Wacky and overly silly comedies may not be for everyone, but Night at the Museum from 2006 is a movie that should delight anyone with its mixture of family comedy and fantasy situations.
Ben Stiller and Robin Williams in Night at the Museum / Picture Credit: 20th Century Studios
The film follows Larry Daley (Ben Stiller), a single father who is struggling to keep down a job and impress his young son, Nick (Jake Cherry). After some struggles, Larry finally lands a job as a nightguard at the Museum of Natural History; which sounds simple to Larry, until his first shift arrives...
On his first night, the three former nightguards, Cecil (Dick Van Dyke), Gus (Mickey Rooney), and Reginald (Bill Cobbs) show Larry around the museum; they take him on a tour and give him some very confusing and strange advice, causing Larry to think the trio are playing a joke on him.
However, once the sun sets and Larry is left alone, things begin to change. While Larry wanders around the museum thinking his job is pretty easy, he notices that the T-Rex statue is missing...
From then on, hilarity ensues as the whole museum comes to life. Exhibits are walking down the halls, from lions to political and historical figures. Despite Larry having instructions, he still finds his new job harder than he ever thought.
Night at the Museum is a film with a somewhat silly plot, but it’s one that works very well; the three former nightguards plan to steal something very important from the museum, and while Larry and his new friends try to stop him, he seems to become a better person.
The comedy from this movie comes from many places, but the cast is definitely a huge part of that. With Stiller in the lead role as a somewhat overacted but still likable character, the film also stars Robin Williams as Theodore Roosevelt, Owen Wilson as cowboy Jedediah, Steve Coogan as Octavius, and Carla Gugino as lovable history buff Rebecca.
Stiller may overact the role, but this movie would not be anywhere near as fun without that fact. His eccentric behaviour works well in the film’s setting as, of course, a museum coming to life would derive a pretty dramatic reaction.
It is also rather interesting to see all the different exhibits the museum hosts; there is an African animals section, an Egyptian section, even an Easter Island head who speaks rather loud and slow. This shows how impressive the set design and production is, as there are so many moving parts to this movie.
The characters bounce off each other so well, and perhaps the most notable relationship is that between Jedediah and Octavius; the pair are constantly at each other’s throats about their size (even though they are both miniatures), and always insult one another’s intelligence or personality.
This relationship in particular is significant and funny enough to make an impact on the entire film and make it even better. Their verbal jousting never gets old, and to see them go from enemies to friends by the end of the movie is rather endearing and somewhat rewarding as they still keep that sibling rivalry-type relationship, but turn it into a positive.
The film has a whole lot of comedic dialogue and physical comedy that invokes some genuine laughs, and Larry is a great lead character as, while he is mainly running in panic and chasing a monkey around the museum, he is a caring character who wants to save the lives of those within the museum.
Night at the Museum is a wonderful wacky comedy that is perfect for a family night in. The humour is very well done, the exhibits are interestin, and, Larry’s chaotic attitude is hilarious and something everyone should see.
Watch the trailer for Night of the Museum below:
Written by Melissa, who you can follow on Twitter @melissajournal
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Tagged in Ben Stiller Owen Wilson Robin Williams Steve Coogan