Joe Brody said:
I've seen Ocean's Eleven and I'm tired of the copycat scenes in other films that lay out the security, challenges etc. and then 'cleverly' shifts into the plan and execution.
Absolutely, that style has become one of the most overused cliches, from
Casino to
Mission Impossible to
Ocean's Eleven--I couldn't agree more, and that part of the movie did make me roll my eyes.
But as far as the chases, you can't compare
National Treasure to
The Rock, because they are different kinds of movies.
The Rock was meant to be a pure adreneline, big, dumb, action epic, whereas
National Treasure was more Hitchcockian--no, I'm not saying it was as good as Hitchcock, just that it had elements, and that kind of sensibility. The chases in
National Treasure were more grounded in reality compare to
The Rock--especially that whole chase through San Francisco, with the explosions, and the Hummer and the trolley car--which was more fantastical.
It's like comparing the fight scenes in
The Bourne Identity to the fight scenes in
The Matrix: one could physically happen, while the other cannot. I mean, the chases in
National Treaure could happen, because it was mostly just people running--no Ferraris, no Hummers, no over the top mass destruction. Don't get me wrong...I love
The Rock (the movie, not the wrestler), just in a different way and for different reasons. I liked the chases in
National Treasure--especially in Philly--because they were simpler and, therefore, slightly more believable.