Should you watch this at weekend movie ticket prices? Yes!
Secret ending? No (but stay back to listen to the songs in the credits!)
Running time: 100 minutes (~ 1.5 hours)
“The Lego Movie” is an adventure movie which revolves around the eponymous Lego toys, where various Lego characters and other licensed Lego minifigures band together to save the Lego universe. It features the voice talents of Parks and Recreation cast Chris Pratt & Nick Offerman, as well as Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson, and Cobie Smulders.
(Image from Forbes)
I liked it. And I don’t think there’s anyone who dislikes it! It’s probably the best movie of 2014, although I won’t quite call it a perfect movie. But for anyone who has played with Lego (and who hasn’t?), it’ll fire up your imagination and make you want to go back and dig out your Lego sets to continue the rip roaring adventure of “The Lego Movie.”
So what’s good about “The Lego Movie?”
The story is fast-paced
There’s nary a dull moment. Things just keep happening at a breakneck pace, and the great thing is that you get to visit all the different (Lego) sets that make up the universe of “The Lego Movie.” And the visuals are pretty spectacular by Lego standards!
The animation looks like macro Lego photography
The Lego surfaces are textured the way used toys are! In the sense that there are dents and scratches along the surface, the way real Lego pieces would be! Also, you can see paint scuffs on their little minifigure faces! Again, just like how a well-loved toy would have wear and tear.
As a person who regularly views the macro photography of Seibertron and does some small measure of toy photography, it enhances the believability and realism of the Lego universe, in the sense that this could have happened to my toys! Just like Toy Story. Which segues nicely into the events of Act 3 of the movie.
(Image from We The Nerdy)
Tongue-in-cheek dialogue
The dialogue is witty, punny, and full of tongue-in-cheek pop culture references. Considering the secondary target demographic (the first target demographic being kids, remember!) would be pop culture fans, this is an incredibly apt way to layer a second, adult level of jokes above the basic humour level that comes with being a movie about toys.
It’s “real”
As mentioned earlier, the visuals (scuffed paintwork and dinged textures) contribute to the idea that this could happen to your very own Lego sets. But the best part is that it actually carries a moral, a lesson learnt that is grounded in reality (our human reality). And it’s this connection that will ultimately lead to a strong rapport between adults and kids, parents and children, post “The Lego Movie.”
(Image from Geek Tyrant)
But as mentioned earlier, it’s not a perfect movie. What’s preventing it from getting a 100% approval rating and my undying Lego loyalty?
The ending was not satisfying
It’s a good attempt to meld the real world events with what was happening in the Lego universe, but the trouble is that Lord Business and Emmett didn’t have any parent-child relationship. So the way Lord Business gets defeated isn’t very compelling, and is a bit of a let down.
(Image from Business Insider)
Nevertheless, it’s not a flaw that would detract you from your enjoyment of the movie. And it ends on a pretty fun cliffhanger that sets up the premise for the next sequel.
Go watch “The Lego Movie!”
This is an original article on marcusgohmarcusgoh.com.
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I’m an independent scriptwriter who’s written for popular shows like Lion Mums, Crimewatch, Police & Thief, and Incredible Tales. I’m also a Transformers enthusiast and avid pop culture scholar. You can find me on social media as Optimarcus and on my site.
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The Lego Movie has enough wit and wisdom to send a recession-age message to families on the importance of thinking through problems with creativity.