In New York, museum security guard Larry (Stiller) is thrilling crowds with what they think are whizzy special effects rather than exhibits come to life. So when there's a glitch in the magical powers, he heads to London to reunite Ahkmenrah (Malek) with his father (Kingsley) at the British Museum and fix the problem. Larry's son Nick (Gisondo) tags along, as do Teddy Roosevelt (Williams), tiny warriors Octavius and Jedediah (Coogan and Wilson) and others. And in London they awaken perplexed knight Lancelot (Stevens), who complicates the plan.

Stevens adds a badly needed jolt of dashing charisma and impeccable comic timing as the handsome but misguided knight trying to save the day. There's also the addition of Rebel Wilson's Tilly, the London night watchman who has her own adventure over the course of this fateful night. By comparison, the returning characters feel rather tame and uninspiring, although Coogan and Wilson inject a constant stream of deranged one-liners and witty innuendo.

The special effects work is up to the challenge of bringing these people and objects to life. One memorable freak-out touch is a sequence in which broken ancient statues struggle to move without arms and/or legs. And there's a surreal adventure inside a living Escher painting. So it's annoying that the script simply ignores any sense of internal logic. It may seem petty to ask why there are dinosaurs and Escher paintings in the British Museum, a historical collection. And why it seems to take about 10 minutes to jet between London and New York.

But then the filmmakers don't much care about things like plot cohesion. This is an excuse for flashy effects and raucous cameos (there are several of those, including the film's funniest moment on a West End stage). But it's clearly too much to Levy and company to actually use history or art to propel their thin story or characters. That might have made these films something special. As is, they're just a momentary bit of escapist fun.

themes, violence

13.Dec.14