What A Dollar Has To Tell You - 13 Gentle Reminders

29January2008

Are you looking for The Dan Brown Code?

Posted by Christopher under: Uncategorized.

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29November2007

An untraceable source…

Posted by Christopher under: Uncategorized.

As I watched National Treasure, I couldn’t help but feel that someone was trying to beat Dan Brown to the punch. Now, while The Da Vinci Code (scheduled to be made into a major motion picture next year, rumored to star Tom Hanks) has little to do with Masons (well, maybe a little, but not really in the grand scheme), it does cross-plots with National Treasure a bit when we find ourselves watching the Knights Templar plunder a treasure hidden beneath the Temple of Solomon. And the analysis of codes and riddles by Benjamin Gates, Nicholas Cage’s character in the movie, seems straight out of the world of Dan Brown’s character, Robert Langdon. Brown’s successful book series could become quite a movie franchise if Hanks and company make The Da Vinci Code as inspiring on screen as it was in print… but here’s the kicker: The next book in the Robert Langdon series (Brown is still working on it) is supposedly set in the Washington DC area, and it’s supposed to deal with a Masonic conspiracy…. Sounds a wee bit like National Treasure preempted that plot. Conspiracy theory, anyone?

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29November2007

National Treasure (2004)

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“The Clues Are Right In Front Of Your Eyes”

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29November2007

The Da Vinci Code (2003)

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“The Secret Is Hidden Right Before Your Eyes”

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29November2007

What a Dollar Has to Tell You © 2001

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“The most evident thing is invisible to your eyes”

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15November2007

Chicago Sun Times - Roger Ebert - National Treasure

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If you are one of the millions, like me, who plowed through The Da Vinci Code, you can be forgiven for thinking they’ve made it into a movie. And in a way, they have, but the movie is titled “National Treasure.” This new Jerry Bruckheimer production is so similar in so many ways to the plot of the Dan Brown best seller that either (a) the filmmakers are the only citizens of the entertainment industry who have never heard of The Da Vinci Code, no, not even while countless people on the set must have been reading the book, or (b) they have ripped it off. My attorneys advise me that (a) is the prudent answer.

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15November2007

New York Times - A Secret Treasure Map That Ends in Manhattan

Posted by Christopher under: Uncategorized.

“National Treasure” was produced by that Hollywood Midas, Jerry Bruckheimer, and directed by a Hollywood hack, John Turteltaub (”Three Ninjas,” “The Kid”). With its ludicrous frisson of patriotism and a nod to “The Da Vinci Code,” a more cynical grab for Hollywood gold is hard to imagine. What does it tell us that a couple of important clues are to be found in drawings on the backs of hundred-dollar bills? But “National Treasure” is so witless and shoddy it suggests that Midas may have lost his touch…

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15November2007

About.com - Is National Treasure like The Da Vinci Code?

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National Treasure is similar to The Da Vinci Code in that it’s about decoding clues on historical artifacts to lead the hero to the ultimate treasure. But the filmmakers downplay the connection, and in fact, the movie was in development long before The Da Vinci Code was published…
…Producer Jerry Bruckheimer added, “I haven’t read The Da Vinci Code, but my guess is that [comparison] is a good thing, because it’s a best selling book, and you know, we’ve been working on this thing for 8 years. We’re thrilled it became such a huge success, and hopefully people who read that will come see this. I mean, they’re totally different. My understanding is it’s about the Vatican and the Church and everything else, and this is more about American history.”

15November2007

Seattlepi.com - Cage is a lightweight in ‘National Treasure’ role

Posted by Christopher under: Uncategorized.

The new Nicolas Cage action movie, “National Treasure,” is a total rip-off of the mega-best-selling novel, “The Da Vinci Code,” but since that book is reportedly a rip-off of other books, I suppose there’s no sense in getting overly indignant about it

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15November2007

Movie Smackdown - The Da Vinci Code (2006) -vs- National Treasure (2004)

Posted by Christopher under: Uncategorized.

Of course, what neither “The Da Vinci Code” or “National Treasure” had was an ounce of credibility in the search for the secret or search for the treasure storylines they pursued. Each one sets up its cliff-hangers briskly, places the characters in grave danger, allows for nearly impossible escapes, and then takes us to the next plot point. Here’s one more point of commonality: both of these films are much better in their front halves than their back halves. As mysteries at the beginning they both more-or-less work. But as the logic falls apart in each, so did my patience.

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