Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (2009) User Reviews (256)

The Smithsonian gets a treasure

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 14 July 2018]

In this sequel to Night At The Museum, Ben Stiller now a millionaire who does motivational infomercials still finds time to visit his old friends at the Museum of Natural History where he made their acquaintence while working as a night security guard there.

But with his millions he can't stop changes as the Museum is now going for interactive exhibits and many are being packed away and sent to the National Archives, some for exhibit in the Smithsonian.

So Stiller goes back into action and visits the archive which is lots of underground space between the Capitol and Lincoln Memorial.

I wonder myself in both of these films was Stiller really visiting Madame Tussaud's with all the historical figures coming to life.

Theodore Roosevelt's connection with the Museum Of Natural History is well known and Robin Williams is back as our rough riding 26th president. Others are back and new ones added.

Hank Azaria is brilliant as the Egyptian prince whose incantation caused all these exhibits to come to life after sundown. He sounds like he was channeling Boris Karloff.

Amy Adams is a feisty feminist role model Amelia Earhart who gets kind of interested in Stiller. They make a good team.

As for them getting together. A gambit that Meet Joe Black and Bing Crosby's A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court used is applied here. You have to see the film to see what I mean.

A few good laughs in this nice family entertainment film.

A good family film, more fun then the first!

[Smells_Like_Cheese · 6/10 · 4 June 2009]

Well, it's been 3 years since we had the comedy hit Night at the Museum, naturally they went for a sequel to either make more money or spill the story for what it's worth. Eh, I pick all of thee above. But surprisingly Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian was actually a lot better then I had expected, in fact, I think I enjoyed it much more then the first Night at the Museum. Now the first Night at the Museum movie was alright, it didn't really thrill me, Ben Stiller is praised so much as a comedic actor but I've only found him funny in Zoolander. But when it comes to movies like Meet the Parents, There's Something About Mary and Night at the Museum, it's usually the supporting cast that carries the movie and he seems just like the same character in every movie. Once again the supporting cast saves this movie and makes it a great family film.

Larry Daley is now head of Daley Devices, a company he founded to manufacture his inventions. These inventions, including the Glow-in-the-Dark Flashlight, were created from his experiences as a former night guard. He finds that the American Museum of Natural History is closed for upgrades and renovations, and the museum pieces are moving to the Federal Archives at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC. On the last night, Larry meets the museum pieces such as Teddy Roosevelt, Rexy the T Rex Skeleton, and Dexter the Monkey and finds out that several exhibits, including Teddy, Rexy, the Easter Island Head, and Ahkmenrah are not moving to The Smithsonian Institution, the other exhibits will no longer be animated. The next night, Larry gets a call from Jedediah, saying that Dexter stole the tablet, and that Kahmunrah, Ahkmenrah's older brother, is attacking them. Larry takes a plane to Washington and visits the National Air and Space Museum, the National Gallery of Art and the Smithsonian Castle to find the Federal Archives.

Over all Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is worth the recommendation, I'd say a matinée if you want to see it with the family. Hank Azaria puts a bit of a strange personality for Kahmunrah, but he provides quite a few good laughs. Along with Owen Wilson and Steve Coogan who are back as the cowboy and the roman soldier, great chemistry right there. They have this scene that nearly killed me in laughter, since they're so small they go 300 style in trying to stab all the bad guy's feet, great style and homage to the war films. Amy Adams pulls in a great performance that I feel is going to be over looked as Amelia Earhart, she has that old school Hollywood look to her and personality that was a perfect choice. There are some great moments in this sequel but there are some really silly one's as well, so over all I'd say it's worth the look, it's a good family film, but again nothing too memorable.

6/10

Automatons, Possessed Statues, or "Real" Humans? Answer: Possessed Statues.

[BabelAlexandria · 7/10 · 14 May 2020]

This is a fun movie, no different from its predecessor really, except the threat of "death" for the exhibits being moved to Washington, and thus unable to come to life at night through the magic of the tablet. So what is the status of these walking, talking exhibits anyway? They seem somewhere in between automatons, which can move but don't have personalities, and "real" humans, who are always animated, not just at night. The solution, I think, is to consider the Opening of the Mouth Ritual, especially given the movie's ancient Egyptian thematics. That involved animating a statue with the soul of the departed. So the Teddy Roosevelt statue, for example, would be possessed by the soul of Teddy Roosevelt.

We enjoyed that this took place in the Smithsonian, as we were planning to visit D. C. for the Cherry Blossom festival. Then COVID-19 happened!

Seb's rating: 7 stars Sienna's rating: 7stars Paul's rating: 7 stars.

Just another Hollywood big-budget sequel.

[SophomoreSlump · 6/10 · 5 July 2009]

The reason why I went to watch this is because the first one was such a good family movie. It has humour, suspense, slight action and in depth plot and twist.

The sequel unfortunately is far from that. Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is about Larry Daley who has a better job since the first movie and has now moved on to a different life. Little did he knows that his friends at the Museum of Natural History are about to be shipped and stored at the famous Smithsonian Institute. Long story short, he now has to save little Jedediah and Octavius from a pharaoh who is trying to take over the world. Sounds weird. Because it is. It feels like the writers were out of ideas.

