'Battle of the Smithsonian' is right: Ancient Egypt is really, really cool
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The sequel to Ben Stiller’s Night at the Museum opens this week, cumbersomely titled Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian. In the first film, Larry, a divorced dad played by Stiller, ends up as a night watchmen at the Museum of Natural History. What sets the movie’s plot in motion by magically causing all the museum’s creatures and statues to come to life? Something called the Tablet of Akmenrah from Ancient Egypt.
Let’s face it: there is something about ancient Egypt that fascinates modern man.
And why wouldn’t it? It’s one of the oldest civilizations known to us, yet capable of creating astounding works of art and architecture that survive to this day. The Ancient Egyptians seem exotic to us, almost alien, and yet oddly familiar – they went to school, worked, worshiped their gods, and got drunk, just like we do today. And in that order, too.
For fantasy fans in particular, Egypt holds a special appeal. Mysticism was a way of life in Egypt. There was a strong belief in gods, the afterlife, and magic, and this acceptance of the supernatural, coupled with their infamous practices concerning dead bodies, can create a strong foundation for a great fantasy story.
Excerpted from an article by Tim O’Leary for The Torch Online
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