Night at the Museum - Movie Review

Larry Daley is a kind-hearted dreamer who always knew that he was destined for greatness, he just never quite knew how. None of his ideas or inventions has panned out, so with a heavy heart, he takes a regular job as a lowly graveyard-shift security guard at the Museum of Natural History in order to provide a more stable life for himself and his ten-year-old son. His first night on the job, however, he finds that guardianship of the museum is far from stable - at nightfall, an Egyptian spell brings the artifacts and wax figures to life! With Attila the Hun charging to war through the hallways, the diorama miniatures embroiled in a deadly feud, and a two-ton Tyrannosaurus Rex nagging to play fetch, Larry has half a mind to turn tail and run. On top of cleaning up after two million years of historical chaos every night, he also has to make sure that not a single museum piece leaves the building - from the bratty Capuchin monkey in the African exhibit, to the life-sized Neanderthal in the prehistoric display - because if morning light falls on an escaped artifact, it will turn to dust.

With Ben Stiller, Robin Williams and Owen Wilson all in the cast, I was expecting it to be funnier. There were some comedic moments, but it was more of an action/adventure film than a comedy. That doesn't mean it was necessarily a bad movie - it was just different than what I had imagined. The story was original and was a childhood fantasy come to life. Any kid who has been to a museum had to have imagined what it would have been like if the displays came to life. Well, this film answers that question and it's not as pleasant as I would have thought. Some of the characters and interactions were cheesy and seemingly pointless ("Give me gum gum you Dum Dum"), but I did enjoy the T-Rex and monkey who provided some comic relief. If you liked Jumanji and want to just sit down, relax and be entertained, this is a film for you - just don't expect a classic you'll want to watch more than once.

Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Would I watch it again: No
Starring: Ben Stiller, Dick Van Dyke, Mickey Rooney, Robin Williams, Owen Wilson

I typically watch movies on Monday, Wednesday and Friday while riding the ACE Train from Tracy to Santa Clara. The opinions expressed are those of me, myself and I.