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Special Features
- Commentary by Director Shawn Levy
- Commentary by Writers Robert Ben Garant and Thomas Lennon
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
An irresistible concept meets computer-generated wonders in Night at the Museum, inspired by a 1993 children's book by Milan Trenc. Ben Stiller stars as Larry Daley, an underachieving inventor waiting for his ship to come in while getting evicted from one apartment after another for lack of funds. Larry's son needs some stability, so the well-meaning ne'er-do-well takes a job as night watchman at New York City's Museum of Natural History. What the soon-to-retire guards (Dick Van Dyke, Mickey Rooney, Bill Cobbs) don't tell him is that an ancient pharaoh's tablet in the museum causes everything on display to come to life at night. Thus, Larry meets representations of Teddy Roosevelt, Attila the Hun, fire-worshipping cavemen, and Roman Empire soldiers, and learns to cope with an excitable T-Rex and man-eating, ancient animals. The film might have left things at that, but an added story element gives Night at the Museum some extra urgency and excitement, especially fo! r kids: Larry becomes responsible for keeping this nightly miracle going and preventing anything in the museum from dying due to exposure to sunrise. Computer effects, as well as wildly imaginative costumes and makeup, help make the film appeal to the 8-year-old in everyone. Director Shawn Levy (The Pink Panther) works with a hugely talented cast, including Robin Williams, Owen Wilson, Ricky Gervais, Carla Gugino, and Steve Coogan. --Tom Keogh
Night at the Museum Extras
 Ben Stiller on Director Shawn Levy |  Ricky Gervais on the size of his trailer and eating cheese. |
Beyond Night at the Museum
 See What DVDs Meant Special Effects to Amazon DVD Editors As Kids |  More Adventure Films for Kids & Family |  The Night at the Museum Paperback Book |
Stills from Night at the Museum
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Product Description
Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Dick Van Dyke. After nice-guy but down-on-his-luck Larry Daley takes a graveyard-shift job at the Museum of Natural History, he discovers that the ancient curse he heard about is really true-the exhibits come to life after dark! Taunted by a frisky T-rex, hordes of Roman soldiers and a mischievous monkey, Larry must make use of the rough and ready Teddy Roosevelt to control the mayhem-but nothing will work to control the laughs! 2006/color/105 min/PG.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
111 of 127 people found the following review helpful
Amazon Verified Purchase
I thought this movie would mostly be for kids, but I think I laughed as much if not more than the younger folks around me. The CGI is good, the plot is neat, and Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, and Robin Williams deliver the goods. It was also a treat to see Dick Van Dyke and Mickey Rooney in action again. Not to mention that Carla Gugino is a feast for the eyes. It's nice to watch a good film for the whole family once every so often. It makes you feel like a kid again, without a care in the world.
90 of 104 people found the following review helpful
This solid family movie from director Shawn Levy (the new PINK PANTHER, CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN 2) comes from a solid book like Jumanji, and Zathura, the 1993 kid's mystery-comedy of the same name.Like the original story, Larry (or was it Hector originally) becomes a night guard at New York's Museum of Natural History,in order to "grow up" in the eyes of his ex-wife and his son. He expects to have an easy time. But on his first night, he dozes off, then wakes up to a missing dinosaur skeleton.Soon his learns that history really comes alive at this museum and he's got his hands full keeping it in line.
Ben Stiller, as Larry, panics his way from exhibit to exhibit,as only he knows how. Briefly intiated by the original nightwatchmen, played by comedy, TV and film legends Dick Van Dyke,Bill Cobbs and Mickey Rooney.
The retiring watchmen are worth the price of admission (watch the closing credits as they reveal the ultimate fate of the three characters and Mr. Van Dyke shows that he can still chimney-sweep with the best of them.
Owen Wilson yet again teams-up with Stiller for a small part literally, he's a miniature from an historical diorama (see Starsky & Hutch, The Royal Tenenbaums, Meet the parents, Permanent Midnight, Zoolander for more super Stiller/Wilson team-ups). Actually the role is more than a cameo and is worthy of the story. The two play off each other superbly, like a modern-day Bing & Hope, only funny (I Kid, I Kid).
Another standout casting is Robin Williams lending Larry a hand as an animated-wax Teddy Roosevelt. Williams is able to savory his moments of insanity as a relatively static historical mentor while enfusing others with moving realism and soulfulness (seriously).
Loads of great visuals, especially at the IMAX engagements, like the animated dog-like T-Rex, Mammoths, stampedes and more. Definitely in the spirit of Jumanji, only with much more heart.
