Spring Break
Stiller's 'Night' refreshingly fun
Actor finds comedic perfection through absurd, chaotic museum magic
Liz White
Issue date: 1/22/07 Section: The Mix
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4 out of 5 Stars
It's Academy Awards season, and the dramas are playing by the dozens at local theaters. But when scanning the newspaper pages looking for a lighthearted flick for a night out, Ben Stiller's newest film, "Night at the Museum," is the way to go.
It might look like a movie for kids, but "Night at the Museum" offers a complete package for a kid of any age.
Stiller plays Larry Daley, a middle-aged father who has failed all his past attempts to find a career he loves and settles on a job as the new night security guard at the American Museum of Natural History in hopes of saving his relationship with his son. When Larry takes the job he is unaware of the museum's secret - at night, everything in the museum comes to life because of an ancient Egyptian curse.
From the giant Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton that he calls "Rexie," Theodore Roosevelt (played by Robin Williams), a group of miniatures from the American West and ancient Rome to Attila the Hun and Christopher Columbus, the museum is a hotbed of history, conflict and humor.
As the new night guard, replacing the three men in the older guard team, (Dick Van Dyke, Mickey Rooney and Bill Cobbs) Larry has to learn how to keep the exhibits from getting out of the museum and, at the same time, keep everything from going haywire inside. If anything gets out, as one poor caveman does, they turn to dust at sunrise.
This conflict will keep the audience rolling with laughter. Stiller keeps his usual humor style, while Rooney, Williams and Owen Wilson, who plays the miniature cowboy Jedediah, add genius comedic back up.
Despite the chaotic humor, the film is packed with intelligent wit any history buff will love.
Larry has to improve his poor knowledge of natural history to keep order as he tries to communicate with Sacagawea and keep Attila from pulling him apart limb by limb.
To make Larry's hectic life more difficult as he tries to impress his disappointed son, the old night guards attempt to rob the museum of its magic.
Larry and the other museum characters have to save the night.
"Night at the Museum" is an hour and a half of fun for anyone. Don't let the childish packaging keep you from going to see this good-hearted flick. It is a surprising gem of a comedy.
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