Earlier in the summer, while the weather was still unseasonably pleasant, we went down to Silverwood Lake State Park again, to go boating. We met up with a friend down there, and actually had a really pleasant afternoon, until the weather started turning. Once the wind picks up that strongly, being on the water is no place for someone who prefers staying warm. So, we had to find something else to fill our afternoon. Quite aghast that we hadn't seen anything recently in theaters (well, since last summer, I think), our friend talked us into seeing something in Town on our way back to post. In our defense, the closest real theater is in Town, almost an hour and a half away, and the little 2-screen theater on post only shows second run movies. If there's nothing good at the post theater, we just wait and depend on our Netflix instead. Driving a round trip that's longer than an actual movie time doesn't always seem worth it :\
Anyhoo, while in Town, we did indeed stop at the theater there and catch a show. We decided on Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian.
Anyhoo, while in Town, we did indeed stop at the theater there and catch a show. We decided on Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian.
The story follows Larry (Ben Stiller), the former night watchman but now successful but unhappy entrepreneur, as he travels to DC from NYC to rescue the museum displays headed for storage there. As everyone remotely impacted by marketing knows, these displays come alive at sundown every night, and are taking with them the magic that will wake up the entire Smithsonian complex of museums. Meanwhile, to make matters worse, one of the awakened characters at the Smithsonian (Hank Azaria) is an ancient Egyptian bent on world domination.
A warning for those reading: The Smithsonian holds a special place in my heart, of all the many many many museums I've visited. With grandparents living just outside DC and being of a family of the bookish type (read: dorks! but we admit it!) we made the trip into DC to the Mall just about every time we visited the grandparents. My sister and I could pretty much recite the Metro Red Line heading in from Bethesda to downtown where we'd get off. So keep in mind that this movie focuses on a place I love. Anyways...
For Hollywood sequels, it's the usual more-but-less philosophy. More explosions, more of the same jokes, less of a movie. (National Treasure 2, anyone? The 3 Star Wars prequels? Still make me cry...) But, as I haven't seen the first Night at the Museum, and quite frankly love the Smithsonian with all my heart, I was prepared for a mindless bit of fun, not expecting too much. Which is mostly what I got. It was better than I expected though, with several laugh-out-loud moments. It is still a Hollywood sequel, so they aren't going to break the formula this time around, but I wasn't expecting it to be groundbreaking. And it's a kid's movie, after all, so not much in the way of plot or making-you-think moments, but plenty of fun to be had.
The acting was good. Hank Azaria is hysterical as always. That lisp just kills me! Apparently it's a nod to Boris Karloff in the original The Mummy, whose undead king also had a British accent with a lisp. Azaria is just so good at these part, too, that the funny voice is just icing on the cake. He also voices two other characters - Honest Abe (from the Lincoln Memorial) and The Thinker (who's really more of a dumb jock when awake). Seriously, if you have a talented voice actor in the cast, make use of him! Amy Adams was fine as Amelia Earhart, but the character was a little over the top at times and could border on the irritating. Ben Stiller is not my favorite comedian, but he plays the straight guy here very well. Owen Wilson and Steve Coogan return from the first film, as the model cowboy and tiny Roman soldier, and have some great (albeit underused) chemistry. Definitely could have had more scenes with those two in them. A favorite scene was the minis charging into battle 300-style, but being so tiny, they are just stabbing toes.
Honestly, one of the best things I liked about the movie was all the shots of DC and the Mall and the Smithsonian museums. There's lots of fun exhibits coming to life, many of which I remember from spending COUNTLESS hours in the Smithsonian every year. Granted, all the exhibits aren't from the Smithsonian (the Degas ballerina is in the Tate Modern in London - I know, I've sketched it there!) but they made for some fun jokes around the edges of the action. Like the bartender from Nighthawks breaking a bottle to use as a weapon during a fight scene! It made for some very busy scenes, those I-don't-know-where-to-look shots, but it didn't bother me like it did in Star Wars 3 (those were busy scenes, but no inside jokes or anything in the background, just business to show off the CGI capabilities). And I LOVED the Roman soldier riding in on the squirrel. Unless you've lived in the VA/MD area, you just don't know how tough those grey squirrels are! We used to laugh about that at W&M - the college just had permission from the squirrels to exist there, that it was really the squirrels who ran the place!
A warning for those reading: The Smithsonian holds a special place in my heart, of all the many many many museums I've visited. With grandparents living just outside DC and being of a family of the bookish type (read: dorks! but we admit it!) we made the trip into DC to the Mall just about every time we visited the grandparents. My sister and I could pretty much recite the Metro Red Line heading in from Bethesda to downtown where we'd get off. So keep in mind that this movie focuses on a place I love. Anyways...
For Hollywood sequels, it's the usual more-but-less philosophy. More explosions, more of the same jokes, less of a movie. (National Treasure 2, anyone? The 3 Star Wars prequels? Still make me cry...) But, as I haven't seen the first Night at the Museum, and quite frankly love the Smithsonian with all my heart, I was prepared for a mindless bit of fun, not expecting too much. Which is mostly what I got. It was better than I expected though, with several laugh-out-loud moments. It is still a Hollywood sequel, so they aren't going to break the formula this time around, but I wasn't expecting it to be groundbreaking. And it's a kid's movie, after all, so not much in the way of plot or making-you-think moments, but plenty of fun to be had.
The acting was good. Hank Azaria is hysterical as always. That lisp just kills me! Apparently it's a nod to Boris Karloff in the original The Mummy, whose undead king also had a British accent with a lisp. Azaria is just so good at these part, too, that the funny voice is just icing on the cake. He also voices two other characters - Honest Abe (from the Lincoln Memorial) and The Thinker (who's really more of a dumb jock when awake). Seriously, if you have a talented voice actor in the cast, make use of him! Amy Adams was fine as Amelia Earhart, but the character was a little over the top at times and could border on the irritating. Ben Stiller is not my favorite comedian, but he plays the straight guy here very well. Owen Wilson and Steve Coogan return from the first film, as the model cowboy and tiny Roman soldier, and have some great (albeit underused) chemistry. Definitely could have had more scenes with those two in them. A favorite scene was the minis charging into battle 300-style, but being so tiny, they are just stabbing toes.
Honestly, one of the best things I liked about the movie was all the shots of DC and the Mall and the Smithsonian museums. There's lots of fun exhibits coming to life, many of which I remember from spending COUNTLESS hours in the Smithsonian every year. Granted, all the exhibits aren't from the Smithsonian (the Degas ballerina is in the Tate Modern in London - I know, I've sketched it there!) but they made for some fun jokes around the edges of the action. Like the bartender from Nighthawks breaking a bottle to use as a weapon during a fight scene! It made for some very busy scenes, those I-don't-know-where-to-look shots, but it didn't bother me like it did in Star Wars 3 (those were busy scenes, but no inside jokes or anything in the background, just business to show off the CGI capabilities). And I LOVED the Roman soldier riding in on the squirrel. Unless you've lived in the VA/MD area, you just don't know how tough those grey squirrels are! We used to laugh about that at W&M - the college just had permission from the squirrels to exist there, that it was really the squirrels who ran the place!
Overall: 5 of 5. Predictable but lots of fun. Gave me the feeling that a lot of jokes came from the original, so makes me want to see the first. Good mindless bit of fluff, and better than a lot of other things that came out this summer! Also, very good for the homesick! :)
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