Review: Night at the Museum

UK release date: 26th December

Ben Stiller heads a cast of A-list comedy actors that ranges from the likes of Mickey Rooney and Dick Van Dyke to Robin Williams in this raucous romp through history. Stiller plays the patsy once again as night watchman Larry Daley, who has to run for his life when an ancient curse causes the exhibits in a museum of natural history to come to life at sundown.

Stiller does a sterling job here and there’s a witty use of visual effects such as when Larry is terrorised by a T rex skeleton or when he tries to negotiate peace between a miniature Old West gunslinger (an uncredited Owen Wilson) and an equally tiny Roman general (Steve Coogan). Meanwhile, Ricky Gervais pops up as an officious museum director who’s not a million miles away from David Brent.

Director Shawn Levy is not always in control of his storyline as he desperately tries to string various subplots together through Larry’s faltering relationship with his son (Jake Cherry). Fortunately, there are enough exciting stunts and larger-than-life performances to provide entertainment for kids and old relics alike.

Radio Times rating:

***

UK cinema certificate PG
Running time 108mins

Review by Stella Papamichael

Review: Eragon

UK release date: 15th December

It’s set in a world of dragons and sorcery, but Eragon fails to conjure the magic of Christopher Paolini’s bestselling book.

Newcomer Ed Speleers stars (with some initial uncertainty) as the titular farm boy who becomes a “dragon rider”, threatening the tyrannical rule of King Galbatorix (a gnashing John Malkovich). Jeremy Irons employs a dry sense of humour as Eragon’s mentor Brom, which helps to alleviate some of the tedium as the kid struggles to decide what his true mission is. Rachel Weisz voices Saphira, the winged beast that carries Eragon into battle, although getting there proves to be a dizzying ride.

First-time director Stefen Fangmeier provides occasional distraction from the dithering script with adrenaline-fuelled flying scenes. But sadly the CGI effects aren’t good enough to make Saphira an emotionally engaging character, so the relationship between her and Eragon fails to spark.

Radio Times rating:

**

UK cinema certificate PG
Running time 103mins

Review by Stella Papamichael

Review: Stranger Than Fiction

UK release date: 1st December

Following in the footsteps of such movies as Being John Malkovich and I Heart Huckabees, which treat their outrageous scenarios as more drama than comedy, comes Stranger than Fiction.

The loopy premise here is that mild-mannered tax inspector Will Ferrell begins to hear voices — well, actually just one voice, which seems to be narrating his life. A visit to a literature professor (Dustin Hoffman, as enjoyably tick-riddled as ever) reveals that the author of his story is Kay Eiffel (Emma Thompson) and she is indeed in control of his destiny. The trouble is that all her novels end in the death of the lead character.

In less talented hands, this kind of forced intellectual whimsy can be deeply irritating, but with the understated direction of Finding Neverland‘s Marc Forster, the decidedly odd is perfectly believable. And Ferrell, like Bill Murray and Robin Williams, proves that comic actors reined in can give surprisingly affecting dramatic performances.

Radio Times rating:

***

UK cinema certificate 12A
Running time 112mins

Review by Adam Smith

Review: Pan’s Labyrinth

UK release date: 24th November

In a superlative companion piece to 2001’s The Devil’s Backbone, director Guillermo del Toro uses his extraordinarily rich and detailed visual style to weave entrancing metaphorical fantasy horror through political allegory with stunning brilliance.

In 1944, in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, young Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) seeks refuge in a mysterious maze to escape the harsh realities of her life. There, satyr Pan (Doug Jones) sets her three perilous tasks. These mirror her soul-destroying existence and help her to cope with the perversions of innocence that fascism represents in this dark fable for adults.

Superbly acted (Sergi Lopez terrifies as the wicked stepfather who is one of Franco’s torturers), vividly beautiful (the fairy-tale landscapes are exquisite), and uniquely imaginative (a magical and sinister buffet sequence is astonishing), del Toro’s mesmerising phantasmagoria packs a real emotional punch. Coupled with Javier Navarrete’s glorious score, this grim spin on Alice in Wonderland is del Toro’s finest work to date.

Radio Times rating:

*****

UK cinema certificate 15
Running time 119mins

Review by Alan Jones