Review of Night at the Museum (2006) by Nolan M — 15 May 2015

I've got a feeling is gonna be an OK night. Night at the Museum moves pretty quickly, as it kicks off with the opening credits, followed by meeting our protagonist, Larry Daley (Ben Stiller), meeting with his ex to see his son, and we learn that he is in desperate need of a job.

He then goes to said son's hockey game, and in the aftermath, we learn what a big dreamer he is, and this establishes his character. Desperate after a little interview at what I believe is a job-searching office that I guess the internet killed off a few years later, he gets a job at the Museum of Natural History to impress his son and be a better role model.

That scene showed more of his "big-dreamer" personality, and developed his character. On his first night, after a little mislead by his co-worker Cecil (Dick Van Dyke) Larry discovers what we all knew was coming: The museum exhibits come to life, brought to you by an ancient Egyptian tablet, and not the kind of tablet Apple released less than four years after this film came out.

Larry is very relatable when he is not being pushed around by monkeys and figurines, because we all want to make a difference. Other than that, Teddy Roosevelt (Robin Williams) provides Larry with confidence boosters where he needs them most.

The plot is pretty clear, but there is one major detail they omitted: How do Jed (Owen Wilson) and Octavius (Steve Coogan) drive an RC vehicle Larry uses for controlling the T-Rex skeleton when they're in the (explicative) vehicle, and without the R (Remote) or C (Control)? If/When you watch this, please, somebody explain that.

Onto the picture, most of it is clear, but in Jed and Octavius' close-ups, they are clearly either in a paper-mache set, or obvious green-screen is obvious. Also, everything fits into this film, but do not let the monkey peeing on Larry feel like it's just thrown in for laffs: It develops the monkey as a trickster.

Alan Silvestri does a wonderful job with the soundtrack, creating a deep suspense and mystery where it is needed, but otherwise, it does what's needed. An OK film could have been a great one, but I guess this one will belong in a museum (Of OK movies that kill time, but do not leave you with a great sense of satisfaction).