Night at the Museum (2006)

I just saw this movie on the big screen (a must -- though we missed the IMAX screen due to highway construction). (I had to see Rexy in action. Fetch, boy!) This movie is a strong entry in the special effects and feel-good categories and a positive entry in the moral-of-the-story category too. Lots of laughs, lots of fun! I esp. enjoyed Dick Van Dyke and Mickey Rooney. Ricky Gervais as the inarticulate museum curator was a stitch. Owen Wilson can do no wrong. Ben Stiller plays Larry, a putz of a single father who can't hold down a job much less his self-respect. (Not funny so I like the sequel better.) He's conflicted (but desperate) about accepting a job as a museum night guard -- and anyway, the job is pushed on him since he's about to become the disgruntled retirees' patsy. He struggles through his nocturnal predicament and habitual malaise ("Yeah, no, I got it") until he realizes that he must get personally involved to respect others (and himself) and to make a difference. The humor comes from the initial premise of museum exhibits that come to life at night plus the wrangling between miniature cowboy Jedidiah (Owen Wilson) and miniature centurion Octavius (Steve Coogan); the human touch comes from the breezy Jedidiah and the noble Teddy Roosevelt (Robin Williams) who pines for Sacagawea (Mizuo Peck). The moral of the story is about the courage of persistence, of being a great person in the daily tasks, of faithfulness and making a difference no matter where you find yourself. There's a good lesson in book learning and museum learning too, which can't hurt in our days when "test your knowledge of Spongebob Squarepants trivia!" (a real Nick commercial seen today) is too often the norm. This is a fine family film -- with a PG rating for bits of rough language and battle violence -- that may have you dancing at the end too. 4.5 stars. (1-13-07 updated 5-29-09)