Nicolas Cage has made a lot of movies in his career, and in those films, he’s delivered some iconic lines. Perhaps none are quite so loved, if only ironically, as when he says “I’m going to steal the Declaration of Independence” in Disney’s National Treasure. It’s a great line, equal parts dramatic and hilarious. And Cage says that’s why the line works so well, because it’s more than a little silly, but isn’t delivered that way.
In a new video for Vanity Fair, Nicolas Cage goes over some of the most famous scenes in his career, in some of Cage’s best movies, including his monologue in front of the Declaration of Independence in National Treasure. It ends with the famous decision to steal the document (which has a map to a great treasure concealed on the back). Cage admits that the line is inherently silly, but says that part of what makes it work as comedy is that it’s delivered with all the seriousness he and co-star Justin Bartha can muster. Cage explained…
I can’t even say it without laughing — ‘I’m gonna steal the Declaration of Independence’ — because it has been meme-ed so many times. It has been SNL-ed. But, you can’t help but laugh. I think what really makes it work is how serious Justin [Bartha] and I are taking it. If you played it for laughs then it’s screwball comedy and it’s stupid. It’s not my thing, it’s not where I’m at. But, the fact that we played it like dramatic actors makes it even more funny than it might have been if it was slapstick.
Cage’s comments about the line of dialogue could probably be extrapolated to National Treasure on the whole. Its premise is the sort of thing you could not possibly take seriously. It requires a significant suspension of disbelief. But the movie itself takes its premise absolutely seriously. It becomes all but impossible to not get swept up in the adventure. Cage himself seems to love the franchise
Action/comedy as a genre can be quite popular and successful, so maybe National Treasure could have worked if it had leaned into the comedy more. But Cage doesn’t think so. He credits director Jon Turteltaub for the way National Treasure was shot aiding the seriousness of it all, especially in that scene. It made it feel all the more dramatic, which allowed “I’m gonna steal it” to hit absolutely perfectly. Cage continued…
I think Jon Turteltaub shot it lovingly. I mean he really made the characters look like they had great reverence and regard, almost like it was a sacred — well to some it is sacred — almost like a holy object. And then to punch it with ‘I’m gonna steal it;’ it’s so ridiculous you just can’t help but love it.
There’s really no argument that it worked. National Treasure is one of the best movies of the 2000s. It spawned a sequel, Book of Secrets, as well as a Disney+ spinoff series, Edge of History, that unfortunately only lasted one season. Fans have continued to clamor for a National Treasure 3, which has never materialized, but still seems to be a possibility, showing just how popular this franchise still is.