NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: SECRET OF THE TOMB | FAMILY MOVIE REVIEW INFORMATION FOR PARENTS AND KIDS

"NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: SECRET OF THE TOMB"
(2014) (Ben Stiller, Robin Williams) (PG)

QUICK TAKE:: Comedy: A museum night guard and his museum figure friends -- that magically come to life at night -- travel to London in hopes of saving the ancient tablet that's responsible for keeping them alive.

PLOT:

At New York City's Museum of Natural History, Larry Daley (BEN STILLER) not only is the night security guard, but he's also the head of night programs there. With the opening of a new planetarium, he's been tasked by museum director Dr. McPhee (RICKY GERVAIS) to provide the "special effects," unaware of the reality behind them. As Larry discovered years ago, an ancient Egyptian tablet with magical powers brings various museum figures to life at night.

Along with former President Teddy Roosevelt (ROBIN WILLIAMS), there's Attila the Hun (PATRICK GALLAGHER); Egyptian prince Ahkmenrah (RAIMI MALEK); Lewis and Clark's Indian tracker Sacajawea (MIZUO PECK); miniature diorama figures cowboy Jedidiah (OWEN WILSON) and Roman emperor Octavius (STEVE COOGAN); several Neanderthals including one, La (BEN STILLER), who's been painted to look like Larry; a T-Rex skeleton; and a capuchin monkey known as Dexter.

But due to corrosion on the tablet, the figures act erratically, thus ruining the planetarium's opening night gala. In hopes of figuring out what's wrong, Larry convinces Dr. McPhee to allow him to take the tablet and Ahkmenrah (RAIMI MALEK) to London's British Museum to reunite the latter with his parents, Pharaoh Merenkahre (BEN KINGSLEY) and Queen Shepseheret (ANJALI JAY). Realizing his teenage son, Nick (SKYLER GISONDO), needs some direction in his life, Larry takes him along for the trip, unaware that Teddy and many other figures have snuck along as well.

Once he gets security guard Tilly (REBEL WILSON) to let him in, Larry discovers them, as well as the perils of the museum's holdings coming to life for the first time, including a triceratops skeleton. Luckily for them, Sir Lancelot (DAN STEVENS) springs to life and saves them, but then continues his quest to find the Holy Grail. Learning from Merenkahre that the tablet will only last until the morning without a fix of moonlight, Larry and his friends try to make that happen, all while dealing with various obstacles and setbacks along the way.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?: If they're fans of either of the first two "Night at the Museum" films, they probably will.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG: For mild action, some rude humor and brief language.

I have subscribed to ScreenIt for more than a decade. I check in every week to take advantage of their amazing services. Not only does their site provide a glimpse of exactly what content a movie offers, I've found the “Our Take” reviews and ratings for each movie to be right on the money every single time. I've referred dozens of friends to this service because my #1 resource for deciding whether or not to show a movie to my kids, or to see one myself, is ScreenIt.com!

Josh Nisbet
Director, State of CA Public Sector

I signed up to get Screen It weekly reviews a long time ago, when my kids were young and I wanted to know more about movies before we went to a theater or rented. Now one child is in law school, other in undergraduate, and I still read the weekly Screen Its! It helps me know what my husband and I want to see or rent, and what to have waiting at home that we all will enjoy when my "kids" come home. I depend on Screen It reviews. They usually just present the facts and let me decide if the movie is appropriate or of interest for my family and me. Thank you for providing that service, Screen It!

Patti Petree
Winston Salem, NC

I have 4 children who are now in college. I signed up for Screen It when my children were pre-teenagers. Often my children would ask to see a movie with a friend and I wished I could preview the movie prior to giving permission. A friend told me about ScreenIt.com and I found it to be the next best thing to previewing a movie. The amount of violence, sexual content, or language were always concerns for me and my husband as we raised innocent kids with morals. We constantly fought the peer pressure our kids received to see films that in our opinion were questionable. With the evidence we received at Screen It, our kids couldn't even fight us when we felt a film may have been inappropriate for them to watch. Thank you, Screen It. Continue to make this helpful service available to everyone, but especially the young parents.

Christine Doherty
Machesney Park, IL

Screenit.com is an amazing resource for parents, educators, church groups or anyone who wants to make an informed decision whether a movie is suitable for their viewing. The reviews and content descriptions are so detailed I am mystified how the reviewers can put them together.

Scott Heathe
Vancouver, BC

I love screen It! I don't know what I would do without it. It is well worth the membership. Before we take our son to the movies we check it out on screen it first. Thank you SO much for making it. Keep up the good work & keep 'em coming!!!

Patrina Streety
Moreno Valley California

Other new and recent reviews include:

Privacy Statement and Terms of Use and Disclaimer
By entering this site you acknowledge to having read and agreed to the above conditions.