Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian – DVD Review

By Jeff Swindoll Dec 3, 2009, 12:33 GMT

History is larger than life-and twice as funny-in this monumental comedy sequel that\'s "better than the original? (At the Movies)! Ben Stiller leads an all-star cast (including Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Hank Azaria and Robin Williams) as Larry Daley, a former night watchman at the Museum of Natural History, where the exhibits come to life after dark. But now Larry\'s nocturnal friends are being retired to the archives of the ...more

Night at the Museum was a big hit so it was obvious that a second part was in store for our intrepid night watchman.  However, this time around bigger and better doesn’t seem better as some of the gags go on to long and the first film had more heart.  It’s not that boring a trip to the museum though.  

Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) has turned his luck around.  He was a down-on-his-luck, divorced dad who was desperate enough for a job that he took on being a night watchman.  Through his adventures at the magical museum, he has built the company Daley Devices that telemarkets his inventions.  He’s now successful and a bit of a workaholic. 

He gets a call to visit his former employer, the American Museum of Natural History, and visits with Dr. McPhee (Ricky Gervais).  It seems the museum has fallen on hard times and some of the exhibits are being boxed up to be shipped to the National Archives at the Smithsonian in Washington DC as they’re being replaced with virtual reality kiosks.

Left alone in the museum after hours the magical tablet of the Pharaoh Ahkmenrah (Rami Malek) brings the exhibits to life and Larry meets up with old pals Theodore Roosevelt (Robin Williams), Dexter the Capuchin monkey, Rexy the Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton, and others.  Sacagawea (Mizua Peck), Attila the Hun (Patrick Gallagher), and the miniatures, including Jedediah the cowboy (Owen Wilson) and Octavius the Roman general (Steve Coogan), are being boxed up to be sent away to the archives. 

What Teddy is keeping from them is that the tablet of Ahkmenrah is staying behind that this is their last night to come back to life.  Larry tells Teddy that he’ll try and make the museum board change their minds about packing the exhibits up, but he is unsuccessful.  However, the next night Larry gets a call from Jedediah that chaos has broken out at the Smithsonian as Dexter took the tablet with them.

It turns out that Ahkmenrah’s older, evil brother Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria, lisping like Boris Karloff) has been revived and wants the tablet for world domination with the help of Ivan the Terrible (Christopher Guest), Napoleon Bonaparte (Alain Chabot), and Al Capone (Jon Bernthal). 

So now Larry has to get into the Smithsonian to stop the villain with the help of General George Armstrong Custer (Bill Hader) and Amelia Earhart (Amy Adams, who must’ve learned brassy from watching Katherine Hepburn films).  

You knew it was coming when the first film pulling in over 500 million.  Ben Stiller takes another trip to the museum, though this time it all feels a bit forced.  For example, there’s a gag later in the film when Azaria is holding an hourglass and Stiller keeps touching it.  The gag goes on far too long with Stiller touching the prop several times and Azaria getting flummoxed that he’s doing it.

It does on for about two or three repetitions too many.  There are many gags like that in the film.  The first film feels like there was some heart in the film and this time around it just feels like “bigger and better” done for the sake of the sequel. 

Don’t get me wrong, there are some funny bits here and there but several of the longer jokes seem forced or just there to show off some special effects wonders.  Azaria and Adams are funny but they feel like they’re on cruise control and not acting.  Especially since they’re basically doing impressions of others (Karloff and Hepburn) and Azaria really doesn’t feel like much of a threat. 

I did snicker when he starts critiquing the Smithsonian artifacts and scoffs at two modern characters (I’ll not spoil the gag for you) joining up with his cadre of villains.  Bill Hader is goofball fun as Custer (the looniest Custer since Richard Mulligan in Little Big Man) and the monkeys are cute (It’s bigger! It’s better! We’ve got two of them now!).  The more is better mantra didn’t make a better film it just made a more crowded film.  The kids like it and I was entertained when I wasn’t thinking that the joke should’ve ended two beats ago.  However, it made me like the first film more. 

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is presented in anamorphic widescreen (2.35:1) and is enhanced for 16x9 televisions.  Special features on disc one include two commentaries.  The first is from director Shawn Levy and the second is from writers Robert Ben Garant and Thomas Lennon.  The 20 minute “Curators of Comedy” is a behind-the-scenes making of.  You also get five deleted scenes with optional commentary by Levy, a gag reel, “Phinding Pharaoh” spotlighting Azaria, and “Cherub Bootcamp” about the Jonas Brothers’ cameo.

Disc two starts off with 18 minutes of “monkey mischief” documentaries (“Monkey Business,” “Primate Prima Donnas,” and “The Secret Life of a Monkey Movie Star”), a DVD-ROM “Monkey Slap” game, and “Able and Dexter’s Flights of Fancy” activity.  

Battle of the Smithsonian is full of sound and fury, but signifies nothing but goofball entertainment.  It makes the first film seem even better as the piled on gags seem piled on. 

There are some funny bits but “bigger is better” doesn’t satisfy the bill, if you think about it.  My kids just went along for the ride and had a good time.  I guess my “inner child” left when I started writing these reviews.

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