[...] which wake and control the pieces of art. It’s kind of a French, artsy version of Night at the Museum — but I suspect how well this works for you depends on how much you allow yourself to sink [...]

[...] the special effects remain impressively fascinating. I’ve already written about some of my concerns when I saw it at the theater this summer, so here I’ll concentrate on talking about the DVD [...]

Owen Wilson and Gerard Butler had the same fight choreographer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTXlWYdodnc

“…(My one disappointment was after all that time telling us of the numerous actual accomplishments of Ms Earhart rather than dismissing her as ‘That chick who got lost’, Custer does not get similarly rehabilitated.)…”

That reminds me of this, which maybe sheds light on why?

Neal Stephenson, in “Mother Earth Motherboard,” Wired issue 4.12, December 1996, Says:

“…The Victorian era was an age of superlatives and larger-than-life characters, and as far as that goes, Dr. Wildman Whitehouse fit right in: what Victoria was to monarchs, Dickens to novelists, Burton to explorers, Robert E. Lee to generals, Dr. Wildman Whitehouse was to assholes. He achieved a level of pure accomplishment in this field that the Alfonse D’Amatos of our time can only dream of. The only 19th-century figure who even comes close to him in this department is Custer…”

Ed, sounds good! And great point on the slang. It was hilarious! And mostly accurate, I think.

I thought the rules for coming to life were more expansive in this film too. I know they tried to justify it by saying all the major museums were connected underground. However, even that limitation gets ignored.

You have to see the Mummy. It’s so well constructed with incredible performances by all the actors. I have it on DVD, we’ll have to do a movie night with that film. From a storytelling perspective, I think it’s the best of the 30′s Universal Horror films. Really, you have to see it. Seeing Azaria’s performance makes me want to see again.

I hadn’t thought of man vs. 2-d serial villian angle. I like that. The film does have something of a 30′s/40′s action serial feel to it.

Also, I do love all of Amelia’s pseudo slang. Kudos to Amy Adams for delivering those lines so naturally and effortlessly. I can’t imagine they were easy to learn.

(My one disappointment was after all that time telling us of the numerous actual accomplishments of Ms Earhart rather than dismissing her as “That chick who got lost”, Custer does not get similarly rehabilitated.)

But still, very entertaining, and – dare I say it – fun for the whole family. Our seven year old loved the squid, nine recognized the art, eleven sang along to the Jonas brothers, and my wife got most of the history jokes. (And I will never be able to watch “300″ the same way again…)

The first movie was man vs. himself, come to think of it, while this one is man vs. 2-d serial villain.

I’m glad I’m not the only one to notice that Nighthawks and American Gothic were in the wrong museum. In fact, I suspect that whole room is taken from the Chicago Art Institute.

I agree it’s a good summer escapist movie. Lincoln at the end is almost worth the admission price alone.