So what they do was they throw in a hell lot of characters including Kahmunrah, a crazy pharaoh who is trying to take over the world, Albert Einstein, Abe Lincoln and even Darth Vader.

The story seemed rush and some parts didn't make sense. For example, why did Kahmunrah, the threatens to suffocate Jedediah in an hour-glass when Jedediah is just a little statue who will most probably come back to life the night after even if he 'died' today.

But negativity aside, I have to say that the actor that really stood out was Hank Azaria, playing the villain Kahmunrah. He was loud and funny and not to mention he even voiced Abe Lincoln and The Thinker. Ben Stiller is just his usual self. And Amy Adams was fun and very adorable as the female pilot Amelia Earhart, but the gung-ho attitude gets old pretty fast.

The special effect and the score of the movie were okay. Not too good, not too bad.

Overall, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is just another Hollywood big-budget movie that has a massive room for improvement and really could've done so much better.

Stiller Going Strong

[ajaymittal · 7/10 · 20 May 2009]

In a world where unnecessary sequels are plaguing the movie world and are seemingly released for little other reason than to milk the 'cash cow', Night at the Museum 2 is a refreshing exception (unlike Meet the Parents 2,3,4...). It's arguably better than the first.

Although better on different levels…The historic characters are not just new and improved but also come with a greater comic value. In what the film lacks in a relatively mundane storyline, it compensates with a wonderful underlying message/moral. There's also a love story again but what struck me as more potent was the greater bond that exists between the rest of the characters; Larry and Jedediah, Jedediah and Octavius etc. The score/music was noticeably better as well, very listenable. Of course the whole picture was far more 'epic' and I, for one, am a fan of this. On the face of this, its a comedy blended perfectly with action like a cocktail of strawberry and champagne – and very much like Tropic Thunder (although on a different level of course). Hank Azaria was brilliant as Kahmunrah especially in the way he could turn from serious evil to light-hearted joker in the blink of an eye. Speaking of which, him and his trio of evil helpers were fantastic together, as am sure you'll all agree.

The one downside is that too many of the best comedy moments were shown in the trailers, so kind of dampening the effect of many of the genuinely funny moments. But there's still enough to keep you chuckling away! So should there be a third? If they can continue to make people laugh whilst rummaging through their popcorn during the action scenes, I'd day why not? After all, what is life without a bit of fun?

Funny sequel as amusing and spectacular as the original

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 25 July 2010]

Entertaining film with adventures, action, amusement and full of imagination and fantasy . This sequel concerns about the divorced father named Larry (Ben Stiller) and his son , now he's a successful manager and left his job as night vigilance at Museum of Natural History of New York City. But his allegedly easy life results to be a roller-coaster when encounters what an Egyptian pharaoh (Hank Azaria who also plays The Thinker and Abe Lincoln) threatens to kill Jedediah (Owen Wilson). Again the ancient animals,beasts,historic personages and miniature are brought to life originating wreak havoc and complications for the unlucky ex-night watchman. Thus several animals and historic characters come to life , like a Tyrannosaurus Rex, a giant octopus ,monkeys, besides Neardenthal cavemen, Vikings, Attile(Patrick Gallaher) and the Huns, Sacajawea(Mizuo Peck), Teddy Roosevelt(Robin Williams)and Octavius(Steve Coogan) and a cowboy(Owen Wilson) , Octavio (Steve Coogan) and George Armstrong Custer (Bill Hader). The peculiar personages of the Museum that Larry watched are being replaced by holograms and sent to Smithsonian Museum , the biggest of world located in Washington. There ours friends along with Abe Lincoln,the Thinker and some flying Angels confront evil pharaoh (Hanz Azaria), Napoleon (Alain Chabat), Ivan the Terrible (Christopher Guest), Al Capone , among others . Meanwhile Larry Daley falls in love with the famous heroine Amelia Earhart (Amy Adams) .

This blockbuster displays action, adventures ,fantasy and an enjoyable father-son relationship . This fantastic film starts splendidly and goes on in a real sense of wonder and magic , winds up an overlong bombastic wild ride made by means of magnificent special effects and with an exciting final pursuit . Spectacular images and computer generator set pieces action with several known personages and animals can not erase the charm of characters and ideas especially in the hands of peerless casting . Glamorous and luxurious cinematography by John Schwarzman and moving musical score by the composer of the previous film , Alan Silvestri, Robert Zemeckis's usual musician. The picture is marvelously realized with phenomenal production values and well directed by Shawn Levy . Shawn is an expert on familiar genre as he proved in ¨ Cheaper by the dozen¨,¨Pink Panther¨,¨Just married¨ and of course ¨Night at the Museum I¨. The film contains numerous scenes have you on the edge of your seat with a stunning array of overwhelming images to be enjoyed for all family.

somewhat cute and funny but overall disappointed

[prillyisyourfriend-1 · 6/10 · 23 May 2009]

The first Night at the Museum is one of my favorite movies and I had high hopes for this one but what happened??? First, the bad: there were several characters that I was really disappointed to see did not have big (or at least significant) parts especially Ricky Gervais and Owen Wilson. Ricky Gervais (Dr. McPhee) really added to the humor in the first movie, but he just seemed so serious and boring in this sequel. And I thought Owen Wilson's part was kind of disappointing too. Ben Stiller's character just didn't seem as into it as before. I can't quite put my finger on it but there was definitely something lacking.

