I can’t really say that I was a huge fan of Night of the Museum. Sure it had its funny moments but a comic masterpiece is was not. It did have a side benefit of getting more kids interested in history which may be the film’s greatest lasting legacy. While I was sure that a sequel would follow (don’t they always?), it was difficult to envision how a sequel would be anything other than the same film in a different locale. Well, the sequel has arrived on Blu-ray. Will it prove to be an improvement on the first film or simply more of the same?
Film
Unfortunately, I found Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian to simply be a rehash of the first film only in a different location. Yes, they are some new characters added and some nice new special effects, but the film is ultimately a redo of the first.
The film stars Ben Stiller as Larry Daley, who has moved on from the night watchman at New York’s Natural History Museum to being an infomercial kingpin as the inventor of the glo in the dark flashlight, which seems to be an infomercial and sales sensation. He walks into the museum one night as the exhibits are being packed up and moved to storage at the Smithsonian in Washington, to be replaced with interactive computer based displays, which will break up the old gang for good. However, the troublesome monkey makes the mistake of bringing the golden Egyptian tablet which enables the exhibits to come to life with him which brings the exhibits at the Smithsonian to life, including an evil Pharaoh, who along with Ivan the Terrible, Napoleon and Al Capone, intend on taking control of the museum and then the world.
When Larry learns what is happening, he travels to Washington save the day, capture the tablet and return his friends back to their rightful place in New York. Much like the original, the sequel features an absurd plot that veers all over the place and is often times a special effects film in search of a plot. Yes, the various paintings in the Smithsonian coming to life is an interesting idea. I just wish that better use was made of it.
The film returns Robin Williams as Teddy Roosevelt, Owen Wilson as the miniature cowboy and Ricky Gervais as the museum curator and adds Hank Azaria as the evil Pharaoh. For me, the best new addition to the cast and the best part of the film, is Amy Adams as Emelia Earhart , who brings some much needed sassiness and freshness to the role. The fact that she looks great in those tight pants is an added bonus. If you loved the original, I have do doubt that you will love the sequel and can recommend this release to you. For the rest of you, I would recommend this film as a rental only.
Video
I must say that I was just a tad disappointed by the video quality on this release. This encode certainly has a lot going for it, with a richly saturated and fairly natural color palette. I say fairly, as the overall color palette has a bit of a golden hue which is most noticeable on the flesh tones of the various actors. Black levels are deep and solid.
Film grain, which is fairly noticeable, seems to be well preserved. Where this encode fell short for me was in the level of clarity and detail which are a couple of notches below the best looking Blu-ray releases. In particular, I found the level of facial detail to be a bit lacking, looking smoothed over just a tad. While I did not find the background details and textures to be smoothed over, those areas also lacked the degree of detail and clarity of the better looking Blu-ray releases. All in all, Night at the Museum Battle of the Smithsonian is a good looking film that lacks the level of overall detail of the top tier Blu-ray releases.
Audio
While I had some issues with the video presentation, there is really little to find fault with on the audio side. The level of the overall audio fidelity is quite good, with a smooth and rich sound with very good imaging and transparency. Dynamics are excellent as well with deep and powerful bass. The dialogue track was also very well recorded and well placed in the mix. The surrounds are used fairly aggressively and effectively during the entire movie, creating a nice immersive sound mix.
Sound and panning effects are well placed in the sound field, with the various plane sequences sounding particularly effective. I just wish that the surrounds were used a bit more aggressively than they were here to create an even more immersive sound experience. It is only on the level of ultimate immersiveness where the sound design here falls just a smidge short of the very best sounding films.
Special Features
If you are looking for a ton of extras, Night at the Museum: Battle for the Smithsonian is the release for you. This is a three disc release with disc one containing the Blu-ray edition of the film along with the extras. Disc 2 is a DVD copy of the film. Disc 3 contains a digital copy of the film which is compatible with Macs and PCs and portable video devices.
The extras include a gag reel and 12 deleted scenes including an alternate ending to the film. The extras also contain several featurettes on the making of the film, including “Curators of Comedy: Behind the Scenes With Ben Stiller”, a Museum Scavenger Hunt Game, “Phinding Pharaoh With Hank Azaria”, “Cherub Bootcamp”, “Historical Confessions: Famous Last Words”"Museum Magic: Entering The World of the Photograph” and “Cavemen Conversations: Survival of the Wittiest”.
Of these extras, the best are the deleted scenes, the featurette with Ben Stiller and director Shawn Levy on the making of the film and the behind the scenes look at bringing the photograph and artwork at the Smithsonian to life. The one extra to avoid is the Cavemen Conversations, where the three cavemen featured in the film do nothing but grunt answers to questions “posed” to them by a female voice off screen. That particular extra was a complete waste of time. The extras also include two audio commentaries along with Monkey Mischief, featuring Dexter and Able, the two monkey’s featured in the film.
Final Thoughts
While I found Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian to be essentially a rehash of the first film, I have no doubt that fans of the first film will love the sequel and will love this release. For the rest of you, I would rate this release as a rental only.
