| Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian |
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Promotional poster |
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| Directed by | Shawn Levy |
| Produced by | Shawn Levy Chris Columbus Michael Barnathan |
| Written by | Thomas Lennon |
| Based on | Characters created by Robert Ben Garant |
| Starring | Ben Stiller Amy Adams Owen Wilson Hank Azaria Christopher Guest Alain Chabat Robin Williams Steve Coogan |
| Music by | Alan Silvestri |
| Cinematography | John Schwartzman |
| Editing by | Don Zimmerman Dean Zimmerman |
| Studio | 21 Laps Entertainment Ingenious Film Partners 1492 Pictures Sesame Workshop |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
| Release date(s) | May 22, 2009 |
| Running time | 105 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $150 million[1] |
| Box office | $413,106,170[1] |
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (2009) (also known as Night at the Museum 2 or Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian) is an American adventure comedy film directed by Shawn Levy, and starring Ben Stiller, Hank Azaria, Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Robin Williams, and Steve Coogan. The film is a sequel to Night at the Museum. It was released on May 22, 2009.
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Two years after the events of the previous film, Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) is now CEO of Daley Devices, a direct response television company that sells inventions inspired by his experiences as a night security guard at the American Museum of Natural History. While wealthy and successful he has not had the time to see his museum exhibit friends in several months.
When Larry returns to the museum he learns that it is closed for renovations and upgrades. Interactive holograms will replace many of the exhibits, which are moving to the Federal Archives at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC. While Theodore Roosevelt (Robin Williams), Rexy the Tyrannosaurus skeleton, the Easter Island moai (voiced by Brad Garrett), and the Mummy of Akhmenrah (Rami Malek) will remain at the museum, Jedediah (Owen Wilson), Dexter the Capuchin Monkey, Octavius (Steve Coogan) and others will no longer come to life since the Golden Tablet of Akhmenrah that animated the exhibits each night will also remain.
After the exhibits leave, Larry receives a distress call from Jedediah. Dexter stole Akhmenrah's tablet and brought it to the Federal Archives, and the evil Pharaoh Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria), Akhmenrah's older brother, is attacking Jedediah and the other exhibits. Larry travels to Washington and visits the National Air and Space Museum, the National Gallery of Art, and the Smithsonian Institution Building, searching for the Federal Archives with long-distance help from his son Nick (Jake Cherry).
Larry tricks an over-protective guard named "Brandon" (pronounced "Brundon") (Jonah Hill) into giving him his card key and after dressing up as a Smithsonian night guard, he locates the exhibits, frozen in their shipping container in the middle of a battle with Kahmunrah and his troops. As Larry obtains the tablet the sun sets and the exhibits, and others at the Smithsonian, come alive. Kahmunrah forces Larry to give him the tablet, then tells Larry that bringing the exhibits to life is just one of the tablet's powers, and that he intends to use it to conquer the world by raising an army from the underworld.
Larry tries to dupe Kahmunrah into giving back the tablet, by telling him about the cube of rubik although is threatened by Kahmunrah. Larry escapes from the Egyptian troops with the tablet, with the help of General George Armstrong Custer (Bill Hader). He meets the beautiful and adventurous Amelia Earhart (Amy Adams) who is attracted to Larry and accompanies him through the National Gallery. Larry and Amelia trap some of Kahmunrah's soldiers in a photograph of V–J day in Times Square, but are later captured by Napoleon Bonaparte (Alain Chabat) and his soldiers. Napoleon takes Larry to Kahmunrah who has also allied with historical leaders Ivan the Terrible (Christopher Guest) and Al Capone (Jon Bernthal). Kahmunrah has rejected fellow villains Darth Vader (whom Kahmunrah considers his villainous roles to be comical) and Oscar the Grouch (who Kahmunrah considers to be just a grouch). Meanwhile Custer is captured and locked in the same shipping container as the rest of the exhibits. Custer begins planning a counter-attack, but his plans are refuted as foolish by Sacagawea (Mizuo Peck). Jedediah and Octavius, also skeptical of Custer's abilities, become concerned for Larry's safety, and try to escape in a effort to help him. However, Jedediah is captured in the escape attempt and is brought before Kahmunrah in a birdcage. Octavius, watching from a window, vows to rescue Jedediah.
