According to "National Treasure," the founding fathers had a lot of free time on their hands. To hide a secret stash of gold, silver and priceless historical documents, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington and the rest of their Freemason homies decided not only to hide the treasure and draft a simple map, but to "Da Vinci Code" it up. They parceled out riddles, keys, invisible ink insignias and Temple of Doomish stonemasonry to protect the trove. Their aim was ostensibly to guard the riches from the British, but you just know that when they convened for their ultrasecret meetings to hash out the system, they were really thinking, "This would maketh for a radical treasure hunting adventure!" And a radical adventure it is, with Nicolas Cage strapping on the hero boots to solve clues, dodge bullets and dangle off of underground wooden structures, clinging to his romantic interest with one brave hand. Cage is historian Ben Gates, the latest in nine generations of passionate adventurers who have sought to unearth the treasure. Ben's father, Patrick (Jon Voight), discourages Ben from wasting time in the search. It's all clues that lead to other clues that lead to still more clues, the cranky Patrick mutters. He's right, and that's what makes the movie such a breeze. Ben and his crew go Indiana Jonesing off through ice, water and dark caverns. The movie doesn't have it all, but it does have car chases, heists and grandstanding villains. Is it a worthy successor to the "Indiana Jones" films? Not at all. The movie is predictable, corny and only slightly less believable than Scott Peterson's defense lawyers. But you take what you can get in these adventure-lean movie years. In a time in which such mediocrity as "The Mummy," "Tomb Raider" and "Pirates of the Caribbean" are embraced, we're doubtlessly enduring a swashbuckling recession. Cage's fancylad frailty allows for endearing heroism when he grits his chattering teeth and digs into a dogged quest of danger. His self-deprecating, ironic delivery adds at least 10 percent of extra juice to an already snappy screenplay. In the opening scene, Ben is double-crossed by Ian (Sean Bean), a pistol-pulling colleague who's so dastardly that he even has a British accent. Ian steals an old pipe inscribed with a riddle, and thanks to Ben's conclusion that the next clue must be etched on the back of the Declaration of Independence, Ian decides to take that, too. Ben, being the patriot do-gooder that he is, decides to steal the D of I for himself, just to keep it out of the Brit's monarch-serving hands. He's joined by Riley (Justin Bartha), a hapless moron who makes everyone around him seem smarter, and Abigail (Diane Kruger), a reluctant government employee who falls in love with Ben because she's the girl and he's the hero. Harvey Keitel pops in as an FBI agent named Sedusky, who tries but can't keep too close to the hunters. But then, maybe he isn't trying so hard. It is, after all, lots of fun to watch Ben and Ian race for the treasure in a big budget bonanza. For all we know, Sedusky is kicked back with a big grin on his face, his fist plunged into a tub of popcorn. Just like the audience.