The good: the effects were amazing! I loved all the animated characters (the moving paintings and how they could go inside them; the Einstein bobbleheads and the Jonas brother cupids, the black and white Al Capone, etc.). One of my favorite scenes was when they went inside the black and white painting. Another favorite was the little arguments between Larry and Brandon (Jonah Hill) and Larry and Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria). Probably the funniest scenes in the movie. By far the best character in the movie: Hank Azaria as Kahmunrah. And the lisp was just a genius touch. Another funny but rather unimportant character was Napoleon. I thought Ben Stiller and Amy Adams were cute together. But that's pretty much it. I wasn't impressed by Adams' performance. It was just so-so. I mean, when has she NOT played a bubbly character?

It just didn't seem as... magical compared to the first movie. I was pretty letdown because using the Smithsonian, the movie could have had a lot more potential.

Poorly manufactured sequel that stays bearable with a few good characters

[Movie_Muse_Reviews · 4/10 · 8 January 2010]

The first "Night at the Museum" worked despite conventions for a few reasons, but the main one was that it eased into its premise of museum exhibits coming to life and didn't take it for granted like "Night of the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian" does. I'm actually surprised the writers of the first film wrote this sequel, because Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant handle these characters like they're someone else's creation and they can butcher them all they want.

"Night at the Museum 2" sucks the magic out of the original and overdoses on characters as well as meandering sarcasm and awkward humor. Save some bright spots in character acting from a delightful and plucky Amy Adams and some bright spots from Hank Azaria and Christopher Guest, "Smithsonian" will disappoint most defenders of the first film -- except kids and anyone else who'll bite on an outrageous premise.

Ben Stiller stars again as Larry Daley, only our beloved night security guard has randomly become a mastermind of As Seen on TV products. That decision alone completely destroys the continuity between this film and the last, forcing Larry's story to be something totally different than the single dad trying to be a role model for his son. Now son is hacking into the Smithsonian Institute floor plans to direct his dad to the location of the tablet that brings things to life at night. See the Museum of Natural History is going digital and all the beloved characters of the first film are shipped to the national archives in DC, only that naughty monkey brought the tablet with him and so the Smithsonian has come to life.

Our source of conflict is the Pharaoh at the Smithsonian, Kahmunrah, played by Azaria doing his best Stewie Griffin impression, who wants the tablet to unleash his army, so he gets help from Napoleon, Ivan the Terrible (Guest) and young Al Capone. At least director Shawn Levy realized the asset they had in Azaria and had him voice a couple other key statues that come to life later on. Azaria's too good for this film, really, but he plays at its level instead of pushing it and even manages a few of the better laughs when he puts a major diss on Darth Vader.

Then there's Amy Adams, the lone diamond in a sea of forced comedy and excessive cameos. It might seem like loving Adams is the "it" thing, but she brings the imaginative spirit sorely lacking in the film as Amelia Earheart. Every time she speaks it literally feels like the film gets more believable because she's such a convincing spirit. She also gets to work her best Katherine Hepburn impression to boot.

But "Smithsonian" is more defined by its disappointments and synthetic sequel material. Lennon and Garant try and include too many characters between the old ones and the new ones and the film just feels chaotic. It's like a contest to see how many new ideas of different things they can bring to life from paintings and photos on the wall to historical monuments in DC.

Worst of all, it's completely rushed. Understood that we get the coming-to-life premise and we aren't going to be surprised by it, but they take all the fun out of it. Levy figures a shot a piece of the statues of Amelia and Bill Hader's Col. Custer are adequate foreshadow, but they're not. Daley just cons his way into the archives and the story rockets right into the Smithsonian with a few quick facts about what it is to provide context.

"Night at the Museum 2" does just about everything we used to be terrified of sequels doing in the '90s -- overdoing it and diverting from the core values that won some love for the original because that film wasn't just about things coming to life.

~Steven C

http://moviemusereviews.com

Another Night at the Museum

[fanofbatman-1 · 6/10 · 26 May 2009]

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is the second film in the Night at the Museum series. While it isn't much different than the first film I have to say it isn't quite as good. Ben Stiller was pretty good but I don't think anybody else really stuck out. One thing I that disappointed by was the lack of screen time for Steve Coogan and Owen Wilson, or Octavius and Jedediah. In the first movie, they stole the show. But in this movie, they are underused like most of the others in the cast. Night at the Museum 2 has its funny parts, but seems to lack the charm and fun of the first movie. It's a worthy sequel that meets the standards of the first movie, but doesn't exceed them. You might want to wait for it's DVD/Blu-Ray release, but seeing in theaters is good too. Thanks for reading this review.

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Underdeveloped Plot and Characters

[saarvardi · 5/10 · 22 May 2009]

There's an old saying in Hebrew that claims that if you try and catch as much as you can, you'll end up having nothing at all. After viewing Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, I can sadly say that the same can be said when regarding this lesser sequel to the 2006 smash hit.

