Imagine a movie where a single scene features Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Gandalf the Grey, Dumbledore, Abraham Lincoln, and Michelangelo (the Ninja Turtle). I just about described the most epic movie of all time. And guess what? You get this and so much more in THE LEGO MOVIE, the first theatrical feature-length movie featuring the brick toys that have inspired building and imagination since the 1930s, and have grown in wider popularity since the 1980s. It’s hard to believe it’s taken this long for a movie like this to happen, but I’m happy to report it was worth the wait: THE LEGO MOVIE is AWESOME!
There’s so much epic awesomeness going on in THE LEGO MOVIE that makes it absolutely difficult to review. But before I get into that, let’s see what it’s about (according to IMDb): An ordinary LEGO minifigure, mistakenly thought to be the extraordinary MasterBuilder, is recruited to join a quest to stop an evil LEGO tyrant from gluing the universe together.
Basically, it’s an adventure of epic proportions: every day dude gets sucked into a mission with extraordinary characters to save the world. It’s not a new story, but it’s the perfect story for a movie like this. Before I get sidetracked on tangents about how cool all the different LEGO worlds are that are featured in THE LEGO MOVIE, or how well all the different characters mesh together, or how amazing the voice talent is, I’m gonna go ahead and split this review into sections.
Animation: Instead of going the CGI animation route as most animated movies are these days (as are all of the LEGO straight-to-video movies that are floating out there), they decided to go as old school as the toys themselves, by using stop motion animation. And it is the absolute perfect choice. It literally looks like real life LEGO pieces where used in the making of this movie, from the sets to the characters (figures), to the sky to the ocean and everything in between. This LEGO MOVIE was made with LEGOs and it looks fantastic. And it’s equally impressive as literally everthing is made using LEGOs. It’s awe-inspiring.
Story: I touched on it early, but the story here is really good. Sure, we’re seen it before, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way. And beyond the basic storyline, the details of the story are so utterly LEGO that its pretty effing genius. See, it’s all about that inner feud all those who love playing and building LEGOs face each and every day: building using instructions vs. building using just your imagination. You can go either way: they sell box sets of just LEGO pieces and box sets of designated designs with step-by-step instructions. If you’ve ever played with or have seen others play with LEGOs, you know exactly what I’m talking about. The whole movie is based around this inner LEGO-making conflict and it’s brilliant from start to finish. Seriously, you wanted a LEGO movie through and through, you have it here.
Characters If the scene I described above has you losing your shit, then just know that the whole movie is like that. Whether you’re familiar with the LEGO universe or pop culture or superheroes and sci-fi and fantasy movies, the film is filled with so many details and characters that it’s almost overwhelming (but none-the-less awesome). The best way to describe what amount of cool stuff and detail that goes on in THE LEGO MOVIE is to take the Grand Central Station scene in WRECK-IT RALPH where all the different video game characters are interacting with each other… and extended that for the entire movie! That’s what you get here. I don’t’ want to spoil it, but there’s a moment when certain characters make a cameo that I literally almost lost my shit due to it’s supreme awesomeness. And it’s moments like that which makes THE LEGO MOVIE an effin’ win from beginning to end.
Voices: Normally, I’d say the voices aren’t that important, but honestly, the voices make this movie. Chris Pratt, Morgan Freeman, Elizabeth Banks, Liam Neeson, Will Arnett, Will Ferrell, Alison Brie, Charlie Day, Jonah Hill, Nick Offerman and Shaquille O’Neal all lend their voices here and it’s almost a perfect mesh. You could say there’s too much, but honestly, everyone does such a good job here that it makes it an enjoyable experience from beginning to end.
Just like the film’s theme song ‘Everything is Awesome”, THE LEGO MOVIE is awesome from beginning to end. I can’t even think of anything I didn’t like, nor can I think of how they could have improved it. It’s fun for kids who play LEGOs now, it’s fun for adults who played LEGOs as kids, it’s fun for people who like adventures, who like animation, who like to laugh… basically, it’s a full-fledged crowd pleaser. And because it’s a kid’s movie, it has a solid take-home message that I really liked (believe in yourself and others will believe in you, and the power of imagination), and the finale that ties the whole film together was, once again, absolutely brilliant.
NOTE: Saw this flick in in 3D. Don’t waste your money on 3D with this one. Half the time I didn’t even notice it was in 3D and it would have been equally enjoyable (if not moreso) in 2D. There’s a cool opening sequence that worked with the 3D, but that’s about it.
All in all, I loved THE LEGO MOVIE and I can’t wait for THE LEGO MOVIE 2 (which they’ve already greenlit and have started on due to the overwhelming positive feedback from the first one).
Grade: A (for Awesome!)