This week we take a look at “Night At the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian,” the sequel to 2006’s highly successful, “Night At the Museum.” Ben Stiller is back as the security guard who deals with the exhibits coming to life, only this time he has the entire Smithsonian collection to deal with. Most of the big names from the first film return, and are joined by Amy Adams and Hank Azaria. Shawn Levy returns to direct.
Ryan: Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is one of those sequels that tries to be bigger and better than the original. As usually is the case—and this movie is no exception—the high aspirations of the sequel fall short of the original. The first Night at the Museum movie wasn’t a groundbreaking movie of any sorts but it was a fantasy-filled fun family film. Regrettably the charm and originality of the first movie is lost in translation for the sequel.
Andy: I somehow managed to make it out of the winter of 2007 without seeing Night At the Museum, so I’ll be looking at the sequel with fresh eyes. Assuming the new film borrows heavily from the first, I can understand what the fuss was about. The endless possibilities for crazy situations based on museum exhibits coming to life is really quite clever, and the film does its best to highlight them. Stiller, as usual, holds the film together with an every guy charm that is a little bit cooler than anyone you actually know.
Ryan: I’ve always been a big Ben Stiller fan and I don’t see that changing but he’s not beyond criticism either. There’s no question that he’s on cruise control with this movie with regard to his performance. While Stiller was going through the motions, his romantic co-star Amy Adams gave hands down the most refreshing performance in the movie. It’s almost like Adams jumped out of a 1930’s screwball comedy with her thoroughly enjoyable portrayal of Amelia Earhart. Her performance was spot on.
Andy: I was quite taken with Amy Adams as Amelia Earhart. Her bright-eyed, fast talking, adventure seeking persona may have been around 80 years , but it’s a character type that doesn’t get used enough in movies today. She adds a feminine touch to the movie while giving it a witty and energetic edge as well. Standing out in an ensemble cast of character actors is difficult, but Adams is able to do it here.
Ryan: Night at the Museum attempts to up the ante by having even more characters and guest appearances from a range of A to B to C list comedic actors. It seems like every scene brings a new character (and even some fictional ones). Ultimately some of the guest appearances work better than others--Stiller’s scene with Jonah Hill comes to mind--but for the most part the movie fails to provide a suitable forum for the comedic actors to work their skills. That proves disappointing especially considering some of the comedic talents involved—Christopher Guest, Ricky Gervais and Robin Williams. Final grade: C-.
Andy: The real star of the movie might be the Smithsonian itself, which has highlights of its collection on display throughout the movie. Furthermore, the movie does a reasonable job of giving a quick history lesson about the museum itself, introducing it to a very large audience of children. I’m not usually a big fan of such gratuitous product placements in movies, but the more people who take advantage of the Smithsonian Museums, the better. The movie itself has its ups and downs, but the museum shines through as a magical place regardless, carrying the movie to a B.
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