Movie Row: Review of "Night at the Museum"

Review of "Night at the Museum"
Tuesday, January 23, 2007

This movie is refreshing and enjoyable. Don’t expect a solid and profound plot. Instead be ready for a simple but full of surprises one that manages to entertain you the whole length of the movie, while being very easy to digest. Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) is employed as a night watch for the Museum of Natural History in NYC with the task of not letting anything in or out of the museum, and soon discovers what the "out" part was all about. "Powered" by an ancient, cursed Egyptian pharaoh's tablet, the animals and exibits in the museum come to life, wreaking havoc. Not afording to quit his job, Larry has to deal with them and prevent them from getting out, where they would turn to dust.

The acting is ok, with Stiller actually being funny and likable, which is something he hasn’t been in many of it’s movies. Robin Williams as Teddy Roosevelt is hilarious as usual and a nice surprise and so is Mickey Rooney, as the disgruntled and annoyed security guard, Gus.

The special effects are good and their star is certainly Rex, the T-Rex in the movie and the best dinosaur on screen in the last years. The cowboy and the Roman and Aztec miniatures that give Larry a continuous headache are very funny and do a good job supporting the chaos that characterizes the film. Also adding to the dynamic, the music is good and in tone with the action that evolves on screen.

Though having it’s share of clichés, Night at the Museum is a great family film worth watching. It has action, romance and a good dose of silly humor. Best fun flick in a while.

RATING: 7/10

Directed by: Shawn Levy
Writing credits: Ben Garant (also screen story), Thomas Lennon (also screen story) & Milan Trenc (book)
Starring: Ben Stiller, Carla Gugino, Robin Williams, Dick Van Dyke, Steve Coogan, Patrick Gallagher, Ricky Gervais, and Mickey Rooney

MPAA Rating: Rated PG for mild action, language and brief rude humor.
Runtime: 108 min
Country: USA
Language: English
Color: Color
Sound Mix: DTS / Dolby Digital / SDDS
Certification: UK:PG / USA:PG / Portugal:M/6 / Malaysia:U / Australia:PG / Singapore:PG / Germany:6 / Portugal:M/12 / Hong Kong:I / Ireland:PG / Finland:K-11