It’s not like we didn’t have anything else to do. But there wouldn’t have been any peace in our house if we had allowed this weekend to go by without seeing this movie.
We left the Worship & Arts family picnic rather abruptly to make it to the theater in time, and though we didn’t opt to see this one in IMAX 3-D or HD 3-D, our kids were thrilled to be watching it nonetheless.
As sequels go, our expectations were low. Most of the time, the sequel isn’t nearly as good as the original. And true to expectation, this one wasn’t. Worse yet, this sequel isn’t a “stand-alone†– meaning much of the humor is lost if you haven’t seen the original movie.
But the requisite characters were all there: Larry and Nick, Akhmun Ra, Sacagawea, Teddy Roosevelt, Lexie, Dum-Dum, Jedediah and Octavius, and Dexter. The storyline weakly attempted to connect the two museums and the characters, but the result ended up as more of a special-effects fest for the CGI artists than as a showpiece of masterful storytelling. Of the new characters introduced in this movie, only Kuman Ra had any depth or persona. I had hoped for more from the other “evil†guys – certainly Al Capone could have had more substance. And I was sorely disappointed with the museum director’s change – he actually spoke in complete sentences this time! Blasphemy!
There was a poignant moment at the end once the tablet has been returned to New York when Amelia Earhart has to fly back to the Smithsonian and return to her non-existence as a wax figure. Realizing her future lies as a lifeless exhibit in a dusty museum, she is nonetheless grateful for her one night of life and adventure. A good lesson to bear in mind for all of us: do we enjoy the moments we are given, do we appreciate the life we live, and are we grateful for the adventures we have – or do we waste our lives, our talents, and our gifts hiding in the daily grind of work and home?
All in all, it’s a great popcorn flick. Our kids loved it. The special effects certainly are entertaining. Just don’t expect a terrific story or oscar-quality acting, though you might find a nugget of truth if you look hard enough.