World Peace
Monday, February 13, 2006
National Treasure
National Treasure is no treasure of a movie, but nevertheless I was amused by the nonserious fun it provided. If you're able to get over the insultingly bad pseudo-history, this movie is a fun treasure hunt. If you can't, then you won't be able to watch this.
Maybe Disney made this as a way to make kids think that history is cool. Hopefully, kids who see this won't learn false history.
This movie is not meant to be taken seriously, of course. The producers thought that it would be fun to tell a tale about a treasure hunt that involves the most guarded national document, The Declaration of Independence. Some people just can't get over the fact that there would be a hidden treasure map on the back of this document that they simply hate this film.
The film is simply meant to be another fun popcorn movie for the ignorant masses. Those who know anything about American history might not be able to swallow this story.
Nicholas Cage stars as a third generation treasure hunter who believes there is a treasure map hidden on the back of the Declaration of Independence. He gets his computer whiz friend to help him steal it from the Library of Congress.
Cage manages to steal it, despite extremely heavy security and an evil millionaire who is after the treasure too. He soon learns that the Declaration is just part of a series of clues that lead to the treasure. He still has a long ways to go to find the treasure.
I thought it was fun to watch. Some parts were laughable. On the back of the $100 dollar bill, there's supposedly a clock that says 2:22. I've got to check my Benjamin a little closer next time. I doubt I'd see it though. I wish the movie didn't make up things like this. It would have been so much cooler if they got the facts straight. It's based upon American history, but everything is just plain made up.
This movie reminds me a lot of the book, The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. I think the movie will be similar to this. In the Da Vinci Code, the story revolves around the genius codes of Leonardo Da Vinci. In National Treasure, the story centers around Benjamin Franklin's riddles. The two stories both involve solving these puzzles to find a treasure that will change the world.
One thing I don't get about the bad guy in this movie was how dumb he was. He was supposed to be smart, but he didn't know how to solve any of the riddles without Cage's help. Yet, he tried to kill Cage early in the movie. Each step of the way, he needed Cage to solve these puzzles, but the bad guy was so greedy he just wanted to finish Cage off too quickly. He should have had enough smarts to know that he needed Cage's help. He should have waited until he actually got the treasure and then killed him. Near the end, they thought they came to a dead end. The bad guy leaves him there and takes off to another place he thinks the treasure is. What an idiot! Cage finds the treasure and the FBI arrest the bad guy. Dumb!
Pros: Fun treasure hunt. Pretends to be smart, even though we all know it's all made up. Enjoyable if you don't take it seriously.
Cons: Absurd story with made up facts about American history. None of it is remotely true. Super dumb bad guys.
My rating: B, 82.
Maybe Disney made this as a way to make kids think that history is cool. Hopefully, kids who see this won't learn false history.
This movie is not meant to be taken seriously, of course. The producers thought that it would be fun to tell a tale about a treasure hunt that involves the most guarded national document, The Declaration of Independence. Some people just can't get over the fact that there would be a hidden treasure map on the back of this document that they simply hate this film.
The film is simply meant to be another fun popcorn movie for the ignorant masses. Those who know anything about American history might not be able to swallow this story.
Nicholas Cage stars as a third generation treasure hunter who believes there is a treasure map hidden on the back of the Declaration of Independence. He gets his computer whiz friend to help him steal it from the Library of Congress.
Cage manages to steal it, despite extremely heavy security and an evil millionaire who is after the treasure too. He soon learns that the Declaration is just part of a series of clues that lead to the treasure. He still has a long ways to go to find the treasure.
I thought it was fun to watch. Some parts were laughable. On the back of the $100 dollar bill, there's supposedly a clock that says 2:22. I've got to check my Benjamin a little closer next time. I doubt I'd see it though. I wish the movie didn't make up things like this. It would have been so much cooler if they got the facts straight. It's based upon American history, but everything is just plain made up.
This movie reminds me a lot of the book, The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. I think the movie will be similar to this. In the Da Vinci Code, the story revolves around the genius codes of Leonardo Da Vinci. In National Treasure, the story centers around Benjamin Franklin's riddles. The two stories both involve solving these puzzles to find a treasure that will change the world.
One thing I don't get about the bad guy in this movie was how dumb he was. He was supposed to be smart, but he didn't know how to solve any of the riddles without Cage's help. Yet, he tried to kill Cage early in the movie. Each step of the way, he needed Cage to solve these puzzles, but the bad guy was so greedy he just wanted to finish Cage off too quickly. He should have had enough smarts to know that he needed Cage's help. He should have waited until he actually got the treasure and then killed him. Near the end, they thought they came to a dead end. The bad guy leaves him there and takes off to another place he thinks the treasure is. What an idiot! Cage finds the treasure and the FBI arrest the bad guy. Dumb!
Pros: Fun treasure hunt. Pretends to be smart, even though we all know it's all made up. Enjoyable if you don't take it seriously.
Cons: Absurd story with made up facts about American history. None of it is remotely true. Super dumb bad guys.
My rating: B, 82.
Friday, February 10, 2006
Bunny Hopping
This is a very short clip of me test driving Andy's new Razor scooter and attempting to do a bunny hop. Maybe, I might get one of these. Then, I'll go down one of those steep hills in LA. At least it has brakes. I know I can pull off some sweet tricks with some practice. But first, I'm going to buy a motorcycle.
Andy Pulling a Bunny Hop
Andy just bought this Razor scooter and he's trying to show it off. Maybe, next time we meet he'll learn some more tricks.
Pictures of Downtown L.A. before Lunch with Andy
Walt Disney Concert Hall and MOCA
I took the following pictures of downtown L.A. before having lunch with my good friend, Andy Nagai. We had Chinese food. I had my favorite--orange chicken. He just bought a Razor scooter that he wanted to show off. Unfortunately, I didn't bring my skateboard. Otherwise we would have had a good race. Maybe, next time we have lunch, we'll race. We had a good battle on the freeways a few years ago with my Mustang and Andy's 300ZX.
Click on the link below to see the rest of my pictures. You can also check out all my other photo albums too.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)