Night at the Museum (2006)
Directed by: Shawn Levy
Premise: The new overnight security guard (Ben Stiller) at the Natural History Museum discovers that the exhibits come to life between dusk and dawn. He must contain the feuding exhibits and conceal their secret while attempting to mend his relationship with his estranged son (Jake Cherry).
What Works: Night at the Museum is a fun adventure film geared for family audiences and as that it works very well. The film features its share of jokes and Stiller puts on his usual awkward hero routine to a moderately successful comic effect. The father-son relationship, if a bit formulaic, is done well enough that it gives Stiller’s character a few layers of motivation to succeed.
What Doesn’t: Night at the Museum is primarily geared toward children. While adults may find the film amusing, there is very little at stake in the picture and it is not very dramatically engaging, depending instead on gags and special effects to carry the picture.
Bottom Line: Night at the Museum is a great deal of fun, the kind of family friendly adventure that Walt Disney used to do so well. While the film might not play as well to adult audiences and the picture is not particularly memorable, it will make for a good family movie night.
Episode: #125 (January 7, 2007)