EVERYTHING IS AWESOME!
Once this movie is over, that song will be playing over and over in your head.
The Plot
A seemingly ordinary construction worker mini-figure (LEGO person voiced by Chris Pratt) discovers that he just might be, "The Special," the one destined to save the Lego World from the evil Lord Business (voiced by Will Ferell). He will need the help of a powerful rebel (Elizabeth Banks), a wise hippie wizard (Morgan Freeman), an iconic superhero (Will Arnett), a magical cat (Alison Brie), a gigantic pirate (Nick Offerman), and a 1980s something space guy (Charlie Day) to take on the terrible power that Lord Business plans to unleash!
Analysis
If there is one thing that directors Chris Miller and Phil Lord excel at, it is the theme of "the absurd and the heart." What I mean by that is they have pretty much done films that borderline the absurd comedies during the era of Airplane and Top Secret! There have been many films that try to do the absurd reality comedy route these days but always seem to lose sight of what it is that made those comedies work: the heart.
This is what makes their comedy style so distinctive because they are able to have these absurd characters in these absurd realities yet not lose sight of what message they are trying to convey. And that message can be a simple one like brotherhood in 21 and 22 Jump Street to believing in one's self in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. While very simplistic in message, they are powerful if handled correctly. Especially with an absurd concept of food raining from the sky or an extreme satire of the reboot/remake craze that has been going on, it is important to always find simplicity to keeps the audience locked into the absurdity.
And The Lego Movie is even more absurd than anything that Lord and Miller have done, and I am counting their animated show Clone High. But like I said, they know where the heart of this story is and again it is simple. Which works well in what the film really is about.
Review
There are so many things that can go wrong with this movie and so many misinterpretation of what is this movie's purpose is. First, this movie can be seen as one big gigantic toy commercial (which in all out honesty let's face it, it is) that could easily be grouped with the likes of Michael Bay's Transformers or the G.I. Joe films. Also it sounds and looks like a silly kids film. The same thing can be said about Lord and Miller's other movies. Yet by some miracle, this "big gigantic toy commercial" is also a genuine movie!
Lord and Miller have crafted a story that definitely speaks to many generations, especially those who grew up playing with legos. They acknowledge the two kinds of people who buy legos: the creative builders and the instruction based builders. It is this acknowledgement of those who follow the instructions and those who revel in imagination is what proves to be a powerful essential theme of the film. The idea of revolving the movie around that dynamic alone is what makes this movie so brilliant. Not only do they have a product to convey large concepts, but the product is so heavily based in those large concepts without people realizing it. Though while it may be a large concept of creativity versus conformity it is a fairly simple concept that does not hurt the film for being to simple but empowers it.
The voice casting in this film is top notch. 2014 just might be the year of the Pratt because Chris Pratt is gaining huge momentum in Hollywood as of late. If this is the first film to define his career this year then it is a fine edition. He does so well as the lovable yet gullible hero, Emmett, who is so concerned about pleasing everyone that you really feel for the guy when he realizes that maybe he tries to please too much without thinking about what's best for him. Then there's Elizabeth Banks as Wyldstyle the rebellious "Master Builder" who displays a powerful front that hides an insecurity that Banks is able to convey so well just through vocal performance. Then of course you have Morgan Freeman playing the wise wizard Vitruvius who makes fun of the fact that he is always playing these wise characters as well as pokes fun of his iconic voice. Will Ferell does well as the evil President Lord Business but there is more to his performance that really makes him a standout in the film. Too bad I can't say what it is, but when you see it, you will know what I mean.
Will Arnett as Batman is hilarious, Alison Brie as Uni-Kitty is adorable, and Charlie Day as Benny the Space guy was just laugh out loud hilarious but the standout here has to be Liam Neeson as Bad Cop/Good Cop. That's right, Liam Neeson is in this movie with Morgan Freeman. And Liam Neeson finally shows a side that we don't often associate with him: a very high pitched almost squeaky voice as Good Cop. Of course his iconic gravelly voice is used for Bad Cop, but his ability to switch back and forth between the two characters is incredible and unbelievable that this is coming from Liam Neeson.
The animation in this film is gorgeous. The painstaking detail it took to ensure that everything in this film is created by existing lego pieces (except the ones used for original characters) is tremendous! Yes the film is CGI but it is the same CGI program used design the models for the actual toy company that was then transferred to Australian animation company, Animal Logic, to use as a tool for cinematic greatness. It is animated to be like a stop motion film and there is indeed some portions where it is animated in the classic "Brick Film" way, but the fact that it is dominantly CGI does not take away from it feeling real.
