When I heard there was going to be a movie based on Lego, I was as cynical about the idea as everybody else was. Movies based on toys work as well as movies based on video games. It was only when the directing duo Phil Lord and Christopher Miller of Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs and 21 Jump Street became attached to the project, I immediately became interested in the film. Now that the film has been released, was I right to be initially skeptical or was I glad to have given the film a chance? I’m pleased to say it was definitely the latter.
The film is set in the city of Bricksburg and centers on a construction worker named Emmett. Emmett is so ordinary, he leaves an impact on nobody in his life. He always follows the instructions and never thinks outside the box. One day, he accidentally stumbles across The Piece of Resistance and discovers he is meant to fulfill a prophecy where he must become a Master Builder to save the world from the evil Lord Business, who plans to glue the world together.
In lesser hands, The LEGO Movie could have easily been the cynical cash-grab designed to sell toys that everybody expected it to be. While there is no denying the film will cause an increase in toy sales, Lord and Miller have crafted a film with a working heart that can match up to its big brain. It’s a movie that is bursting at the seams with creativity. Its sense of imagination is so infectious, it’s near-impossible to not give in to this bright, happy, colorful world. All the worlds within the LEGO universe are so diverse, it never feels repetitive when the film hopes from one world to the next.
Speaking of things being bright, happy, and colorful, the animation in this film is fantastic. The film seamlessly blends stop-motion animation and CG animation together so perfectly, it’s hard to distinguish the two. It’s so fascinating to see that everything in this movie is made of LEGOs. From the fire, water, and smoke. It’s even more satisfying to say the 3D in this film works to its advantage. I’m not a fan of the format for many good reasons and before this, I’ve only seen it be done right a few times (Avatar, Gravity, Frozen). 3D helps the audience fully immerse themselves in this world. I highly recommend seeing it in this format.
Of course, all of this would mean nothing if it didn’t have a good cast of characters to keep it engaging. There is not one unlikable character to be found here. They are all a lot of fun to watch because of their charismatic and differentiating personalities. The character out of all of them that made the biggest impact was Emmett. The character’s voice actor Chris Pratt totally sells him as an endearing person with his warm and down-to-earth personality. This makes him the character that is the easiest to relate to.
The movie had me convinced it was a good movie up until the third act. After that, I was convinced this was a great movie. I won’t spoil how it ends like some critics have unfortunately done, but I will say the plot twist completely changes the way you look at the film up until that point. It even helps the audience understand what a certain character was trying to do. Something like this is very risky to attempt, but in the end, it thankfully pays off and it emotionally resonates with the audience.
The bottom line is The LEGO Movie is a film for all ages. It has so much heart, soul and of course, brainpower. The characters are engaging. It is consistently funny throughout without undercutting the film’s more dramatic moments. The animation is eye-popping. But most importantly, the story speaks on imagination, identity, and conformity. It respects those who follow the rules and encourages those who are creative to never put boundaries on their imaginations. And that everybody is capable of creating something that can have an impact, no matter how ordinary they are. Everything is awesome, indeed.
Final rating: 9.5 out of 10.