Best Popcorn Flicks with Treasure Hunting Themes

Through the years, treasure hunting has become a popular theme for swashbuckler, action, adventure, and fantasy movies. Hollywood's best treasure hunt flicks are large-scale productions with big-budget allotments. As these motion picture offerings often aim to become big Hollywood franchises, they rake in money not only through the actual films, but also through their expanded offerings from merchandise items to book, comics, and TV adaptations.

"Raiders of the Lost Ark"

In 1981, Steven Spielberg's "Raiders of the Lost Ark" made Indiana Jones a household name. It is the first, "Indiana Jones" movie that introduced the iconic archaeologist character played by Harrison Ford. Boasting topnotch production values, sly humor, and impressive performances, this action-adventure film features Indiana Jones getting hired by the U.S. government to find the Art of the Covenant.

More than just becoming a box office hit, this multi-awarded motion picture piece is now considered one of the highest-grossing films of all time. It received eight nominations during the 1982 Academy Awards including Best Picture. It won four technical awards for Best Art Direction, Film Editing, Sound Mixing, and Visual Effects. It also received a Special Achievement Academy Awards in Sound Effects during the same year.

"Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl"

"Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" is the first movie about the savvy and eccentric pirate Captain Jack Sparrow played by Johnny Depp. Released in 2003, this first "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie revolves around the adventures of Jack and the blacksmith Will Turner as they rescue the kidnapped Elizabeth Swan, the governor's daughter and Will's love interest, from Captain Hector Barbossa and the cursed crew of the Black Pearl. This adventure fantasy film received five Academy Award nominations including Best Actor, Sound Editing, Sound Mixing, Makeup, and Visual Effects.

"National Treasure"

The 2004 mystery adventure film "National Treasure" may have such a preposterous story, but this swashbuckling piece tickles the curiosity and imagination of its viewers with its witty and appealing presentation of clues and puzzles about a mythical treasure. The story revolves around the character of the treasure hunter Benjamin Franklin Gates played by Nicolas Cage. For this first "National Treasure" adventure, he is in hot pursuit of a war chest hidden by America's Founding Fathers. This popular movie was nominated for the Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film in the 2005 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. It also received a number of nominations for technical awards from other renowned award-giving bodies.

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