Night at the Museum - Battle
Review - Bobby Belt for The Mungles on Movies
I've always been of the opinion that the most subjective genre in film is Comedy.
There are things in Dramas and Thrillers and Romance films that you can say are definitively good and definitively bad. In Comedy, the thing they're most trying to do is make you laugh. Since we all have different things that make us laugh or smile, Comedy is such a difficult thing to pin down as to what is great and what isn't.
It's why any thing said about Comedy should always just be a guide based on previous tastes of those telling you about the film and not some straight recommendation.
With that in mind, Night at the Museum 2 was a lot of fun.
In this sequel, Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) has had major success as an infomercial inventor and salesman, leaving the museum and his buddies living there behind. When he returns for a visit, he discovers that the museum will be undergoing some major changes and that all of the exhibits are being shipped to the Smithsonian in Washington DC where they will be kept in storage.
After a monkey named Dexter from one of the exhibits takes King Ahkmenrah's gold Egyptian plate with them to the Smithsonian, since that's what makes them come to life at night, all chaos ensues. King Ahkmenrah's brother, Kah Mun Rah (Hank Azaria) lives at the Smithsonian and he is determined to get the gold artifact for himself so that he can rule the world. In order to do this, he enlists the help of Al Capone, Ivan the Terrible, and Napoleon Bonaparte.
Larry leaves his job and travels to Washington DC to help save his friends. When he gets to the museum, a whole cast of characters including Abraham Lincoln (Azaria) Amelie Earhart (Amy Adams) and General Custer (Bill Hader) help him try and save his friends.
There's so much to love about Night at the Museum. It's just fun, plain and simple. It starts out a little slow, the first 15 minutes or so are boring and have only a chuckle or two, but it picks up considerable speed once Stiller makes his way to DC.
There are so many funny cameos here (You have to really look for them) and some really great historical jokes. Sometimes you'll miss them, other times, once you realize the joke, you'll end up laughing 20 seconds after it has been told.
One of the best things is that this isn't a movie that requires you seeing the original in order to watch the sequel. As a stand alone movie, it works, and that's what's so great. It just asks you to kick back, relax, and have fun. In a world where a family now spends about 50 dollars just for a ticket and snacks, it's nice to watch a movie that doesn't make you ponder or try and beat you over the head with symbolism.
It's why comedies are so big at the box office. People want to laugh and have fun for all the money their spending. Night at the Museum 2 comes through for you in that respect.
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is rated PG for mild action and brief language. Generally should be good for all the kids, but if your child is scared of intimidating half man/half falcons, you may want to skip it.
Overall, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian gets 3.5 Albert Einstein bobble heads out of 5 from me. Just a fun flick. |