Even though most film critics despised the original movie, the first Night at the Museum was actually one of my favorite films of that year. For me, the film worked on two levels. First, by waking the inner-child in all of us and making us feel the magic Ben Stiller's character Larry experiences once the exhibits in his museum come to life in all their glory in front of him. Second, by telling a very straight-out and heart warming coming of age story of a grown-up divorced man who has to take control of his life and get his act together (with the museum working more as a metaphor of sorts). I also related to the additional educational values the film had to offer, another theme I felt received a lesser emphasis in the sequel.

In the second installment of the Night of the Museum series, much of the initial magic is already lost from the get-go. We already know the artifacts come to life and how, and the general feeling of suspense is gone. To make things worse, the whole story feels convoluted and unreal. We're expected to believe that Larry has turned from a no-good night guard at the museum in the first film to this mega-successful businessman in the second installment during the course of only a few years (and after being a virtual nobody for the vast majority of his life). I mean come on, Hollywood - Where did the charming loser from the first film go so quickly? Stiller's Larry is hardly likable at the beginning, and once he learns that his lovable exhibits/friends are moving to the Smithsonian museum (after the Museum of Natural History closed for technological renovation) things start happening so fast, that his motives for leaving his comfortable job to help rescue his friends are left undeveloped and unconvincing.

The main course of this sequel is of course the special effects created by the two museum's re-animated exhibits, with the evil Egyptian Kamunrah (The Simpson's Hank Azaria) acting as the main villain who operates the evil Smithsonian exhibits who strive for world domination yadda yadda yadda. Some effects are cute (Al Capone's gangsters brought back to life in black and white, the heroes entering an old painting, the Lincoln memorial rising from his chair, amongst others) and some are once again undeveloped and underused. At times, it seems so much is happening on the screen, that you don't really know where to look or who to concentrate on. Many returning characters from the first film are outrageously underused (including Robin Williams' Teddy Roosevelt and Owen Wilson's Jedediah) and many comedians who are brought specifically for the film contribute blink-and-you-miss-it performances, including Ricky Gervais and Jonah Hill). The only true contribution for the film is the lovely Amy Adams (Enchanted), who portrays a fluffy re-animated Amelia Earhart who seems more lost than ever.

To sum things up, I'd say that Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian may have been cute at times, but it was mostly useless, as it really didn't add any significant notion to the elements presented in its predecessor. While that film felt like an instant classic to me, this one felt more like a quick money-grab with a lot of missed potential.

Exceeded my Expectations

[bjohnt · 8/10 · 22 May 2009]

When I saw the trailer for this, I was pretty excited. I loved the whole premise of the first one, and having a sequel opened up whole new opportunities. I was excited when I saw all these famous characters from history being mashed together, Al Capone, Napoleon Bonaparte, Amelia Earhart, to name a few.

I walked into the theater not expecting to much, but when I left I was very happy with it. They handled every characters personality beautifully, and the inside jokes were hilarious. I don't want to give much away, but trust me, you'll laugh. It tackles many themes like, a house divided cannot stand, the way to happiness is doing what you love, don't dwell on the past, etc. For a family flick they handle this jumbled cast of characters with complex personalities amazingly. They threw away most of the characters from the first movie to make way for the newer characters, which I didn't like that much, but how many characters can you throw in a story to have it make sense?

This film is an amazing example of a movie made for kids and adults. Kids will enjoy the silly humor, and the monkey. While adults will laugh at the onslaught of in-jokes, and trust me, there's a lot.

All in all, this was a great movie, blew me away. The highlight for me was Hank Azaria, that lisp kills me every time.

More of the same stuff

[changmoh · 6/10 · 21 May 2009]

The 2006 original was a fun-filled fantasy trip to the Museum of Natural History in New York. It was a blast for both the kids and the adults when the exhibits, especially the T-Rex and President Teddy Roosevelt, come to life that Night At The Museum.

This sequel basically shifts the action to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington DC where we get more of the same "Jumanji"-type action - without much cerebral input into the plot. In fact, the whole second installment looks uninspired and uninspiring. We don't feel for the characters, not even Ben Stiller's Larry Daley as he tries stir up another frenzy among the animated exhibits. As a sequel, it is rather stale because it does not have a plot that is engaging enough for its stunts. The gags are mostly repetitive - like Kahmunrah's lisping, Amelia's 'ready-for-anything' attitude, etc. There is never a sense of danger in the proceedings - and Larry's presence in the story seems superfluous.

The action remains a comic book adventure - and the mandatory twist at the end merely helps to ease our way out of this juvenile treat.

Rather average follow-up to an entertaining film

[TheLittleSongbird · 5/10 · 25 April 2011]

I really liked the first Night at the Museum, not bowled over, but very entertained. It had great special effects and it was great to see childhood legend Dick Van Dyke again. I was looking forward to this sequel, hoping for the same sort of entertainment. This is not a terrible film by all means, but as a sequel and film I couldn't help feeling disappointed.

Granted, the special effects were absolutely wonderful, and the cinematography, locations, costumes, sets and editing striking. Granted, the score was rousing and fun, and most of the direction solid. And granted the actors give it their all, Ben Stiller is solid if occasionally going overboard, Amy Adams and Hank Azaria are absolute hoots and Robin Williams returns as Roosevelt and along with Azaria is the standout of the actors playing the historical figures.

