Movie Review: Night at the Museum 2 – Battle of the Smithsonian (2009)

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A few days ago I took my family to see the Night at the Museum sequel as we all enjoyed and own the first movie. The previews of the film looked pretty good, and a I must admit I have been a big fan of Hank Azaria from The Simpsons, Mystery Men, Along Came Polly and just about any other movie he is in, he does some of the funniest cameo’s.

I will tell my audience that the movie was enjoyable for both the adults and the children, though it lacked some of the magic the first film had, it made up for it in creative style. Some of the best parts of the film were the intricate special effects like having black and white mobsters involved in full color scenes, the characters getting pulled into a living and moving painting with its own alternate time still ongoing was especially interesting.

All of the best characters are there, though Robin Williams has only a few small roles in the sequel. Welcome is the new character Amelia Earhart played by Amy Adams who does a great job with the role. Many of her films portray her as the same innocent, kind of aloof and clueless stereotype, but in this movie her character has bravado, style and reminds me a little bit like a female Indiana Jones.

Hank Azaria plays an over the top role with Kahmunrah which is so absurdly funny, it was never meant for you to take it seriously. In fact the whole movie is like watching a parody and a spoof of silliness as the characters interact with each other. The story is a little disjointed with the basic plot being the tablet is stolen by the capuchan monkey from the first film while the museum statues and artifacts are moved to federal storage at the Smithsonian.

Ben Stiller plays a much more confident and a little less bumbly version of his former character, steady, successful but missing the excitement from an animated museum he finds out that life is more than just simply being successful and making money, you have to enjoy what you do to really find happiness.

The movie breezed by and was very entertaining at least as enjoyable as the original and it is always great seeing Owen Wilson in any of Ben Stiller’s films, the witty comments, banter and friendship between Octavius and Jedediah are some of the funniest moments in the film.

Night at the Museum 2 - Battle of the Smithsonian (2009) rating  

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (Single-Disc Edition)

PG (Parental Guidance Suggested), DVD, Amy Adams, Ben Stiller

• $19.98 List Price
• $8.75 at Amazon.com

Description History is larger than life—and twice as funny—in this monumental comedy sequel that’s “better than the original” (At the Movies)! Ben Stiller leads an all-star cast (including Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Hank Azaria and Robin Williams) as Larry Daley, a former night watchman at the Museum of Natural History, where the exhibits come to life after dark.... Read moreAmazon.... Read more