Night at the Museum

By Christopher Hivner (Dallastown, PA USA)

Ben Stiller's character is an inventor whose ideas never quite work out. In order to provide more stability for his son, and to prove to the boy that he isn't just a loser, he takes a job as night watchman at the Natural History Museum. He discovers on his first night that after sundown, everything in the museum comes to life. Just as he's learning to control the ensuing chaos, he finds out he's being framed by the three guards who are being forced into retirement because they don't want to retire.

This was a very inventive movie with a great cast. It was a treat to see Dick Van Dyke and Mickey Rooney again and they played their parts with gusto. Stiller did a nice job as a good guy who just needs something in his life to go right. The effects are good and there are laughs throughout, many of them from Owen Wilson as a cowboy in a diarama who has delusions of being more. Robin Williams is excellent as Teddy Roosevelt who tries to help Stiller cope with the madness around him. I also loved the T-rex who just wanted to play fetch with one of its rib bones. I wasn't really expecting much from Night at the Museum, but was pleasantly surprised. I really enjoyed this film.