Kahmunrah attempts to open the Gate of the Underworld by pressing the symbols on the tablet, which resembles numbers on a keypad, but the combination has changed. Larry calmly states that he can simply wait until sunrise, and then reclaim the tablet while Kahmunrah and his henchmen are frozen. The pharaoh forces Larry to obtain the new combination before sunrise by trapping Jedediah in a filling hourglass. Unless Larry figures out the new combination in less than an hour, Jedediah will be smothered by the falling sand. Larry and Amelia begin searching for someone who can tell them the new combination, but their movements lead Kahmunrah to believe that they are trying to escape with the tablet, rather than decipher the new combination. In response, Kahmunrah orders Ivan the Terrible to dispatch Russian troops to track them down. Larry and Amelia flee from the Russians and hide at the Lincoln Memorial. The statue of Abraham Lincoln (voiced by Hank Azaria) then comes to life, and he has a short conversation with Larry and Amelia. At the National Air and Space Museum, they consult a group of Albert Einstein bobbleheads (voiced by Eugene Levy) who tell them that the new combination is the value of pi (3.14159265). When they are found by Napoleon, Ivan, and Capone (who have now all joined the hunt for them), Larry and Amelia escape in the Wright Flyer and return to the Smithsonian Institution Building. The two separate, with Amelia searching for help while Larry delays Kahmunrah. Octavius, still searching for a way to save Jedediah, arrives at the White House, because he was told that "a good man lives [there]." Octavius rushes to the White House, but is attacked and dragged away by a squirrel.
Larry then approaches Kahmunrah, telling him that if he returns Jedediah, Larry will give him the combination. Kahmunrah replies that Larry must first give him the combination; only then will he free Jedediah. The two argue back and forth until Napoleon, Ivan, and Capone arrive, having obtained the combination themselves from one of the bobbleheads. Kahmunrah opens the Gate of the Underworld and summons an army of Horus warriors. Suddenly, Octavius reappears, riding the same squirrel that dragged him away earlier. He charges Kahmunrah, demanding surrender. Kahmunrah begins to laugh when the Lincoln statue suddenly arrives, forcing the horus warriors to retreat to the underworld, and Amelia frees the New York exhibits from their container and recruits other Smithsonian exhibits. Custer leads the exhibits against Kahmunrah, Napoleon, Ivan the Terrible and their henchmen. Amidst the chaos, Octavius rescues Jedediah from the hour-glass. Larry then tricks Napoleon, Ivan the Terrible, and Al Capone into fighting amongst themselves. As the exhibits battle, Larry banishes Kahmunrah to the underworld. After the fighting ends, Amelia flies Larry and the New York exhibits back to the Natural History Museum. Knowing that she will turn to dust at sunrise if she does not return to the Smithsonian, Amelia kisses Larry and leaves.
Larry sells his company and donates money to the museum to restore the exhibits. Roosevelt and Akhmenrah as tour guides, Attila as a storyteller, and other exhibits come to life in public as "animatronics" at the museum, which now stays open after sunset. Larry is rehired as the night guard, and meets a young woman who looks like Amelia.
Writers Robert Ben Garant and Thomas Lennon confirmed to Dark Horizons that they were writing a sequel to Night at the Museum, originally with the tentative title Another Night at the Museum. The writers said that "there'll be existing characters and plenty of new ones."
20th Century Fox announced that the sequel, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, would be released during Memorial Day weekend in 2009. Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Steve Coogan, Ricky Gervais, Patrick Gallagher, Jake Cherry, Rami Malek,Mizuo Peck, Brad Garrett and Robin Williams would return for the sequel, with Shawn Levy returning as director.
The film was mostly filmed in Vancouver with some scenes filmed in the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C..[2] A scene was shot at the Lincoln Memorial on the night of May 21, 2008. Scenes were also shot at the American Museum of Natural History in New York on the 18 and 20 of August 2008.
