Online. What the company is calling its largest-ever campaign of promotional tie-ins will follow. The campaign for the film, which is being produced by Mr. Turteltaub and Jerry Bruckheimer, past master of R-rated romps like "Bad Boys" and "The Rock," will involve McDonald's, Verizon, Visa, Kodak, Dodge and Nascar. Disney executives say the drive is about more than selling "National Treasure," though they are eager to do that. The goal is to "open up more and more possibilities for what makes a Disney movie," said Nina Jacobson, president of Buena Vista Motion Pictures Group, part of the Disney Company.
Rated PG, the new film is the next big step in a strategy that was described only weeks ago to investors by the company's president and chief operating officer, Robert A. Iger. He said the strategy was crucial to Disney's future in live-action films. The studio faltered this year with costly and darker flops like "The Alamo" and "Hidalgo," both from its Touchstone imprint. Now the company, based in Burbank, Calif., is planning to focus more on live-action films from the Walt Disney label, less brutal movies like Mr. Bruckheimer's surprise 2003 hit "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" and the fantasy epic "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," which is expected late next year. The incentives are clear. Films rated PG and PG-13 (parental guidance suggested and parents strongly cautioned) drew 75 percent to 90 percent of the domestic box office, compared with 10 percent or less for G-rated, or family, films, among the 20 highest-grossing movies for each of the last four years, according to the Motion Picture Association of America. "It's the sweet spot," said Robert Marich, author of "Marketing to Moviegoers: A Handbook of Strategies Used by Major Studios and Independents," a book to be published next year by Focal Press. Some competitors believe Disney is well on its way to mastering the more expansive approach that will characterize the separate Walt Disney brand. "We emulate Disney," said Terry Curtin, head of marketing and distribution for Revolution Studios. "They're certainly not emulating us." Ms. Curtin, who said the industry buzz on "National Treasure" was strong, said her company's holiday entry, "Christmas With the Kranks," was meant to imitate the emerging Disney formula. That movie's main characters are played by two actors, Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis, who were turned into family film stars by Disney. And the film was directed by Joe Roth, a partner in Revolution who was previously chairman of Walt Disney Studios.
Some observers warn that Disney may dilute its appeal if it stretches too far in becoming identified with stars like Mr. Cage, who made his mark with distinctly adult performances in "Leaving Las Vegas" and other films. "If they make a lot of movies that should have been rated R but sneak in under the PG-13 banner, then they could hurt their brand," said James Steyer, founder and chief executive of Commonsense Media, a nonprofit children's advocacy organization that publishes family film reviews at www.commonsensemedia.org. Mr. Steyer said he believed that Disney would hold the line, and Disney executives said they had no intention of breaking faith with their core audience. Ms. Jacobson said, "It's all about moving from the conventional definition of a family film to the more sophisticated idea of a general audience film that is appropriate for a family audience." With "National Treasure," Mr. Bruckheimer has emerged as a clear, if unlikely, point man for Disney's new family line, a business he stumbled into when he set out to make an R-rated football movie but wound up with the PG-13 hit "Remember the Titans," which was released in 2000. That film was backed by the Disney Studios chairman, Richard Cook, after competitors vetoed the tougher version. "I was an unwilling participant initially," Mr. Bruckheimer said by phone from Louisiana State University, between bites of a late lunch last week. He was in Baton Rouge shooting Disney's "Glory Road," which he described as the story of a coach who changed basketball in 1966.
