So much average

One of my all time favorites.

Best movie ever!

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

There have been a lot (well, nearly all) negative reviews about this movie, because I get a feeling the reviewers have missed a critical point... charm. And this comes from Amy Adams' portrayal of Amelia Earheart. I could not find a flaw with her performance. Her out-dated language, mannerisms, and yes, charm. Hank Azaria is the evil Egyptian king is just pure humor, if just a little childish, which adds to the humor. I liked the Tuskegee Airmen/Amelia scene when they first meet - a nice nod to both sides struggle in aviation. I just wonder if Amelia really was like this in person, because I would love to meet her! This is a fun movie, though some of the aerial sequences are far fetched (Wright brothers airplane scene did not fly like a fighter plane!), the Einstein bobble heads and Pi discussion are funny (look out for one of the heads bang his head on the table in frustration). All in all, ignore the negative reviews, sit back with the family or friends, and enjoy the cute story.

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (2009): Dir: Shawn Levy / Cast: Ben Stiller, Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Hank Azaria, Robin Williams: Every bit as stupid as the first film with virtually the same plot structure. Ben Stiller left his night watchman days to be an inventor until he learns that his old museum pals are being shipped away. He springs into action to save his historical friends plus battle new enemies. Directed by Shawn Levy with creative special effects where historical figures and creatures come to life. This of course, has been done before in better movies. Levy has directed better comedies such as Just Married and Cheaper by the Dozen. Stiller sleepwalks through a role that seems more like a recital this time out. He runs the same drill, encounters similar problems, and saves the same people. It is enough to draw a yawn from the best of us. Amy Adams appears as Amelia Earhart but the role is more or less a prop. Owen Wilson and Hank Azaria also return as miniatures but their bickering is getting tiresome especially since their comic talents have been employed to greater success to better films. Robin Williams also returns as Theodore Roosevelt riding in on that horse with no script. The special effects are much better this time around but to what degree? Bigger budget doesn't necessarily mean better film. In this case it's just as bad. Score: 2 / 10

The best way to describe the film "Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian" is to tell the truth. It's a bad film. It's under-written. It's over-reliant on CGI. It has a multitude of visual and pop-culture references that fall flat and felt dated even at the time of it's 2009 release. Characters are under-developed. But all that being said... it's still not a "Bad" movie in terms of entertainment value or acting. Somehow, despite feeling like it was rushed through production and released just to make a profit off of the popular first film, it's darned fun to watch.From the same creative team as the original (including director Shawn Levy and writers Thomas Lennon and Robert Ben Garant), this sequel also includes the return of many core cast members, including Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Owen Wilson and Steve Coogan.Picking up a few years after the first film. Larry Daley (Stiller) has unfortunately quit his job as the night watchman at the Museum of Natural History in order to pursue his original dream of being an inventor. He now heads his own company, which has made a killing selling goofy product on infomercials. One day, returning to visit the museum at night, he learns that many of the exhibits are being replaced by modern, computerized, interactive holograms, and that the original exhibits are being transported to the Smithsonian archives. This saddens Larry.However, after being transported, it turns out that Dexter the monkey had stolen the magical Egyptian tablet that is able to animate the exhibits, causing everything to come alive in the Smithsonian museum, including the evil Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria), brother of the first film's Akhmenrah. Kahmunrah plans on using the tablet to open a portal to the underworld to release an ancient army and conquer the world. Larry is forced to break into the Smithsonian and team up with a newly animated Amelia Earhard (Amy Adams) to stop them. He also begins to fall for Amelia, despite the fact that she's an animated mannequin.First off, I will explain what I felt didn't work in the film. The big problem I had was that the movie felt like it was too short and under-developed. Larry, our hero, doesn't grow over the film. This is simply another adventure he gets into. And the events of the film transpire in a single night, as opposed to the several in the original film, which made it feel oddly less epic and less compelling. It just seemed too abbreviated. Many jokes also fall flat, and the direction is less than inspired.However, the films saving grace are the actors, and they manage to elevate the film on the whole to greatly entertaining bounds, even though it's still a bit of a mess. Stiller and the returning cast do a fantastic job. They are very fun to watch. Azaria as the new villain is at times a little over-the-top, but sets up for a lot of great jokes.There is also a good sense of adventure, and new ideas are played with (including scenes where characters are now able to enter paintings and photographs, which sets up for some nice, goofy scenes), and the action is well-directed.But the saving grace of the film is definitely new cast member Amy Adams. I've been noticing her more and more lately, after turning in fine performances in films like "Sunshine Cleaning", "Enchanted", "The Fighter" and "The Muppets." And she's becoming one of my favorite actresses working today. Here, she is the shining star, making Amelia the heart of the movie. She's spunky, fun, gorgeous and will completely melt the heart of everyone, man, woman or child, who sees the film. She alone gave the film a few more points, and her romance with Larry is a lot of fun to watch.There are also some really great uses of CGI effects to broaden the scope, and the score by Alan Silvestri also helps a lot."Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian" is not the most well-written or well-directed film. But likable characters and great performances (notably Amy Adams fantastic role) elevate it to a slightly underwhelming but still very enjoyable 6 out of 10. I saw it on cable, and would say it's well worth renting.

About the only thing that saves this movie from being a complete waste of film are the special effects. The "plot" is about as lame as a Saturday morning cartoon and the jokes aren't much better. Basically it is just a bunch of characters chasing each other around. There are a couple of good gags, but they are not enough to keep any adult interested. Honestly, the only truly enjoyable part of this movie was watching Amelia Earhart (Amy Adams) run around in tight pants. Yes, the movie is really that bad. You will find yourself wishing the movie will mercifully end. Heed my warning - stay away!!