Rent The Lego Movie on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: Phil Lord & Christopher Miller (screenplay by), Dan Hageman & Kevin Hageman and Phil Lord & Christopher Miller (story by), Ole Kirk Christiansen and Godtfred Kirk Christiansen and Jens Nygaard Knudsen (based on LEGO Construction Toys created by)
Directed by: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller
Starring: Chris Pratt, Will Ferrell, Elizabeth Banks, Will Arnett, Nick Offerman, Alison Brie, Charlie Day, Liam Neeson, Morgan Freeman
Rated: PG
Watch the trailer
Plot
An ordinary LEGO construction worker, thought to be the prophesied as "special", is recruited to join a quest to stop an evil tyrant from gluing the LEGO universe into eternal stasis.
Verdict
Before this movie, I'm not sure I would have predicted a LEGO movie could capture the creativity and inventiveness of the toy. This does that while being fun and humorous. The movie makes me want to build with LEGO bricks, and it's also frequently very clever. By the end it's surprisingly touching. I can't imaging a better or more clever basis for a LEGO movie. It's absolutely great.
Watch It.
Review
How do you make a LEGO movie, a toy with no inherent story? This crafts such a fun and creative story while never feeling like a vehicle to sell toys. The animation is impressive with texture and streaks on the plastic bricks.
An introductory scene features Lord Business, a wizard, and a prophecy. Then we meet Emmett who loves life as a construction worker in this LEGO world. As he tells us, "Everything is awesome!" He inadvertently stumbles upon a unique LEGO block which causes everyone to think he is the chosen one, everyone except Emmett. He has no idea what's going on, just along for the ride. He isn't the master builder the others hoped to find, but one bonus is that his mind is so profoundly black that he easily received visions when touching the Piece of Resistance.
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| Emmett |
This is so creative and inventive, capturing the spirit of LEGO by always changing, rearranging, and inventing. The antithesis of LEGO bricks is the absence of creativity by preventing the rearranging of bricks and gluing them together permanently. That is the villain Lord Business's plan, glue everything together.
Despite Emmet's lack of experience and qualifications, he proposes an attack on Lord Business's office to stop the super weapon "Kragle" once and for all.
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| Wyldstyle, Emmett, Vitruvius |
When we see what this world is, that's such a neat moment. This LEGO world and reality cross over. The story we've been watching has unfolded in a child's imagination. Emmett delivers a big speech against Lord Business which is a stand in for this child delivering a speech to his father. The kid wants to play with LEGO blocks while his father sees them not as a toy but a piece to display. In the end LEGO brings a father and son together. As silly and humorous as this is, by the end it's overwhelmingly heartwarming.
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| Emmett, Batman |
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