Mr. Bruckheimer said the only films on his production schedule were PG and PG-13, though he has some R-rated ones "in the hopper." He agreed to produce "National Treasure" only two and a half years ago, about six years after it was conceived around an idea from a Disney marketing executive, Oren Aviv, and Mr. Aviv's friend, Charles Segars, an executive previously at CBS and now at the Fine Living cable network. It was developed with a string of writers and Mr. Turteltaub, who is known less for action films than for strong character portrayals in films like Disney's "Kid," with Bruce Willis. If Mr. Bruckheimer, the impresario behind more risqué 1980's fare like "American Gigolo" and "Beverly Hills Cop," has softened somewhat as Disney has become more intense, one thing has not changed. Only days ago, the stubble-bearded producer - known for laserlike attention to detail and for tinkering that goes down to the wire - was still putting finishing touches on "National Treasure." His director was in an editing bay at his Santa Monica, Calif., offices. "You'll have to excuse me," Mr. Turteltaub told a visitor, turning back to his work. "If I don't get going, we won't have a movie at all." By Neal Koch
Source
'NATIONAL TREASURE' 10-Minute Extended Preview
Set to Debut With Online 'Roadblock' Exclusively on the Moviefone.com(R) and America Online(R) Services LOS ANGELES, Oct. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- A 10-minute extended preview of Walt Disney Pictures' NATIONAL TREASURE will debut as an online exclusive event next Tuesday, October 19, with an unprecedented launch across the America Online and Moviefone.com services. America Online will simultaneously premiere this exclusive feature on the AOL® Welcome Screen; the AOL.com® site; AOL Instant Messenger(TM) (AIM®); Red(TM) and KOL(TM), America Online's stand-alone services for teens and kids; and the Moviefone®, Netscape®; AOL® CityGuide, AOL® Entertainment, AOL® Music and Video@AOL networks.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/041014/lath082_1.html
CONTEST
Walk the Red Carpet at the 'National Treasure' Premiere - Want to see the world premiere of the new action-adventure flick National Treasure starring Nicolas Cage? Enter Zap2it's Quest for National Treasure Sweepstakes now. You could find yourself on the Red Carpet along with the stars at the premiere in Los Angeles!
http://www.zap2it.com/index/games/1,1146,movies-23175,FF.html
Washington and Philadelphia are teaming up...
to show off their national treasures. The competing destinations are joining forces for a new promotion in connection with next month's release of "National Treasure," a film starring Nicolas Cage, which takes place in Washington and Philadelphia at some of the country's most historic sites.
Read More
NT News
Washington and Philadelphia are teaming up to show off their national treasures. The competing destinations are joining forces for a new promotion in connection with next month's release of "National Treasure," a film starring Nicolas Cage, which takes place in Washington and Philadelphia at some of the country's most historic sites.
Read More
9-28-04
William Hanbury, president and CEO, Washington, D.C. Convention & Tourism Corporation (WCTC) and Meryl Levitz, president and CEO, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) will announce the cities' first-ever joint tourism promotion, surrounding the release of the major motion picture National Treasure, which opens nationwide on Nov. 19, 2004.
National Treasure stars Nicolas Cage as Benjamin Franklin Gates, a third-generation treasure hunter who steals the Declaration of Independence from the National Archives in search of a treasure hidden by America's founding fathers. Filmed on location in Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia, the movie is a history lesson as well, deriving clues from the Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Franklin's Silence Dogood letters and the Masons and Templar Knights.
At the heart of the partnership is the new Washington, D.C. & Philadelphia Tour, inspired by the movie National Treasure, and featuring sites in the nation's current capital and its first. Using images and clues from the film, the tour leads visitors on a multi-day, two-city tour of National Treasure's key locations. Motivation behind the $200,000 alliance is the American fascination with movies. According to the Travel Industry of America, five million tourists a year flock to film sites featured in movies. To promote the Washington, D.C. & Philadelphia Tour, the two destinations have created a 10-panel brochure and custom website blending the historic sites featured in the film with contemporary treasures in each city. http://www.usnewswire.com/
8-22-04
Will Diane Kruger join NT?
This fall, the lucky lady could be Diane Kruger, a former Chanel model from rural Germany who stars with Nicolas Cage in the Bruckheimer actioner "National Treasure" (due Nov. 19).
8-22-04
NT
Nov. 19: "National Treasure": An adventure that seems to combine Indiana Jones with American history. Nicholas Cage is an archaeologist in search of a lost treasure, supposedly left behind by George Washington during the Revolutionary War.
