Alright, so let’s see if I can actually manage to review at least half of the movies that I put of my most anticipated list this year. Checking off one entry in that spot is The Lego Movie, and luckily, this one delivered on the anticipation that I held for it. The movie was 60% subversion of story clichés, 40% mind blowing twist, and 100% well made in every other area, and makes for one of the most fun and brilliant animated films to come out this decade. Made by the team that created Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and 21 Jump Street, The Lego Movie is already a qualifier for the best film based off of a toyline (though with the competition in that area, it’s not a hard competition to win).
The Lego Movie is the story of a Lego figure named Emmet played by Chris Pratt, a character who lacks any particular talents but is chosen to become the leader of a rebellion against the evil Lord Business, played by Will Farrell, and is joined by feisty rebel Wild Style, voiced by Elizabeth Banks, the wise blind shaman Vitruvius, voiced by Morgan Freeman, and Batman. Yes Batman is a main character in this movie, 10 out of 10, Best Picture of 2014, and he’s voiced by the amazing Will Arnett, which makes this appearance all the more wonderful. The story feels like the kind of adventure you’d have with your Legos as a child, with all the great products that the company has produced, having a slightly frantic tone in its witty and weird nature. They find natural ways to include characters from all over the Lego universe, almost none of the brands by the company go unrepresented, and every appearance of these brands results in some memorable characters and jokes. The story is ultimately basic for the first 2/3s, but by the time the third act rolls around we not only get an action set piece that rivals the best of superhero movies, we get a mindblowing twist that turns the entire movie on its head, turning the movie from just fun fare to outright intellectualism and meaning. Yes, it remains silly, but it is wildly smart about how silly it is.
What the movie does best is supply fantastic and memorable characters. Emmet is a fun protagonist who subverts the usual chosen one prophecy by being completely unimportant despite being the main character, the interpretation of Batman as a vain brooding idiot is a hilarious spin on the character, Vitruvius is a great parody of the wise man archetype, and the adorably weird Unikitty is a fantastic piece of satire towards the happy go lucky feeling of bright colored products and has some of the movies most memorable moments, and Charlie Day as the 1980’s Space Guy Benny is a one note joke that never stops being funny. On top of all that is Will Farrell putting in a shockingly good performance as the order freak antagonist Lord Business, and Liam Neeson pulling off a unique role as a the Good Cop/Bad Cop, with perhaps the greatest charm there being his happy Irish accent while he plays the Good Cop. Though I’d say the highlight character of the film is Banks’ Wild Style. She’s the most creative user of blocks in the film, and seemingly should be the chosen one for Emmet, but this mismatch ultimately helps with the message that the film culminates in. Wild Style (which isn’t actually her name by the way, that’s just what she calls herself) is a flawed and human feeling character, definitely having likable attributes, but having issues that can at least be understood by the audience. Her character is the one who goes through the clearest arc throughout the film, and is really the one who brings the movies message together. Just about every single character in this film has some kind of memorable moment, and is filled to the brim with lovable personality.
The animations and visuals of this movie are absolutely lovely. The whole world is constructed as if they were built by Lego’s, no cheating like how the Lego video games do by having some solid renderings. The whole movie looks like the ultimate lego playset, with nearly every setting having a detailed mechanic to how it was built. The animators aren’t just people who are programming CG renders to look like Lego blocks, they are literally playing and constructing with the blocks, and making the most intricate set ever made. All the characters are limited in range of how a lego figures movement ability allows, something that is demonstrated in the beginning of the film with a hilarious gag involving Jumping Jacks. The lego creations that are used throughout the film are interesting and for lack of a better phrase, look cool. I mean, I’d definitely buy a few models and….oh dear I just realized why this film was made.
Toy commercial or not, the Lego Movie is a lot of fun. It wasn’t made just to entertain kids, it was made for everyone, with strong characters, impressive visuals, and lessons that everyone can appreciate. The Lego Movie shows that if you actually bother to try, you can make a good movie out of anything. And despite my deep cynicism, this movie managed to give me so much enjoyment, so much laughter, and so much awe that all I can say about the movie has already been said by the film itself: “Everything is Awesome”.
Final Rank: A+
+Great characters, Great visuals, and a fun story make this movie better than a blatant toy commercial movie has any right to be
-Any sequel that comes out of this now mega successful film will never be able to match how good and smart this movie turned out to be
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