Ben Stiller, as Larry, panics his way from exhibit to exhibit,as only he knows how. Briefly intiated by the original nightwatchmen, played by comedy, TV and film legends Dick Van Dyke,Bill Cobbs and Mickey Rooney.
The retiring watchmen are worth the price of admission (watch the closing credits as they reveal the ultimate fate of the three characters and Mr. Van Dyke shows that he can still chimney-sweep with the best of them.
Owen Wilson yet again teams-up with Stiller for a small part literally, he's a miniature from an historical diorama (see Starsky & Hutch, The Royal Tenenbaums, Meet the parents, Permanent Midnight, Zoolander for more super Stiller/Wilson team-ups). Actually the role is more than a cameo and is worthy of the story. The two play off each other superbly, like a modern-day Bing & Hope, only funny (I Kid, I Kid).
Another standout casting is Robin Williams lending Larry a hand as an animated-wax Teddy Roosevelt. Williams is able to savory his moments of insanity as a relatively static historical mentor while enfusing others with moving realism and soulfulness (seriously).
Loads of great visuals, especially at the IMAX engagements, like the animated dog-like T-Rex, Mammoths, stampedes and more. Definitely in the spirit of Jumanji, only with much more heart.
27 of 29 people found the following review helpful
I Think that T-Rex Skeleton Wants to Play Fetch? --- and other hilarious reasons to watch this film...
April 20, 2007
Format:DVD
A movie where history literally comes alive? No way! But, somehow, this kooky idea works in an endearing and surrealistic way.
Ben Stiller stars as Larry Daley, an underachiever with a penchant for bouncing from job to job as he is constantly evicted from one apartment after another. Having had a divorce, Larry shares custody of his son with his ex-wife and her new husband. After finally being fed up with feeling inadequate in the eyes of his son, Larry takes a job as a night watchman at the Museum of Natural History in hopes that the semblance of stability will help earn back his ex-wife's and his son's respect. However, things are not always how they appear, as Larry soon discovers that at night, the museum comes to life...
The film has a bit of a slow start as the plot lays the ground work for Larry's desperate acceptance of the night watchman's position. I was left feeling anxious for the hilarity to ensue when the museum finally awakens from it's slumber. Fortunately, once the storyline finally gets to that point, the wacky hijinks commence, one right after the other, causing the film to become far more satisfying. If you overlook the fact that this is a Ben Stiller vehicle (as in, a comedic role that has a fairly cookie-cutter resemblence to most of Ben Stiller's previous roles) the movie turns out to be a wild ride of incredible special effects, and hilarious moments in the interaction between Larry and the newly life-like museum displays.
Robin Williams does an amazing job as a wax figure of Teddy Roosevelt, who becomes a sort of guide and mentor to Stiller's character of Larry as Larry struggles to come to terms with the unbelievable things he is witnessing. Owen Wilson also has a small supporting role as a teeny tiny cowboy from one of the displays in the diorama room, who is hell-bent on busting out of his display and doing battle against the Roman General, Octavius (equally tiny) who resides in the display next to his. Wilson's character is also fairly typical of his usual roles, but that doesn't make it any less funny. Actually (if you're looking for a little trivia) Wilson and Stiller only came face-to-face during filming once, for only a few minutes. All of Wilson's scenes were filmed in one day (in front of a green screen so that his character can be shrunk down to size and re-inserted into the film). The production crew placed a toothpick on the various sets so that Stiller had a focal point for where he was supposed to look when delivering his dialogue during the scenes that would eventually include Wilson's shrunken cowboy.
This whole movie is one giant leap into the magical realm of suspended reality that Hollywood is so good at creating. Can museums really come to life? No --- but man, it be cool if they did. Keep your eye out for my favorite (and in my opinion, the funniest) scene from the film in which Larry finally confronts Attila the Hun, who makes a habit of chasing him down and attempting to dismember him each night. Larry squares off against Attila and his barbaric horde, and proves he's in control by bringing Attila to tears. You have to see it to truly appreciate the humor. I also enjoyed the keys stealing monkey, Dexter, and his crazy penchant for causing Larry a lot of trouble. As far as special features go, this particular disc only has 2 audio commentaries available. If you're wanting more than that in the special features department, you're probably better off purchasing the 2-disc special edition.
Bottom line -- it gets off to a slow start, but eventually picks up and dazzles the audience with it's style, humor, and the general laugh-worthy age old question of "Can't we all just get along"?