8-18-04
The National Treasure SmarTrailer is live and incorporates DVD-like features to provide a back-story to the film's plot. That back-story is told through 9 pods featuring interviews with historians, producer, director, screenwriters, and cast. Click the links below to view the 9 pods!
QUICKTIME:
The Treasure IS Real
Freemasons
Benjamin Frank
Clues Around Us
Declaration
Knights Templar
Money Pit
Real Locations
Secret & Spies
8-4-04
Exclusive: New National Treasure Featurettes!
Source: Touchstone Pictures Wednesday, August 4, 2004
Touchstone Pictures has provided ComingSoon.net with 9 exclusive behind-the-scenes featurettes from the November 19 Jon Turtletaub-directed action-adventure, National Treasure, starring Nicolas Cage, Sean Bean, Diane Kruger, Justin Bartha, Don McManus, and Mark Pellegrino.
Cage stars as the brilliant Benjamin Franklin Gates, third generation treasure hunter. All his life, Gates has been searching for a treasure no one believed existed: amassed through the ages, moved across continents, to become the greatest treasure the world has ever known. Hidden by our Founding Fathers, they left clues to the Treasure's location right before our eyes... from our nation's birthplace, to the nation's capitol, to clues buried within the symbols on the dollar bill. Gates' life-long journey leads him to the last place anyone thought to look: a map hidden on the back of the Declaration of Independence. But what he thought was the final clue is only the beginning. As word of the invisible map spreads among the enemies of freedom, Gates realizes in order to protect the world's greatest treasure, he must now do the unthinkable: steal the most revered, best guarded document in American history before it falls into the wrong hands. In a race against time, Gates must elude the FBI, stay one step ahead of his ruthless adversary (Bean), decipher the remaining clues and unlock the 2000 year-old mystery behind our greatest national treasure.
View the clips - featuring interviews with historians, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, the director.
CHECK THEM OUT!!
7-28-04
Producer Jerry Bruckheimer is following up "King Arthur" with "National Treasure," an action-adventure film starring Nicolas Cage, "Troy's" Diane Kruger, Jon Voight, Harvey Keitel, Christopher Plummer and Sean Bean. "It's really a wonderful cast," Bruckheimer said. "It's a treasure-hunt movie. It's Nic Cage, whose family's been trying to find this treasure for three or four generations, and Nic takes on the task to find it. The answer is on the back of the Declaration of Independence. So he's not the only person that knows this, and he's got to beat the Sean Bean character, who wants to steal it before he does. It's a good plot." "National Treasure" will hit theaters on Thanksgiving.
Source
7-1-04
The official website for National Treasure is now live, at www.nationaltreasure.com. On the site you can watch the groundbreaking SmarTrailer™, a new innovation in online viewing. Downloads of the official poster are also available. National Treasure, starring Nicolas Cage and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, opens nationwide on November 24th.
Link to the groundbreaking National Treasure SmarTrailer™
http://nationaltreasure.movies.go.com./enhanced.html
SmarTrailer™, a new innovation in online viewing, provides the option of viewing the film’s theatrical trailer in its entirety or viewing the trailer and exploring particular areas of interest by clicking on picture windows that appear as the trailer plays. The SmarTrailer™ is available at www.nationaltreasure.com.
For “National Treasure,” nine unique windows will lead viewers to one-minute information “pods” that delve into specific topics related to the film, the historical facts behind the story, and the filmmaking process. Browsers will be able to explore a variety of topics. For example, “The Treasure is Real” section offers expert testimony from professional treasure hunters W.J. Jameson and author Mark Finnan about the untold riches our Founding Fathers may have buried right beneath our feet. The “Knights of Templar” section talks about the great wealth amassed by the secretive medieval band of knights and where it might have gone after they fled Europe. Other pods cover such topics “Benjamin Franklin,” “The Money Pit,” “The Freemasons,” “The Clues Around Us,” “The Declaration of Independence,” “Secrets and Spies,” and “Real Locations.”