The trailer was released with Bedtime Stories, Yes Man and Marley & Me in December 2008. The trailer accompanied the film Bride Wars in January, The Pink Panther 2 in February, and Dragonball Evolution in April 2009. The film was also promoted as an opening skit on American Idol, where a replica of the Idol judge seats are being held at the real Smithsonian Institution.
An alternate ending included on the DVD and Blu-ray releases featured the return of the main antagonists of the first film, Dick Van Dyke (Cecil Fredericks), Bill Cobbs (Reginald), and Mickey Rooney (Gus).
Filmmakers loaned the Smithsonian Institution props used in the movie which were displayed in the Smithsonian Castle including the pile of artifacts featured in the film.[3] The Smithsonian also made a brochure available online and at museum visitor service desks outlining where to find artifacts.[4]
As of 2009, numerous artifacts which inspired the movie were on display at Smithsonian Museums along the National Mall. Many of the artifacts are labeled with "Night at the Museum" logos.[4]
Gift shops at the Smithsonian also sell a replica of the Einstein Bobble-head, created specifically as a tie-in to the movie.
Like its predecessor, the sequel has received mixed reviews from critics. Rotten Tomatoes reported that 44% of critics gave the film positive reviews based on 154 reviews, with an average score of 5.2 out of 10.[5] Among Rotten Tomatoes' "Cream of the Crop," which consists of popular and notable critics from the top newspapers, websites, television, and radio programs, the film holds an overall approval rating of 33% based on 27 reviews.[6] Another review aggregator, Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 top reviews from mainstream critics, gave the film an average score of 42% based on 27 reviews.[7]
Despite mixed reviews from critics, most critics praised Amy Adams' and Hank Azaria's performances. Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune awarded the film 3 stars stating that "...she's terrific -- a sparkling screen presence."[8] Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a B+ stating "Battle of the Smithsonian has plenty of life. But it's Adams who gives it zing."[9] Perry Seibert of TV Guide gave the film 2 stars despite honoring that "thanks to Azaria, a master of comic timing. His grandiose, yet slightly fey bad guy is equally funny when he's chewing out minions as he is when deliberating if Oscar the Grouch and Darth Vader are evil enough to join his team.[10] Michael Rechtshaffen of the Hollywood Reporter and A.O. Scott of The New York Times enjoyed both performances.[11][12]
One critic panned the movie on its excessive use of special effects as noted by Scott Tobias of the A.V. Club when he described the film as "a baffling master plot and a crowded pileup of special effects in search of something to do."[13] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun Times awarded the film 1½ stars out of 4 claiming "its premise is lame, its plot relentlessly predictable, its characters with personalities that would distinguish picture books." [14]
On Friday, May 22, 2009, its opening day, the film's estimated gross was $15,568,708, coming in ahead of Terminator Salvation (which released on Thursday) in 4,096 theaters at #1, reaching up to $54.1 million over the Memorial Day weekend.[15] By comparison, Night at the Museum reached up to $30 million on its opening weekend in December 2006. The domestic revenue as of October 1, 2009, is $177.1 million along with $236.0 million from foreign countries with a total of $411,755,284 worldwide.[16][17]
| Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Teen Choice Award | Choice Movie Comedy | Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian | Won[18] |
| 2010 | MTV Movie Award | Best Comedic Performance | Ben Stiller | Nominated |
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian was made available December 1, 2009 on DVD and Blu-ray as a two-disc Special Edition and a three-disc Digital Copy Edition.[19]
The video game based on the film was released on May 5, 2009. It was fairly well-received in comparison to the majority of film-based video-games, netting a 7.5 out of 10 from IGN.com.
Ben Stiller admitted that a sequel is "a possibility" and on January 22, 2010, co-writer Thomas Lennon said to Access Hollywood, "That after the success of two Night at the Museum films, its no surprise that 20th Century Fox is looking to develop a third and that those suspicions are indeed true and how could you not? I think it's a really outstanding idea to do 'Night at the Museum 3,' in fact," he said. "I wonder if someone's not even already working on a script for that," he added with a raised eyebrow. "I cannot confirm that for a fact, but I cannot deny it for a fact either... It might be in the works."[20] In an interview, Stiller confirmed the sequel, however, he said that it was only in the "ideas stage". [21]
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