Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb (2014) Review!!

Synopsis – Larry spans the globe, uniting favorite and new characters while embarking on an epic quest to save the magic before it is gone forever.

My Take – I am a huge fan of Ben Stiller but in recent years something is amiss his films, well except for his directorial venture the Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013), his return as the night guard in the third & final entry of this very entertaining final entry of his family friendly franchise seemed to uplift hopes on him. Even with a worldwide haul of $560 million, the “Night at the Museum” movies may not be remembered as the most thought-provoking family-friendly film franchise, but they were neither monotonous nor obnoxious. The final installment intends to fold up the franchise neatly with fond farewells to both the late Robin Williams and the even later Mickey Rooney, while it does make us sob for them, you cant help but be a little disappointed. Director Shawn Levy, who directed both “Night at the Museum” films, is back at the helm, but comparatively, this final entry is not as exciting as it is supposed to be. The story unfolds in sun-scorched Egypt back in the year 1938 with an “Indiana Jones” type of prologue. A joint Anglo-American archaeological expedition is searching for a rare artifact, when Chief Archaeologist Robert Fredericks (Brennan Elliott) shoos his meddling son, Cecil (Percy Hynes-White), off the site. Quite by accident, the unsuspecting Cecil stumbles onto the mother lode when the ground collapses under him and he plunges into the pharaoh’s burial chamber. Nothing really hair-raising occurs, but this atmospheric incident sets the stage for all subsequent hilarity. Naturally, the locals are more anxious about the tablet’s discovery than the myopic archaeologists. Indeed, they warn these outsiders that nothing good can come of this discovery. Eighty years or thereabouts later, the sacred tablet that resembles a colossal keypad displays signs of sea-green corrosion. This oxidization takes a toll on the fixtures so they behave in a menacing manner. During an after-dinner gala fundraiser for museum donors in New York City, pandemonium erupts when the exhibits run rampant and frighten everybody.

This debacle deprives Dr. McPhee (Ricky Gervais) of his job as curator. Young Egyptian King Ahkmenrah (Rami Malek) suggests Larry (Ben Stiller) fly the afflicted stone tablet back to the British Museum where his astute father, Pharaoh Merenkahre (Ben Kingsley), who is one of the exhibits, can clarify what ails the artifact. Of course, the incredulous Dr. McPhee believes none of the claptrap Larry feeds him. Nevertheless, he conspires to help our sincere hero gain access to the facility without arousing suspicion. Evidently, sneaking into a London museum after hours doesn’t constitute anything death-defying where British homeland security is concerned. The last thing Larry does before he flies off to handle these hi-jinks is quiz elderly Cecil (Dick Van Dyke) about what transpired in Egypt. Eventually, Larry and his eccentric posse, including Teddy Roosevelt (Robin Williams), Attila the Hun (Patrick Gallagher), Native American princess Sacajawea (Mizuo Peck), Jedediah (Owen Wilson), Octavius (Steve Coogan),Larry’s son Nick (Skyler Gisondo), a Neanderthal nitwit named Laa (Ben Stiller), and the adorable capuchin monkey Dexter (Crystal the Monkey) bluff their way past a loquacious security guard, Tilly (Rebel Wilson), who has no clue about their intentions. Once they enter the London Museum, our heroes find themselves up to their necks in anarchy orchestrated principally by the conceited, sword-wielding, legendary, Round-Table Knight, Sir Lancelot (Dan Stevens), who appropriates the enchanted tablet for himself without realizing the ultimate jeopardy that he threatens one and all into before dawn. Now, for all intents and purposes, this is the last Night at the Museum movie (at least, it seems that way for Ben Stiller). However, they did kind of set it up for Rebel Wilson who plays Tilly, a security guard at the British Museum. Which frankly does not seem like a good idea! Mainly because I see her as a secondary actress, like Melissa McCarthy, who really cant hold her own in the primary role. Who happens to do the same tricks over and over again and never seem to bring anything new to the table. Ben Stiller is awesome (as always) in a double role as the museum security guard Larry Daly & a wacky Neanderthal caveman who believes Larry is his father. This constitutes some of the several hilarious running gags throughout the film. In his last film performance, Oscar-winner Robin Williams co-stars again as Rough Riding President Theodore Roosevelt.

Owen Wilson and Steve Coogan are back respectively as pint-sized cowpoke Jedediah and Roman centurion General Octavius. These two tykes score some of the largest laughs, particularly when they utilize an enormous contraption to post Internet messages. Ricky Gervais is again likeable as the museum director Dr. McPhee. British actress Rebel Wilson, making her debut as Larry’s counterpart, a nocturnal British Museum security guard, adds ample spontaneity. “The Guest” star Dan Stevens fleshes out the cast as Sir Lancelot, one of the British Museum exhibits who comes to life, too. This actor has no boundaries!! So awesome!! Although, meant to be the final installment, they did leave it where there could be another sequel, in case it does big enough box office business. But still (according to me) this film will be remembered more as one of Robin Williams final movies, rather than a franchise finale. On the whole ‘Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb’ is not an all-time great movie, but it is a cute, funny movie that will take your mind of the real world for 90 mins. I disagree with critics saying it was better than the first one. The first film had the element of surprise and this one repeated their formula instead of elevating it to the next level. All in all a one time watch entertaining film.