Links to the regular trailer in QuickTime:
http://bvbp-qt.vitalstream.com/NationalTreasure/NationalTreasure_T1_5309D_0300.mov
http://bvbp-qt.vitalstream.com/NationalTreasure/NationalTreasure_T1_5309D_0750.mov
http://bvbp-qt.vitalstream.com/NationalTreasure/NationalTreasure_T1_5309D_1500.mov
http://bvbp-qt.vitalstream.com/NationalTreasure/NationalTreasure_T1_5309D_3000.mov
6-29-04
Nice Write Up...
Actor Nicolas Cage plays Benjamin Franklin Gates, a modern-day Indiana Jones in search of historically valuable treasures in the upcoming Touchstone Pictures adventure flick "National Treasure." While the film isn't out until November 24, the trailer is running exclusively on Yahoo! Movies, and is packed with interactive clues to build buzz for the movie.
Source/Read More
6-29-04
Buena Vista's in-house Web group designed the SmarTrailer program. "This is the first time we are using this technology with a trailer," Aviv said. "In addition to watching the trailer on Yahoo! Movies, we're providing about 10 minutes' worth of content that you can access via the trailer." "The reason why we used SmarTrailer on this movie is because this is a movie that kind of allows for digging into the clues and finding out more information--it made a lot of sense to do it with this movie," Aviv noted. "It's really almost interactive programming."
Source
June 11-2004
Touchstone action-comedy National Treasure ended its eight-day New York jaunt. The pic has now returned to L.A., where it will wrap. Nicolas Cage stars in the project, from director Jon Turteltaub (Cool Runnings).
Source
May 14, 2004
Diane Kruger joined National Treasure
“I still pinch myself every day,” says the actress, who recently returned to the city of Paris, where she lives with her husband, actor Guillaume Canet (they costarred in Mon Idole, a.k.a. Whatever You Say, which he directed), after 14 months of back-to-back location shoots for Wicker Park, Troy, and fall’s National Treasure, in which she and Nicolas Cage hunt for a Revolutionary War artifact. “He’s very funny and sort of a little, you know, crazy,” she says of Cage. “Which I find very attractive.” She counts herself fortunate in her luck with leading men, and says that she, Bloom, and Petersen settled into creative congeniality from the very start of Troy: “After the first two takes, you know you can pretty much let yourself go and try anything.”
Source
March 8, 2004
National Treasure Picture Added
Click here to see it
March 1, 2004
WOW
"National Treasure," a $100-million picture starring Nicolas Cage as a modern-day treasure hunter.
Source
Feburary 26, 2004
NT Update
A really sweet story about the filming of National Treasure in October last year has been sent in by Jeanne and John Curtis "On Oct. 17th, the filming schedule for National Treasure was rearranged for our wedding in Philadelphia. We contacted the production department so that we could avoid the areas where they would be shooting, but instead they insisted on accommodating our needs. We gave them our itinerary for the day and they moved their shooting to South Street so that Old City was clear from 3 to 6pm. They were incredibly accommodating. The production staff even called our parents on the morning of our wedding day to assure them that everything had been rearranged and we would have no difficulties getting around the city. The same horses, carriages, and drivers from our wedding also appear in the film! How many people can say that!"
Source
February 6, 2004
Bruckheimer digs 'National Treasure'
Nicolas Cage is holding on for dear life to a creaky wooden board that's about to give way and drop him down a deadly shaft. And producer Jerry Bruckheimer couldn't be happier.
"I love these kind of scenes," Bruckheimer says on the set of his latest movie, National Treasure, in theaters Nov. 24. "It's kind of old-fashioned action." Old-fashioned has been treating Bruckheimer well these days. The producer ignored warnings that the pirate genre is dead when he gave the green light to Pirates of the Caribbean. That film, starring Johnny Depp, snatched $305.4 million last year, the third-biggest haul of 2003.
