Night at the Museum 2

Night at the Museum 2 – Larry’s museum exhibit friends who come to life at night are being shipped off to the Smithsonian. As he struggles to find them and rescue them, the evil Kahmunrah comes to life and fights to steal the magical seal that can open a portal to the underworld. Can Larry and his new exhibit allies fight back in time?

Night at the Museum 2 (2009) – Director: Shawn Levy

By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21365979

Rating: PG

Running Length: 105 mins

Starring: Ben Stiller, Amy Adams, Hank Azaria

Genre: Comedy, Action/Adventure

REVIEW: ‘NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM 2 : BATTLE OF THE SMITHSONIAN’

Ben Stiller and (some of) the gang are back for another high energy visual feast. The magic of what happens once night descends over places you’d normally only see during the light of day is something that clearly connected with audiences. The gaggle of ‘coming to life’ exhibits in a museum is something that can be expanded on endlessly, and so they did in ‘Night At The Museum 2’.

For all intents and purposes this sequel is another run through of the same formula. This time Larry has become a successful businessman. The money and status don’t replace the connection he felt as a night guard though and he is dismayed to find out that several of the exhibits (who are magically brought to life at night) are being shipped out. Thus we get a change of setting and a new cast of characters to enjoy. Throw in a flamboyant baddie in the form of Hank Azaria’s evil Egyptian ruler combined with the ability to go inside any paintings or photographs, and the movie doubles down on it’s winning concept.

If you enjoyed ‘Night At The Museum’ then you will enjoy ‘Night At The Museum 2’ because it’s essentially the same film. The addition of Amy Adams as iconic confident pilot Amelia Earhart adds some verve even if she does have to go through the Hollywood ‘strong female’ tickbox of ‘slap him then kiss him’ to show her independence. The action finale is satisfying. With such numbers of weird and wonderful items brought to life the colourful fun on display is bound to entertain children on any rainy day.

CONTENT: IS ‘NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM 2’ SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN?

When Larry gets to the Smithsonian he reaches to touch an exhibit. A guard stops him and the scene becomes the two of them insulting each other. Both use their flashlights in a manner like a gun, with Larry pulling the batteries out and throwing them aside like unloading a gun. One character is pulled into a headlock as the argument escalates.

When Larry finds Kahmunrah in the Smithsonian, Kahmunrah threatens him by saying “I will kill you and your friends in the blink of an eye.” Larry is not particularly scared by this, however.

Larry jumps inside paintings and pictures. Once he is inside the famous ‘end of World War II’ picture with a serviceman kissing a woman bent over backwards, he ends up kissing her instead. She yells “Call me!” after him but as this was an unsolicited kiss there may be a conversation you wish to have about consent.

One character becomes trapped in an hourglass which slowly fills up with sand. Later, his head sinks below the surface level for a few moments before events change.

Amelia Earhart slaps Larry around the face twice in a show of dominance.

Once Kahmunrah is able to open a portal we see through it a foreboding scene with dark clouds. Bird faced warriors fly through the portal. This is a short scene before switching to an exciting battle.

There are two monkeys who both slap Larry and he slaps them back. This a minutes long comedy scene with lots of slapping but may be imitable.

Jed is tiny in size compared to Larry and Larry has him in his breast pocket after the climactic battle. When Larry hugs Amelia, Jed says “I don’t know about you guys but I just got to second base.”

CAN I SEE A CLIP?

VERDICT: IS ‘NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM 2’ FOR KIDS?

Such a high energy movie is custom built for children and the comedy performances are plenty to keep adults amused as well. We struggled to even comment on enough scenes to fill out this review and found little to be worried about. Aside from some imitable behaviour we would recommend ‘Night At The Museum 2: Battle Of The Smithsonian’ as suitable for all ages.

• Violence: 1/5 (Mostly slapping. One headlock)
• Emotional Distress: 1/5 (Worrying about the safety of characters)
• Fear Factor: 1/5 (The otherworld portal and bird soldiers may scare young children)
• Sexual Content: 1/5 (Kissing and affection)
• Bad Language: 0/5
• Dialogue: 1/5 (Mild threats from Kahmunrah but these are mostly comically undercut)
• Other Notes: Deals with themes of finding what makes you happy, sticking by your friends, standing up to bullies, being brave to save those you care about, and keeping history alive)

Words by Mike Record