There aren’t a lot of family movies being released these days, but the Night of the Museum franchise, directed by Shawn Levy and starring Ben Stiller as Larry Daley, a night guard who works at a museum where all the exhibits come to life at night through the magic of an Egyptian tablet, are pretty decent fun for the most part, though I don’t think they’re classics, especially this third entry.
The first installment takes Larry to the Museum of Natural History in New York. The second installment, Battle of the Smithsonian, takes Larry to…you can guess from the title. This final installment, Secret of the Tomb, takes Larry to London where he has to find out how to reignite the magic of the currently failing tablet or else all the exhibits will die…or turn back to wax (and if you’re a mummy, turn from a live, healthy human back into a mummy) for all eternity.
There are a few bits of creativity, such as a fantastic action scene inside the painting Relativity by M. C. Escher with all its loopy, paradoxical physics. A priceless cameo near the end by Hugh Jackman playing himself is worth the price of admission alone, until the movie comes out on video and you can watch the scene in HD on Youtube.
Dan Stevens steals the show, both figuratively and literally, as newcomer Sir Lancelot. Dick Van Dyke, Bill Cobbs, and Mickey Rooney return in cameos as the retired night guards from the first film, with Rooney in his second-to-last role before his passing – the same of which can be said for Robin Williams who returns in a prominent role as Teddy Roosevelt.
I’ve seen Ben Stiller in a few movies, but I now realize how overrated he is as a comedian. Every time he attempts to engage in a witty conversation, it feels forced and awkward, if with a few chuckles. Larry’s son Nick is also back, this time played by Skyler Gisondo. They have a conflicted relationship, and Larry mentions that Nick’s frustration could be due to his parents’ divorce if I remember correctly, though Larry unfortunately seems more content with the situation. Plus, Larry gets into the London museum by having the Natural History museum’s recently fired manager (Ricky Gervais) lie to the London manager.
I’m sure the kids in the audience would get a bigger kick out of the crude, stupidly silly humor than the grownups in the audience, but why does Hollywood have to desensitize kids into thinking that a monkey peeing on people and a night guard, played by Rebel Wilson, falling in love with a wax caveman, also played by Stiller, are funny? That stuff is pretty embarrassing and messed up!
Ironically, Ben Kingsley plays a pharaoh here while he plays a Hebrew in Exodus: Gods and Kings, which was released earlier this month. However, his big scene has muddled religious content as it’s revealed that the tablet is powered by the magic of an Egyptian god, while there’s also talk of the Jews leaving Egypt thousands of years ago (in a pretty funny exchange). Where do the film’s religious sympathies lie? I suppose it’s a creative way of saying that all religions are the same, though it’s not a recurring theme.
The Night at the Museum movies have plenty of special effects, but what they lack is a heartbeat. They’re lightweight entertainment with a creative premise, but not much else. The Toy Story films manage to make both kids and adults care about objects that come to life, which is helped by the fact that the toys go through life-changing character arcs. None of the museum exhibits are as memorable or iconic as Woody, Buzz Lightyear, or even Mr. Potato Head.
I know I’m beyond the film’s target audience, but why can’t there be more genuinely good stories catered towards kids? Why can’t there be more family movies without without irrelevant potty humor? Why can’t there be more family movies with positive depictions of whole families, not benign depictions of divorced families or families whose mother abandoned them to raise animals (i.e. How to Train Your Dragon 2)? Not to mention, the excitement and scary images may be too intense for little ones, with a few curse words thrown into the screenplay.
The movie’s ending at least has some emotional weight to it. It’s a bittersweet conclusion that brings closure to the series, and that’s something I can empathize with.
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