Guardians of the Museum DVD Review

     Format: Multiple Formats, Color, NTSC

Language: English (Stereo)

Subtitles for the Hearing Impaired: English

Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1

Number of discs: 1

Rated: NR (Not Rated)

Studio: BBC Home Entertainment

DVD Release Date: November 25, 2014

Run Time: 112 minutes

 

 

        Merely looking at the cover of the “Guardians of the Museum” DVD, one might automatically assume that this was some type of British rip-off of the popular Hollywood film franchise adapted from children’s books, A Night in the Museum. The artwork looks far too similar to go unnoticed, although the content could not be much different. Even with a cover that borders on plagiarism, “Guardians of the Museum” is a rather unique children’s educational game show. Directed at a younger audience, this show gives lessons while simultaneously using special effects and a somewhat contrived narrative to add some elements of fantasy into the historical trivia show.

 

          Each episode allows three children the opportunity to work together in an effort to win the game, all through games of intelligence and memory after learning about each historical period. Known in the UK as “Relic: Guardians of the Museum,” the title of this 2010 show seems to have been shortened for DVD distribution after the massive success of a similarly titled comic book film from this year. It appears as though they are trying to have consumers accidentally mistake this for something else, even failing to mention any of the game show aspects on the back cover description.

 

        The game show is treated as fantasy in its presentation, using special effects to pretend that there are real consequences to losing the game. The host is even a ghost, played by Gemma Arowsmith, leading the children from game to game and teaching them the lessons they must remember along the way. All in all, this is a clever way to try and get younger children interested in history, though the marketing choices are more likely to lead to disappointment.

 

Entertainment Value: 3.5/10

Quality of Filmmaking: 4/10

Historical Significance:  4/10

Special Features: 0/10