Night At The Museum
Well, Iām all for a kidās movie that encourages them to take a trip to the museum and learn more about the past, but itād be even better if they actually managed to come up with a STORYLINE for this high concept. Ben Stiller stars as an out of work bum who finally gets a job as a night watchman for a museum in New York, where an ancient Egyptian tablet causes all the exhibits to come to life at night and have in essence one big bizarre party until the sun comes up and they have to āassume their positionsā. For the most part, thatās as far as it goes, as the film mostly consists of Stiller wandering from room to room, engaging each character with a different sense of schtick even as the early part of the story indicates that Stiller is destined for āsomething greatā when all his destiny really is to be the ringmaster at an historical circus. Stiller remains one of the more engaging comic actors out there, and his trademark āwhat if?ā style of conversational comedy remains in full force here, and sometimes it hits, but other times it misses (like an extended slapping contest with a capuchin monkey). As for the rest of the cast, Robin Williams as Theodore Roosevelt rides around and offers uplifting advice, but not much else (and considering what a colorful figure Roosevelt was and how he was probably the 1st pop culture icon of the 20th century, one wonders when Hollywood will make a definitive biopic of his life); Carla Gugino as the museum tour guide / Stiller love interest is cute but lightweight; Dick Van Dyke as the retiring night watchman still has some spring in his step apparently, as does Bill Cobbs as one of his sidekicks; Mickey Rooney (a walking miracle to still be acting at his age) has some fun as the third member of the trio; Ricky Gervais as the museum curator does his stock befuddled act, complete with his trademark overacting; and Owen Wilson is pretty damn annoying as a figurine cowboy come to life with an inferiority complex. Despite the fact that I only laughed out loud twice (at Stiller doing āEye Of The Tigerā and the tire deflation scene), the film still retains enough charm as the main character interacts with Roosevelt, Attila The Hun, Christopher Columbus, cavemen, and more, though it seemed dumb that an Egyptian mummy who seems rather threatening becomes, once heās set free, probably the friendliest and most personable guy in the film. There is a key moment halfway through that manages to completely deflate the story (Roosevelt confesses that heās not really Roosevelt, and that he and all the others in the museum are wax dummies and nothing more), and it manages to take all the sense of wonder out of the proceedings, as well as open up some serious plot holes. And the finale throws the script and all credibility out the window also, with the old night watchmen āturning badā and a moronic chase through the streets with little rhyme or reason. In the end, worth one viewing for high-quality FX and Stillerās charm, but nowhere near as good as it could have beenā¦
5/10