Enter Treasure, the story of a family that has spent decades hunting for a war chest hidden by the Founding Fathers after the Revolutionary War. The film also stars Sean Bean, Harvey Keitel and Christopher Plummer. Bruckheimer, director Jon Turteltaub and the screenwriters spent months researching the film to infuse it with real-life characters and historical events. "There's a lot in here about the Founding Fathers and the Declaration of Independence to give it authenticity," Bruckheimer says, before catching himself with a grin. "But it's still a lot of fun."
Source
January 23, 2004
Disney plans Thanksgiving 'Treasure' hunt - By Martin A. Grove Turteltaub talk: With the New Year's first holiday, Martin Luther King weekend, already history, Hollywood's looking forward to the really big boxoffice bumps linked to Memorial Day, July Fourth and Thanksgiving. While Thanksgiving seems far off, it's very real these days at Disney's Touchstone Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films where the action adventure "National Treasure" is now in production and looms as a potential Thanksgiving blockbuster when it opens Nov. 24. Directed by Jon Turteltaub and starring Nicolas Cage, "Treasure" is produced by Bruckheimer (whose "Pirates of the Caribbean" grossed over $305 million domestically via Buena Vista/Disney) and Turteltaub. Also starring are Justin Bartha, Diane Kruger, Sean Bean, Harvey Keitel, Jon Voight, Christopher Plummer, Don McManus and Mark Pellegrino.
Read More - Source - Thanks Bonnie
January 16, 2004
Nic Cage is hard at work on the Jerry Bruckheimer mega-budget actioneer "National Treasure" about a hidden treasure which can be found from clues hidden within the original U.S. Constitution document. Today 'Babbling Brook' revealed details of the very elaborate sounding ending sequence being shot right now - SPOILERS ahead so turn away if you don't want to know: "Jerry Bruckheimer Films is shooting a scene for "National Treasure" the last week of January in the frigid, high plains of Utah. Nicolas Cage's character and others are trekking in the Antarctic to find an 18th Century ship. They find it frozen 20ft down in ice and the ship is quite dilapidated. They accidentally set the ship on fire, which ignites the gunpowder and the ship is blown to smithereens".
Source
January 08, 2004
Access to the Chicken Creek West area at Strawberry Reservoir remains open despite appearing to be closed because of a movie set for the upcoming filming of "National Treasure" with Nicholas Cage. The film crew has plowed the day-use area, but has requested that snowmobilers on the lake stay away from the set to allow for natural surroundings when the filming starts in late January or early February.
Source
January 2, 2004
"It looked like a vacant warehouse about three stories tall," Heclo said. "And there was Nicolas Cage on the set." Heclo and Shockling were on the set of a new Nicolas Cage movie entitled "National Treasure," which will be released in 2004. "(Cage) was sitting there at a desk, and he took a coin and dipped it in water," Heclo explained. "He didn't have any speaking lines, but he had to do that three times." While there, Heclo and Shockling had the opportunity to talk with Cage. Heclo said their limo driver made the trip worthwhile. He entertained them with stories of the celebrities that he had once been a bodyguard for, including James Brown, Elton John and Nicolas Cage.
Source
January 2, 2004
Greer Lange actress Carrie Wilson on the set with Nicholas Cage and Sean Bean filming National Treasure.
 
Source
September 25, 2003
Sean Bean, who played "Boromir" in the first The Lord of the Rings, has joined the cast of Disney/Touchstone's National Treasure.
Source
August 22, 2003
Diane Kruger ("Troy') has joined the cast of National Treasure, opposite Nicholas Cage. Production will begin in mid-September.
Source
Saturday 15, 2003 National Treasure Update:
Check out the cool new on set images for National Treasure starring Nicolas Cage and Jon Voight taken during last week's filming in L.A. were just received from super snapper Mr White!
