Ben Stiller: A night to remember

Things are not going well and Larry Daley's (Ben Stiller) confidence is at an all time low. Daley decides it is time to face reality and get a job - any old job. Ostensibly, the position he takes at New York's Natural History Museum as a security guard on the graveyard shift appears to be boring beyond belief. It turns out that when all the visitors have left and the doors are locked, the exhibits come to life.

As well as being an exciting action adventure, Ben Stiller's new film, A NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM, which is directed by Shawn Levy, is also very funny - as you would expect, with Stiller in the central role with a strong supporting cast including Ricky Gervais and Owen Wilson. But NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM is a moving story that looks at father/son relationships. Stiller's Daley wants his son to be proud of him and first needs to regain his self-esteem.

Q: Did you go to museums on a regular basis growing up in New York?

A: "I grew up three or four blocks away from the Museum of Natural History, I started going there as a really young boy and it was always fun. The aura inside was wonderful - a great dark hall with light coming from the dioramas, it was a great spooky place that you could get lost in, it seemed timeless. When I didn't go to school some days (I 'cut school') it was a place that I could disappear into, so it really had a history for me."

Q: As a father yourself, did you understand the plight of a man who did not want to disappoint his son?

A: "Of course, because you want your children to look up to you and respect you. You do not want to let them down. Any parent will tell you that. And that can be really frustrating and difficult sometimes, when you have to deal with the realities of life and things that you cannot control. I have been lucky that I have always had steady work (unlike the character I play) and I have been able to take care of the family on that level. "

Q: So what happens to your character?

A: "In the movie, Larry realizes that all his dreams and ambitions have not been fulfilled, so he has to swallow his pride. He has to face reality and he thinks that becoming a security guard is the most embarrassing thing that he could do. He does not want to tell his son that is the job he has taken, because he has grander dreams for himself. It is a daunting task for him. But he keeps going and eventually he is able to feel good about himself and win his son's respect."

Q: How much improvisation was there on the film?

A: "There's definitely been a lot of improvisation on this movie. You have to have a really well written scene to begin with, but then with a comedy like this, you can go off the script if it feels good and it feels funny. That is how the process works. When you are shooting a movie, it is good to try as many options as you can. But as much as you try to think ahead and try to be funny, when you get in front of a big audience with the final film, you never know when people will laugh."

Q: Was it fun having Owen Wilson in the film, you two are friends and work together a lot? This time he has a small part as a three-inch tall cowboy!

A: "Owen always makes me laugh. I love working with him because I've always been a fan. There is something fascinating about his sensibilities and the way his mind works, that is great. In his comedy, he has that mix of being very cocky and also really insecure and he has a vulnerability, which is endearing and we just laugh at the same things.

Q: What is the challenge for you of making a comedy like this?

A: "The challenge is to create a tone that works on a creative and a comedic level, but also to create the different tones. Apart from the humor, there is an interesting scary level to the movie, the idea of creatures coming to life at night. And there is a really good, strong story about a father trying to make his son proud of him. So he has to take the worst possible job. I do like the idea that this film is a fantasy that is grounded in reality."

Q: Where do you find most contentment in your life these days?

A: "The best way of being, is to simply be happy in the moment, wherever you are. For me there is nothing better than being with the family. But I love my work and I like to have balance in life, which entails being with the family and being creative and having fun at the same time. I am happiest when the balance is just right."

Larger than life adventure for the whole family comes to life when NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM opens January 24 in theaters nationwide from 20th Century Fox to be distributed by Warner Bros.