However, the recurring support cast aren't given much to do excepting Robin Williams, Owen Wilson is rather annoying, Napolean and Al Capone are written as quite badly-written caricatures and don't get me started on the Jonas Brothers, their presence added absolutely nothing to the proceedings and they were not funny at all. And if only there was a story and script that were consistently engaging, but the script and sight gags are very hit and miss and the story is thin, and these are further disadvantaged by the overlong length, tacky ending and too many scenes that drag.

In conclusion, watchable but quite average. 5/10 Bethany Cox

Good Adams, solid SFX, bored Stiller, poor plot = better than the first film but not by much

[bolt76 · 7/10 · 31 July 2009]

The only reason this film gets a positive comment from me is Amy Adams. Without her sparkling performance, this would have been basic cable fare, albeit with good production values.

The plot works like clockwork and everyone except Adams seems on autopilot. I feel at least Stiller could have made more of an effort.

There are very few laughs until half way through the movie. There's some clever stuff with paintings and photos, and a better script could have done something truly magical with the idea.

Bottomline: an improvement over the first film but not by much.

6/10

A respectable family movie

[bobertdos-1 · 7/10 · 25 May 2009]

I know this is always a risky statement, but I am going to say it was better than the first. I usually write very defensive comments for the movies I see, but I don't feel that's overly necessary here. The strength of Smithsonian, for me, was the same thing others think was its biggest weakness: casting. People complain about there not being enough emphasis on the original characters, but I think the new flavor Levy brought was both needed and thoughtfully implemented.

The humor was generally well-placed, juvenile and repetitive perhaps, but well-placed nonetheless. Bringing the Smithsonian to life called for slightly increased creativity and I think the writers were at least aware of that. People may say more could have been done, but then you risk the problems associated with compressing excess material in an hour and forty-five minutes.

They introduced the right balance of the old elements that worked with the first, combined with new elements they were careful to not blow out of proportion.

Well played! Larry Daley got a good homecoming!

Disappointingly flat for a comedy

[Gordon-11 · 12 August 2009]

This film is about the battle between various exhibits to save the world from evil power.

"Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" unfortunately falls way short of my expectations. The first "Night at the Museum" was good, as the idea was novel and it was packed with fun adventures. That story unfolded nicely, like removing the wrapping paper to reveal pleasant surprises.

The sequel does not achieve the same. It has a flat and boring plot. Nothing unfolds but just happens for no reason. There are little fun moments, and the supposed jokes fail to make anyone laugh. The childish arguments that happens not once but twice in the movie are simply annoying. Furthermore, moving statues lost its novelty. The "new" elements in the movie are lifted straight from "Harry Potter" films and "The Mummy" films, making "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" so lame. Most parts of the movie bored me.

Clever and colorful but not quite as good as the original...

[Doylenf · 6/10 · 3 June 2009]

Before the credits are even over, one gets the impression that all of the sight gags from the original NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM are going to be transferred to The Smithsonian from The Museum of Natural History when the move is made, but fortunately, that's not true. There are some very clever touches to this sequel and the story itself varies considerably.

The touches include such historical figures as Al Capone (only seen in B&W although surrounded by color), Ivan the Terrible (nicely played by Christopher Guest), Amelia Earhart (crisply played for comic effect by Amy Adams), and George Armstrong Custer. All get the laughs intended, including Darth Vader who may or may not be historical but is certainly well known to fans of this sort of spoof.

And last, but not least, is the astonishing job done to allow Abraham Lincoln to walk about freely after getting up from the Lincoln Memorial and interacting with others for the grand finale, still keeping his sculptured appearance intact, thanks to Hank Azaria.

The most imaginative sequence of all has the famous B&W photo of a sailor kissing a girl in Times Square on VJ day, magically entered by our hero and his companion (Earhart) so that they become part of the celebrating crowd in that B&W sequence. When Ben Stiller leaves behind his mobile phone the sailor retrieves it, wondering what it can possibly be. Clever bit.

But mostly, it's a sketchy sort of plot that has all of the familiar goings on in the original film repeated in different ways by many of the original characters. And again, the zany antics all revolve around getting hold of that tablet. However, among the newer creations, Hank Azaria does a commendable job of bringing his ancient Pharoah to life. He's a man who wants to bring to life an "Army of the Dead" so that he can use the powerful tablet for his own selfish means. Azaria makes the right decision to play the character in Boris Karloff's voice, even down to the Karloff lisp. He's a standout in the supporting cast.

Kids should love it. Once again, no expense has been spared to bring the Smithsonian and the other museum to life and this time there's a nice twist to the story with the Earhart character endearing herself to Stiller in time to give the ending a romantic feeling. One of the disappointing aspects--Ricky Gervais doesn't get to be as comically effective as he was in the first film.

In many ways, not quite up to the original, but still provides a good measure of entertainment although there are times when almost too much is going on.

More lighthearted fun.

[lewiskendell · 7/10 · 15 May 2010]

I really like this series. I never expected to enjoy the first Night at the Museum as much as I did, but I was pleasantly surprised by how funny it was. It could have just been a phoned-in kid's movie, but it ended up being one of the uncommon live-action family movies that's truly enjoyable for all ages. I think that it and Enchanted are the only two recent movies that fit that bill.

I had heard that Battle of the Smithsonian doesn't quite live up to the original movies, and in some ways, that's true. A few (well, slightly more than a few) of the jokes fall horribly flat, some of the characters are extraneous and unnecessary, and the story has to jump through several hurdles just to provide a reason for this sequel's existence. But with all that, I still really liked it.