Images & updates
National Treasure - Script Review
Source: FilmJerk
Screenplay Review
Written 06-24-2003 by Edward Havens
A young boy, maybe ten years old, is driving a horse-drawn carriage through the rain-soaked of Washington DC. It is 1832, and the boy is taking Charles Carroll, 96 years of age and the last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence, to the White House, to see President Andrew Jackson about
a matter of urgency. Carroll dies before the President can make it outside, but before the old man passes on, he tells the young boy, Thomas Gates, about a great treasure. A grand treasure amassed throughout the ages. From the pyramids of Egypt two thousand years before the birth of Christ, through the Roman Empire and The Crusades, brought to the New World over five hundred years ago. A treasure whose sole clue lies in one word. Charlotte. Thus begins what will become a family curse, as generation after generation of Gates males search for Charlotte and the secret treasure.
Click Here For Full Script Review
National Treasure - Press Archive
*Screen notes*
The Nicolas Cage watch is on, as the flick National Treasure enters the first full week of a half-month of shooting in and around Society Hill. Cage plays Benjamin Franklin Gates in this Jerry Bruckheimer-produced adventure about the contemporary search for a cache of Revolutionary War booty. The schedule and locations seem to be shuffled daily, but crews will shoot "fabricated rain and lightning" at night through Monday. On Wednesday, keep an eye out for a rooftop chase scene in the Head House Square area.
Click Here to read the many Press Stories
Nicolas Cage Film "National Treasure" Now Casting
"NATIONAL TREASURE", an action/comedy film from Touchstone Pictures, is now casting for production in late September. WHO'S INVOLVED:
This major film will star Nicolas Cage and will be produced by Jerry Bruckheimer ("Con Air"). It will be directed by Jon Turtletaub (Disney's "The Kid"). Speaking parts and background roles are both available.
Click Here to see the casting notes and more!
National Treasure - Screenplay Review
Written 06-24-2003 by Edward Havens
Screenplay draft dated April 9, 2003
Current draft by the Willerby's
A young boy, maybe ten years old, is driving a horse-drawn carriage through the rain-soaked of Washington DC. It is 1832, and the boy is taking Charles Carroll, 96 years of age and the last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence, to the White House, to see President Andrew Jackson about a matter of urgency. Carroll dies before the President can make it outside, but before the old man passes on, he tells the young boy, Thomas Gates, about a great treasure. A grand treasure amassed throughout the ages. From the pyramids of Egypt two thousand years before the birth of Christ, through the Roman Empire and The Crusades, brought to the New World over five hundreds years ago. A treasure whose sole clue lies in one word. Charlotte. Thus begins what will become a family curse, as generation after generation of Gates males search for Charlotte and the secret treasure.
Click Here for full review
Movie News: Nic Cage to Seek a “National Treasure”
Written 06-04-2003 by Edward Havens
After striking box office gold three times together with “The Rock,” “Con Air” and “Gone In Sixty Seconds,” Nicolas Cage and Jerry Bruckheimer are hoping the river of opportunity has not dried up for their next effort, the action/comedy “National Treasure.” Despite some potential historical inaccuracies, there seems to be little doubt this modern-day Indiana Jones will thrill audiences worldwide when it opens in November 2004.
Read In Full
Set Report : "National Security"
'Atreyu' caught Nicolas Cage filming scenes for his new movie in Philadelphia. "I live in Philly and saw some scenes being shot the other day from Nicolas Cage's "National Treasure." They were filming on 13th and Locust in Center City Philadelphia, and I heard they were also filming at the local cementary on Pine Street and at city hall. The scene I saw two days ago was of Justin Bartha and Diane Krueger running from these two big guys (typical mobster lookin guys). Diane was carrying a long cylindrical case (carrying the constitution or declaration maybe?). They ran into a side entrance of a strip club where they were may be meeting Nic Cage or something, don't know. Just saw them filming those two being chased into the strip joint, then their stunt doubles running out the front entrance."
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