Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb

It took them five years, but now director Shawn Levy and star Ben Stiller bring another monumental adventure to screen. According to the advertisements, this latest Night at the Museum, subtitled Secret of the Tomb, will be the last.

Larry Daley (Stiller) has the best job possible at the New York Museum of Natural History. As security guard, Larry also supervises events with "living exhibits." Larry's secret is that the exhibits are alive, animated by the mystical tablet of Ahkmenrah. And it's corroding real fast.

The only one who can fix the tablet is its creator, Pharaoh Merenkahre (Ben Kingsley). His wax likeness stands comfortably at the British Museum of Natural History. So Larry and the series' regular exhibits head off to London for a talk. It's all easy until one British exhibit decides to ruin things.

The visual effects, which were shortlisted for Oscar consideration, are awesome. The CGI makes you believe that statues and dinosaur skeletons can move and interact with real people. The miniaturization of actors Steve Coogan and Owen Wilson (as figures Octavius and Jeb) is also well-done. The highlight was a battle inside M.C. Escher's Relativity. One amusing animated character was a mini Garuda statue (which makes sense once you realize who voiced it).

Anyone unfamiliar with the franchise won't get lost. You'll know what's up in these films right away. The details this film adds to the series actually make sense. For instance, it re-introduces the first film's villains in a cameo appearance. When it's revealed that one of the villains actually discovered the tablet as a lad, his actions are understandable.

It's a decent family adventure film. Its 98 minute plot progresses quickly and easily for kids and adults. Any bits of childish humor didn't degrade the film for me. The funniest moment of the film was a performance of Camelot which went awry. It easily got sentimental when it reminded the audience that this was the end. Never was this more evident when Mickey Rooney and Robin Williams, both of whom passed on this year, were on-screen.

Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb ends the franchise pretty well. It may be the end, but it makes the most of it.