Adding Amy Adams and making her a main character was an absolutely brilliant idea. The woman has never been less than perfect in any movie that she's been in, and I can't think of a better actress to play Amelia in a lighthearted way. Plus, an entire trilogy could be dedicated to her butt in those pants. Good Lord! Hank Azaria was fantastic as well, and most of the biggest laughs of the movie involve him. The other new additions are either less noteworthy or not noteworthy at all, but those two alone made Smithsonian worth watching.

I'll admit that Battle of the Smithsonian was a little too busy and too crowded, but I still found myself laughing and laughing. I'd put it only a bit behind the first movie in terms of quality, and on my scale that makes it a success.

The Dumbing Down of American Comedy!

[Turfseer · 1/10 · 4 June 2009]

From the outset. I kept wondering how ordinary security guard schlub Ben Stiller could so easily become an infomercial king, hawking glow in the dark flashlights and earning gobs of money. Then I realized that the screenwriters couldn't just have him start off as a security guard at the museum again because people don't want to see the same thing twice when they pay money for a sequel. Nonetheless, the infomercial angle ends up being dropped like a hot potato and Stiller is back at the museum just like in the original. This time he learns that his pals at the Museum of Natural History are being shipped off to the basement archives at the Smithsonian. To make matters worse, they have to deal with some crazy Pharoah guy who needs to figure out a secret code that will unlock a door to ancient Egypt where all of his nasty minions are just waiting to get loose and wreak havoc upon an unsuspecting world.

There are moments in 'Battle for the Smithsonian' that feel like the script was dispensed with and the action was completely improvised. Take the scene with Stiller trying to break into the basement at the Smithsonian, opposed by the security guard played by Jonah Hill. The joke is that the security guard is a wuss and is easily dissuaded by the more persuasive Stiller. And this is the problem for every character in the film. They are all buffoons in one way or another and carry no moral weight.

The antagonist is played by Hank Azaria who has a one note part as a lisping Pharoah, Kahmunrah. He's joined by three villains from history: Napoleon Bonaparte, Ivan the Terrible and a young Al Capone. The three allies of the Egyptian have virtually nothing to do throughout the film—Bonaparte at one point jumps on top of Stiller, Capone waves a machine gun and Ivan basically scowls.

Stiller's allies fare no better. Owen Wilson plays a miniature cowboy trapped inside an hourglass by Kahmunrah. We're supposed to laugh as he is gradually submerged by the sand inside the hourglass pouring down on top of him. Steve Coogan is Wilson's buddy, playing another 'miniature', this time the famous Roman Emperor 'Octavius'. The Emperor's big moment is when he mistakes a squirrel for a giant creature and rides him back into the Smithsonian thinking he can take on Kahmunrah's army of bad guys. No laughs there! Bill Hader plays General Custer with an inferiority complex: he bemoans the fact that he'll always be remembered for his one bad moment at the Little Big Horn with all his other accomplishments ignored. While Custer is a complete clown, the Indian Princess Sacajawea berates him not for his hatred of Native Americans but rather for his incompetence as a soldier.

It takes a long time before Stiller's love interest, feminist icon Amelia Earhardt, played by Amy Adams, does what she does best: i.e. fly a plane. But most of the time she's nothing more than the feeble love interest in the film—chasing Stiller around, acting a bit spunky and providing moral support. Other wasted parts include Robin Williams as Teddy Roosevelt (in dual incarnations as Teddy on horseback and as a talking bust), a completely forgettable Attila the Hun and a bunch of grunting Neanderthals.

The plot is quite disappointing. After Kahmunrah finds out the 'secret code' from a Bobblehead Albert Einstein and unleashes the forces of evil, they all inexplicably run back into the portal after a giant Abraham Lincoln (roused from his sleep at the Lincoln Memorial) confronts them. Lincoln is reduced to an awkward giant, more like Lurch of the old Adams Family TV series than the great statesman of American history.

'Battle' was written mainly for the special effects department to show their stuff. There are a few clever visual effects when famous paintings come to life (most notable is when Stiller and Adams jump into the famous scene on VJ Day with the sailor and the nurse making out in Times Square). Rodan's 'Thinker' comes to life as a wise-talking Guido and there are three angel statues singing updated rap versions of r&b classics. All of this is nice to look at but it's simply not very funny.

I have never been a big fan of Ben Stiller but here he outdoes himself in a role that relies mainly on slapstick humor. There is nothing clever or witty about Battle for the Smithsonian. It represents a further dumbing down of American comedy. And the producers here should heed the old admonition—what goes around, comes around! Hopefully Kahmunrah will be putting a new curse on them in the future—at the box office, where it hurts!

A Nutshell Review: Night at the Museum 2

[DICK STEEL · 7/10 · 23 May 2009]

I didn't particularly enjoy my first Night at the Museum as I thought it had tried really hard to be funny, and going from set piece to set piece from within the New York Museum of Natural History, taking a while before it got its engine cranking. For me, the funniest Ben Stiller comedies had been the relatively more adult fare like There's Something About Mary, The Heartbreak Kid and such, but this family friendly fare surprised me, and belonged to the rare few sequels which actually surpassed the original.