Ben Stiller stars as Larry Daley, an underachiever with a penchant for bouncing from job to job as he is constantly evicted from one apartment after another. Having had a divorce, Larry shares custody of his son with his ex-wife and her new husband. After finally being fed up with feeling inadequate in the eyes of his son, Larry takes a job as a night watchman at the Museum of Natural History in hopes that the semblance of stability will help earn back his ex-wife's and his son's respect. However, things are not always how they appear, as Larry soon discovers that at night, the museum comes to life...
The film has a bit of a slow start as the plot lays the ground work for Larry's desperate acceptance of the night watchman's position. I was left feeling anxious for the hilarity to ensue when the museum finally awakens from it's slumber. Fortunately, once the storyline finally gets to that point, the wacky hijinks commence, one right after the other, causing the film to become far more satisfying. If you overlook the fact that this is a Ben Stiller vehicle (as in, a comedic role that has a fairly cookie-cutter resemblence to most of Ben Stiller's previous roles) the movie turns out to be a wild ride of incredible special effects, and hilarious moments in the interaction between Larry and the newly life-like museum displays.
Robin Williams does an amazing job as a wax figure of Teddy Roosevelt, who becomes a sort of guide and mentor to Stiller's character of Larry as Larry struggles to come to terms with the unbelievable things he is witnessing. Owen Wilson also has a small supporting role as a teeny tiny cowboy from one of the displays in the diorama room, who is hell-bent on busting out of his display and doing battle against the Roman General, Octavius (equally tiny) who resides in the display next to his. Wilson's character is also fairly typical of his usual roles, but that doesn't make it any less funny. Actually (if you're looking for a little trivia) Wilson and Stiller only came face-to-face during filming once, for only a few minutes. All of Wilson's scenes were filmed in one day (in front of a green screen so that his character can be shrunk down to size and re-inserted into the film). The production crew placed a toothpick on the various sets so that Stiller had a focal point for where he was supposed to look when delivering his dialogue during the scenes that would eventually include Wilson's shrunken cowboy.
This whole movie is one giant leap into the magical realm of suspended reality that Hollywood is so good at creating. Can museums really come to life? No --- but man, it be cool if they did. Keep your eye out for my favorite (and in my opinion, the funniest) scene from the film in which Larry finally confronts Attila the Hun, who makes a habit of chasing him down and attempting to dismember him each night. Larry squares off against Attila and his barbaric horde, and proves he's in control by bringing Attila to tears. You have to see it to truly appreciate the humor. I also enjoyed the keys stealing monkey, Dexter, and his crazy penchant for causing Larry a lot of trouble. As far as special features go, this particular disc only has 2 audio commentaries available. If you're wanting more than that in the special features department, you're probably better off purchasing the 2-disc special edition.
Bottom line -- it gets off to a slow start, but eventually picks up and dazzles the audience with it's style, humor, and the general laugh-worthy age old question of "Can't we all just get along"?
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Liked it!
Great action movie with lots of entertainment for the kids, ages 6 and 9. The streaming could be better as re-buffering occurred three, may be four, times through the entire movie.
Published 27 days ago by Amazon fan
Witty and creative
This takes the idea of a museum coming alive and runs with it. It is carried off very well and creatively, and Ben Stiller does a nice job in his role. Read more
Published 4 months ago by M
Why people selling USED dvds as NEW dvds?
I bought this dvd that I thought was brand new but it was a rental, it was sold as BRAND NEW. Why is this allowed on Amazon? Who can I talk to about this?
Published 4 months ago by Otis
no dumb dumb
Saw it on TV and knew I had to get it. Saw the second one and enjoyed both. Best in Blue-ray, though upscaling a standard DVD is just as good. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Peter Mars
Great movie not blu-ray quality
When you purchase a blu-ray you expect the exceptional video and audio quality that makes a DVD look horrendous the night at the museum blu-ray did not live up to these... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Ianmthompson
Very funny
I love this movie! I have both part one and part two and both of them are just down right hilarious. Buy it! lol
Published 10 months ago by Dwayne
Great movie, one of Ben Stiller's best
When I saw this movie in the theatres, I knew I had to purchase it so that I could watch it anytime I would like to. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Darrel Shishido
Fun for kids, funny for the rest of us
I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this one. Yes it's silly and predominantly a children's movie, but it also had some humor in it for the adults. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Derrick Dodson
Good laugh
We watched this as a family....2 young boys 6 and 8 had recently been to the museum. They really enjoyed it.
Published 16 months ago by Museum lover
Great movie
Bought this for my 4 year old. A little slow to start for a child, but really gets going once Ben Stiller gets his security job.
Published 16 months ago by impreza251
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