Night at The Museum : Secret of the Tomb (2015)

The finale which had been in the planning stages is really one that is bittersweet and the final performances of Robin Williams who will be missed along with Mickey Rooney as both died in the year 2014.

Ben Stiller returns as the guard who knows the secrets of the museum coming alive. And how a tablet keeps them that way. But in a black tie affair thing, which went awry due to the fact of the tablet as the animals and people like Teddy Roosevelt that comes to life is about to die down due to the tablet going down.

You don't go into "Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb" expecting great art. You expect a few laughs and some moments of wonder as you witness museum displays magically come to life. The first "Night at the Museum" disappointed me. The second, "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" surprised me with how much better it was than the first. Amy Adams was wonderful as Amelia Earhart in that film.

This new, third installment, "Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb" was only okay, but it wasn't horrible, either. I really, really wish it had been a bit better. It's one of Robin Williams' and Mickey Rooney's last movies. Both died this year. Robin Williams does look visibly tired and sad.



One of my favorite stars makes an unbilled cameo appearance, but it is more awkward than special. Dick Van Dyke, who is a national treasure, is in the film, but only for a few minutes, and he isn't given much to do. Ditto Ben Kingsley as a pharaoh. If I were a director, I'd want to milk Sir Ben Kingsley as a pharaoh for all it was worth. Not here. Dan Stevens, formerly of Downton Abbey, is charismatic and impressive as Sir Lancelot, but his character is demoted from good guy to bad guy, and his face is disfigured, in a way that feels envious. It's as if the movie is punishing him for being a tall, gorgeous, heroic white male. Museum night guard Ben Stiller's relationship with his now teenage son is emphasized, and it doesn't feel real at all.

The biggest difference here is that while the second movie was filled with celebrity cameos and tried to go bigger, Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb is a smaller, more blunt story that knows that it's last ride needed to be simple. As far as it was, I enjoyed it. Without giving anything away, the movie actually closes on a note where it makes it clear that there are not going to be anymore of these movies. I was surprised by how touching it all was without going too far with the goodbyes.

6.7/10-IMDb
49%-Rotten Tomatoes
47%-Metacritics
7/10-My verdict