This Battle of the Smithsonian (Singapore opted to drop this subtitle for the more idiot-proof numerical "2") has Shawn Levy going back to the director's chair, and written by the returning team of Robert Ben Garant and Thomas Lennon, who seemed more at ease this time round in bringing back the characters created some 3 years ago, while infusing a lot more of new folks without breaking a sweat. For those like me who believe that bigger is not a certainty it's better, this night at the museum proved that it can be delivered and done so with more fun as well.

If you can get past the idea that in 3 years, Ben Stiller's night guard Larry Daley is now a CEO of a company making household products, and from time to time still visits his old friends back at the Museum such as Octavius of Rome (Steve Coogan), cowboy Jedediah Smith (Owen Wilson), Attila the Hun (Patrick Gallgher), Teddy Roosevelt (Robin Williams), "dum-dum" Easter Island Head (Brad Garrett), the skeletal T-Rex and the mischievous monkey, whom we all have gotten acquainted with in the first film. Dr McPhee (Ricky Gervais) now informs him that these old exhibits will now be archived in Washington's Smithsonian Institute (hence the title), but Monkey decides to bring along Ahkmenrah's magical golden tablet responsible for their nocturnal coming to life, hence setting up the new adventures for Larry when he receives a distress call from Jedediah.

Played out like a rescue mission, Larry becomes embroiled in new adventures now set in Washington, where a larger footprint of exhibits offers a lot more artifacts coming to life and providing some entertainment, ranging from pop culture references to Hank Azaria hamming it up as chief villain Egyptian Pharaoh Kahmunrah who speaks with a nasty lisp. Joining his villainous plan to take over the world (with possession of the tablet Larry now holds) are historical bad guys like Ivan the Terrible (Christopher Guest), Napoleon Bonaparte (Alan Chabat), Al Capone (Jon Bernthal) and his posse of gangsters who happen to be in black and white.

On the side of the good guys, we have the gigantic Abraham Lincoln and The Thinker (also voiced by Azaria), a not-too-bright General Custer (Bill Hader), Sailor Joey Motorola (Jay Baruchel), an American Gothic painting, some bobbing-heads Albert Einstein (Eugene Levy) and singing Jonas Brothers cupids. Amy Adam's sprightly Amelia Earhart provides for some strong feminine influence opposite Larry Daley, and an angle for a romantic subplot too.

It's not much of a plot as well this time round, but the larger scale provides an avenue of the night time activities to go beyond the four walls of one museum. This time round it doesn't try too hard to be funny because it actually is, with Hank Azaria stealing plenty of thunder each time he comes on screen with his Kahmunrah almost always screaming. The scenes he shares with Stiller were some of the best here, especially with the insane dialogue coupled with their comical timing that would provide me reason enough to watch this film again.

Other than that, this new outing at the museum allows for a perfect family outing to the cinemas, being family friendly as it is with nary a swear word or violence, which is cartoony of course. Predictable but has its moments, thanks to the expanded cast of familiar faces, and new ones to the franchise (yes, I predict there's enough bandwidth for another round!)

Fun, Adventurous but not that big of a deal

[bearfaceproductions · 5/10 · 22 May 2009]

Honestly, I knew that this movie wasn't a big of a deal from the start. The movie is a little action packed and somewhat fun, but in comedy this movie fails. I did get a few chuckles but not much else and I barley heard the audience laugh. This movie's plot is not that good neither. However the movie had some new things to offer, which were very well made. The special effects were very well made, this was one of the reasons that this movie was fun. The children might find this movie very fun since its made especially for them. Ben Stller should stop doing these movies because the first one was the one that had many unexpected things but the plot in this movie is very well known and the ending is very obvious.If you plan on watching this movie, take the kids and leave your adulthood at door but don't expect much else. I still think that the first movie was better than this one.

Great Film!

[mg200963 · 10/10 · 20 May 2009]

We went and saw the Night at the Museum premier yesterday in Tampere, Finland. The action in the museum was non stop. It didn't drag and it was interesting. Amy Adams as Amelia Earhart looked great in her flight pants. The action was non-stop. One good aspect was that it t was completely clean, for example no fart jokes or weird adult humor that pretty much ruins it for kids and makes the parents feel uncomfortable when it is on the screen. It was age limit 11 which means 9 with a parent in Finland. This was probably because of violence when they are chasing each other through the museum and some of the characters which appear briefly in the movie which real little ones may fin scary – but no where near as scary as Valdmort in Harry Potter. It featured many technical aspects of the Smithsonian so in addition to being entertaining, people go away with the take-away of learning something new. Great film! Go see it with the kids or with yourself.

Amy Adams saves the day

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 18 October 2013]

Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) has moved on from his night watchman job. The American Museum of Natural History is closed for renovations. The exhibits are moved to the Smithsonian in Washington where they must battle the forces of evil Pharaoh Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria) for the Tablet of Ahkmenrah.

Basically it's a story looking for an excuse to bring in new characters and a new location. A lot of the charm is missing mainly due to the fact that many of the characters are separated and reduced in role. There is one great addition. Amy Adams is fantastic as Amelia Earhart and she makes a great duo with Ben Stiller.

Has it's moments, but it's really a heavily disappointing and inferior sequel.

