Movie Review: Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

Ben Stiller is back helping his friends but when the board decides to modernize this means off to the Smithsonian storage for many of the exhibits that magically come to life at night.

Film making 13/25
Video 21/25
Audio 18/25
Bonus Features 18/25
Total 70/100

Ben Stiller is back but not as the night guard in Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian where we continue the adventures of the exhibits who magically come to life. In a no surprise sequel Ben Stiller returns but some of the charm and even Robin Williams's talent is missing from this edition.

Robin Williams does appear in the film but more as a cameo appearance with Ben Stiller as Larry Daley and Amy Adams as Amelia Earhart in the lead roles. The plot is thin but many of the exhibits are being packed from the American Museum of Natural History in New York and moved to storage at the Smithsonian in Washington D.C.

This means whichever exhibits end up with the Tablet of Akmenrah will be the lucky ones as this tablet is the magical amulet that brings them to life at night. Some of the exhibits including Theodore Roosevelt played by Robin Williams and some others are being left behind with the tablet.

The board of directors of the museum has decided to modernize the museum and are going with holograms and projectors to give a more updated story of the displays. When the displays are being moved Dexter steals the tablet as it was being left behind at the museum so most of the displays going to the Smithsonian would no longer come to life.

Larry Daley gets involved when he visits the museum just before the exhibits are sent to the archives but he no longer works there. He now spends his days selling his inventions on infomercials; the glow in the dark flashlight is one.

When Larry hears that most of the exhibits are being sent to the Smithsonian he jumps in and tries to stop the move but the board has made their decision. When the exhibits are moved the monkey Dexter takes the tablet so the fun starts at the Smithsonian when Larry goes there to find out what is going on to get the tablet back.

When the exhibits at the Smithsonian come to life some bad guys led by the evil Pharaoh Kahmunrah, brother to the tablet owner Ahkmenrah, gathers other bad guys and wants to take over the Smithsonian. Larry and Amelia work to stop the group of evil come to life statues of the Egyptian, Al Capone, Napoleon Bonaparte and Ivan the Terrible from opening the door to the land of the dead.

Opening this portal will allow the Pharaohs army to come to earth but when that even happens they are such wimps that the Abraham Lincoln statue from the memorial frightens them. The plot is not nearly as original or interesting as the original Night at the Museum and just has that sequel feel from start to end.

The almost missing Theodore Roosevelt who does a few lines at the beginning and another couple at the end is probably the main disappointment but the whole film has that its really just missing something feel from start to finish. Gone is the cute new discovery of magical happenings and the man finally finding his true calling from the first film.

Battle of the Smithsonian does have Larry trying to find his way back to his true calling but the first time I discovered he was an inventor and owner of his own company a huge question arose. Why would a person who has discovered a magical tablet that brings statues and manikins to life leave them to sell flashlights?

The films plot is not that great and leaves a lot tob e desired so this film takes on the usual and all too familiar less than welcome sequel. The films video and audio are good with a bit of a surprise with the video actually out shining the audio.

The video is well done with its Blu-ray transfer turning out excellent with great color and very, very good dark and shadow. Much of the film is dark with quick transitions to and light with characters chasing around the night around the museum and inside in dark locations.

This means the film has to do good with dark and black, shadows and the transition between light and dark that really does look great. They have done some CGI, on a squirrel mostly, which does not look nearly as good as the previous work with the dinosaur which is another thing that is missing except for some more cameo like appearances.

Surround sound is well done with English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio and audio in general that sounds great but the movie just does not have all that much action to bring out the master audio. Audio is well done but lacking in that overall oomph with sound effects and surround but the music and orchestra helps to fill in what's missing.

The Blu-ray edition contains the Blu-ray copy as well as a DVD of the film and the digital copy for loading onto a computer. There is a host of bonus content on the Blu-ray disc including your usual kid's game and gag reel that films like this usually have.

The bonus features that are worthwhile are the Secret Doors and Scientists: Behind-the-Scenes of The American Museum of Natural History and a making of feature to see the behind the scenes of the Smithsonian but a few others are worthwhile to watch at least once.

The usual commentary tracks, making of and other features are here but many are not funny or just self congratulatory for a film that turns out to be mediocre with a few shining moments. The bonus content here is a mixed bag with more of the watch once and never see again so the Blu-ray edition is worthwhile if you really want to own the movie.

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian is a decent film but more like the usual movie sequel that doesn't live up to the first film but is worth watching at least once. There are a few good scenes and some of the extras, especially the behind the scenes at the museum, is well worth owning the Blu-ray version but a rental might be in order first.