Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Night at the Museum


RATING: C+ 

Every now and then, there's one of those films that comes out of nowhere and ends up becoming a franchise. I don't think Night at the Museum was originally planned to be a trilogy (took them a while to get that last one out though). 

This film is centered around the idea of "what if everything in a museum came to life at night?" Larry Daley, a struggling divorced entrepreneur, desperately takes a job at a downsizing museum where he takes the place of three old night guards (two of whom are played by Dick Van Dyke and Mickey Rooney), and he finds himself in for a bit of a nasty surprise, as he has to deal with rampaging exhibits such as Civil War guys, Attila the Hun, and Neanderthals--and get help from guys like Teddy Roosevelt, Sacagawea, and a mummy. 

Night at the Museum is one of those films that gives you mixed emotions. Of course, that may have something to do in part with its lead actor, Ben Stiller, who has always given me mixed feelings--sometimes he's hilarious and sometimes he's just so awkward or odd (though he's good at that) that he just becomes annoying to watch. 

Night at the Museum is more of that, in many ways. There are some scenes that are flat out hilarious. Many of them involve the miniature Western and Roman characters, as well as the Easter Island head (who probably doesn't have enough scenes either). Other scenes either attempt to be funny, and just fall flat on their face, and other scenes just range from awkward to boring. Honestly, Larry's personal life issues are pretty uninteresting, especially when you know what's coming in the museum that is far more interesting. 

The plot is pretty good and clever, though. The idea of having museum exhibits come to life is certainly an intriguing one, and they definitely have some fun with it. There are a couple plot twists towards the end--one of them is slightly easy to see coming (regarding the identity of the antagonist), and another one is brilliant, as well as underused and overlooked. 

Night at the Museum is a film that can be quite a bit of fun at times. If you're a fan of Ben Stiller in general, you'll probably have an even bigger barrel of fun (I think many of the other actors are the ones who steal the show). There are also parts that are not quite as fun. It's an up-and-down film at times. It's still worth checking out for the fun parts, many of the other actors, and the occasional clever historical wordplay, which help make it a worthwhile ride. 

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