[callanvass · 5/10 · 19 April 2010]

Battle of the Smithsonian is by no means a terrible movie, but compared to all the hilarious antics of the 1st, and all the freshness and originality, it disappointed me heavily. The Museum they picked is not as insightful or magical as the one in the original, bigger does not always mean better, and I didn't care for most of the new characters they picked. Owen Wilson's Jedediah is more irritating than anything else now, and Robin William's witty portrayal of Teddy Roosevelt is sadly wasted for the most part. Ben Stiller is slumming it here, on auto pilot so to speak, and everything just seems so crammed together with not that much heart or effort into it, but the effects definitely were. Amy Adam's "Amelia Earhart" and Hank Azaria's Kahmunrah were probably the best characters in the film in my opinion, I laughed my ass off when Hank made fun of Darth Vader. This is a fine example of where they should leave well enough alone, Night At The Museum didn't need a sequel, and while this wasn't awful, I'll stick with the original.

Performances. Ben Stiller is OK and has some funny bits, but he's on auto pilot here a lot of the time, and I didn't sense the same enthusiasm I did in the 1st with him. Amy Adams is great fun as Amelia Earnhart, and I enjoyed every second she was on-screen. Owen Wilson is annoying here in my opinion, and while I enjoyed him a lot of the time in the original, here he got on my nerves. Hank Azaria is hilarious as Kahmunrah, he stole a lot of the scenes he was in. Robin Williams is wasted as Teddy, but shines with the scenes he has. Some of the crew from the original like Steve Coogan, Ricky Gervais, and Jake Cherry come back, but are given little to do.

Bottom line. This had its moments, but I was really quite disappointed with the overall quality of it. It just seemed half-baked in my opinion, and just made to make some quick cash. Worth a watch on a lazy day, but I'd go get the original.

5 1/2 /10

An inferior sequel, but good children's fare

[Beginthebeguine · 24 May 2009]

Much of the charm of Night at the Museum I was the everyman quality of the Ben Stiller character; Larry Daly. A dreamer with a good heart, but empty pockets. When he gives up on his dream of being an inventor he takes a job as a night watchman at the NYC museum. The protagonist is clearly set and made identifiable to the audience and although there are "misunderstandings" between him and the museums pieces that come to life, they are after all only brought to life for a few hours every night by a magic amulet. The antagonists are real people (his fellow museum guards) who once again try to make him fail and he has to face his failures to succeed in saving the day. Classic !

The sequel has none of that. As the museum pieces (without the fossil tyrannosaurus and Teddy Roosevelt; perhaps for financial reasons of the Production company) are being removed from display and sent to permanent storage in the vaults of the Smithsonian in Washington,DC.. Stiller's Character Larry Daly, now a successful inventor of late night infomercial products, decides to see if he can intercede. Failing he returns to work only to get a frantic telephone call from tiny Jedediah Smith (Owen Wilson returning) that Kahmunrah (the wonderful Hank Azaria) is trying to steal the amulet and take over the world (which doesn't seem very threatening since he will again become inanimate at dawn). Daly decides to go to Washington and see if he can help.

With the help of his son (who really plays no part in the story) via cellphone he makes his way into the Smithsonian (after a semi-funny exchange with its security guard), but soon looses a clear signal and is on his own. Visually, the rest of the movie is pretty cool and there is a walking balloon dog, some pictures that come to life blah blah blah, and Amelia Earhart(who is missing the real Ms. Earhart's gap-tooth smile and has perfect Hollywood teeth) played by Amy Adams. For a moment or two they try to create some romantic friction between Larry and Amelia, but even the writers must have seen this as ridiculous and abandon the idea and bring the actress back at the end as a look alike to try and salvage the plot point.

Azaria is wonderful in what is a very one dimensional character, but the play between Stiller and him is lost in what is just bad script. His captains (a black and white Al Capone, Napoleon and a poorly used Christopher Guest who is unrecognizable as Ivan the Terrible) have little or nothing to do.

The worst part is SNL's Bill Hader as Custer which could have been a funny character, but the actor doesn't seem to find the role and the part just slows down the action and gets in the way of jokes. Sacajawea is back and just stands around doing nothing and Robin William's part is just a glorified walk on with no jokes, or none that are funny.

As I said visually this film is alive and there are many sight gags that will grab children's attention and tickle some adult funny bones too. I love the squirrel, the monkey's and the bobbing head Einstein dolls. There are flying jets, a giant Lincoln (voiced by Azaria also)and perhaps the semblance of a plot, as short sighted as it is, that pulls the story together. Stiller's Daly saves the day, has Earhart fly everyone back to NYC (in less than an hour in a 1920's one prop airplane-yeah right!), sells his company and donates the money to the Museum of Natural History in NYC which now will have later hours so that the museum pieces can walk and talk with the real, living people. I give it a 6 for the enjoyment the children will get from it, even though the story is just silly even for fantasy.

As with so many tent pole productions it relies on the previous movie, but rushed to production with a poor script that was really not thought out that well, but where would one go with the story from the end of the last film... Into our pockets to try and pull out a few more dollars on what was most likely a used up idea after the last film, but I think I hear the faint call for Night at the Museum III The Louvre where Daly has a romance with the Mona Lisa and help Aphrodite find her arms.