DVDpendence . videophile
NIGHT
AT THE
MUSEUM
2 (Battle
Of The
Smithsonian)
With
Ben
Stiller,
Amy
Adams,
Hank
Azaria,
Owen
Wilson,
Robin
Williams,
Christopher
Guest,
Roicky
Gervais,
Steve
Coogan
Written
by Robert
Ben
Garant
&
Thomas
Lennon
Directed
by Shawn
Levy
You
would
be ignorant
to think
that
this
franchise
would
close
on its
first
chapter
after
the
hills
of cash
it raked
in (although
they
claimed
they
weren't
too
sure
if it
would
bea
hit,
resulting
in the
original
sets
being
dismantled...).
So,
Stiller
is back
as Larry,
the
museum
night
guard
who
launched
into
a wild
adventure
when
a magic
Egyptian
tablet
brought
the
exhibits
to life
at nightfall.
Larry
is now
a wealthy
success
(inventing
things
like
the
glow
in the
dark
torch),
and
is no
longer
a guard
at the
New
York
museum.
But,
his
beloved
museum
friends
are
being
shoved
into
storage
in the
vast
Smithsonian
underground
facility
in Washington,
in favour
of virtual
3D projections.
However,
the
naughty
monkey
steals
the
tablet,
and
Kahmunrah
(the
nasty
brother
of the
Egyptian
prince
Ahkmenrah)
returns
to life
at the
vast
Smithsonian
with
a plot
to take
over
the
world
along
with
his
resurrected
army.
Larry
has
to retrieve
the
tablet
and
save
the
day
(as
one
would
come
to expect!),
resulting
in an
array
of historic
figures
coming
to life,
including
Kahmunrah’s
recruited
bad
guys
Ivan
The
Terrible,
Al Capone
and
Napoleon,
allying
to thwart
Larry.
Along
with
his
old
pals
and
a host
of new
ones
(including
Amelia
Earhart,
Col.
Custer
and
a range
of inanimate
objects
like
Abraham
Lincoln’s
statue,
a huge
octopus
etc.),
Larry
has
one
serious
night
ahead
of him.
While
this
is frivolous
entertainment
aimed
at youngsters,
with
the
key
players
making
a fortune,
the
fact
that
kids
are
reportedly
spurred
on to
visit
museums
after
seeing
these
movies
cannot
be a
bad
thing,
as we
progressively
retract
into
our
virtual
shells,
not
going
out
to experience
tangible
educational
phenomena.
While
a single
disc
release,
it contains
a nice
batch
of extras
from
an all-round
behind-the-scenes
look
including
interviews
with
most
cast
&
crew
(from
actors
Ben
Stiller,
Hank
Azaria
and
Ricky
Gervais,
to director
Shawn
Levy,
FX crew
and
more).
Historical
Confession:
Famous
Last
Words
has
some
of the
actors
speaking
in character
about
themselves
and
the
other
historical
figures
- mostly
made
up drivel;
and
Primate
Prima
Donnas
looks
at the
talented
monkeys
Crystal
and
Squirt.
3
/ C
- Paul
Blom
1
2
3
4 5
6
A -
B -
C