Final Thoughts
This is truly one of the smartest animated films to have come out in a long time. It is relentlessly funny. So relentless that you'll have to see it a couple of time to see all the jokes you might've missed the first time. It is truly a family film and a smart one that doesn't need to dumb things down for the kids to understand. This is definitely one of the best animated movies of the year so far.
SCORE: 9.7/10 - Relentless and heartwarming all at the same time
Analysis
If there is one thing that directors Chris Miller and Phil Lord excel at, it is the theme of "the absurd and the heart." What I mean by that is they have pretty much done films that borderline the absurd comedies during the era of Airplane and Top Secret! There have been many films that try to do the absurd reality comedy route these days but always seem to lose sight of what it is that made those comedies work: the heart.
This is what makes their comedy style so distinctive because they are able to have these absurd characters in these absurd realities yet not lose sight of what message they are trying to convey. And that message can be a simple one like brotherhood in 21 and 22 Jump Street to believing in one's self in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. While very simplistic in message, they are powerful if handled correctly. Especially with an absurd concept of food raining from the sky or an extreme satire of the reboot/remake craze that has been going on, it is important to always find simplicity to keeps the audience locked into the absurdity.
And The Lego Movie is even more absurd than anything that Lord and Miller have done, and I am counting their animated show Clone High. But like I said, they know where the heart of this story is and again it is simple. Which works well in what the film really is about.
Review
There are so many things that can go wrong with this movie and so many misinterpretation of what is this movie's purpose is. First, this movie can be seen as one big gigantic toy commercial (which in all out honesty let's face it, it is) that could easily be grouped with the likes of Michael Bay's Transformers or the G.I. Joe films. Also it sounds and looks like a silly kids film. The same thing can be said about Lord and Miller's other movies. Yet by some miracle, this "big gigantic toy commercial" is also a genuine movie!
Lord and Miller have crafted a story that definitely speaks to many generations, especially those who grew up playing with legos. They acknowledge the two kinds of people who buy legos: the creative builders and the instruction based builders. It is this acknowledgement of those who follow the instructions and those who revel in imagination is what proves to be a powerful essential theme of the film. The idea of revolving the movie around that dynamic alone is what makes this movie so brilliant. Not only do they have a product to convey large concepts, but the product is so heavily based in those large concepts without people realizing it. Though while it may be a large concept of creativity versus conformity it is a fairly simple concept that does not hurt the film for being to simple but empowers it.
The voice casting in this film is top notch. 2014 just might be the year of the Pratt because Chris Pratt is gaining huge momentum in Hollywood as of late. If this is the first film to define his career this year then it is a fine edition. He does so well as the lovable yet gullible hero, Emmett, who is so concerned about pleasing everyone that you really feel for the guy when he realizes that maybe he tries to please too much without thinking about what's best for him. Then there's Elizabeth Banks as Wyldstyle the rebellious "Master Builder" who displays a powerful front that hides an insecurity that Banks is able to convey so well just through vocal performance. Then of course you have Morgan Freeman playing the wise wizard Vitruvius who makes fun of the fact that he is always playing these wise characters as well as pokes fun of his iconic voice. Will Ferell does well as the evil President Lord Business but there is more to his performance that really makes him a standout in the film. Too bad I can't say what it is, but when you see it, you will know what I mean.
Will Arnett as Batman is hilarious, Alison Brie as Uni-Kitty is adorable, and Charlie Day as Benny the Space guy was just laugh out loud hilarious but the standout here has to be Liam Neeson as Bad Cop/Good Cop. That's right, Liam Neeson is in this movie with Morgan Freeman. And Liam Neeson finally shows a side that we don't often associate with him: a very high pitched almost squeaky voice as Good Cop. Of course his iconic gravelly voice is used for Bad Cop, but his ability to switch back and forth between the two characters is incredible and unbelievable that this is coming from Liam Neeson.
The animation in this film is gorgeous. The painstaking detail it took to ensure that everything in this film is created by existing lego pieces (except the ones used for original characters) is tremendous! Yes the film is CGI but it is the same CGI program used design the models for the actual toy company that was then transferred to Australian animation company, Animal Logic, to use as a tool for cinematic greatness. It is animated to be like a stop motion film and there is indeed some portions where it is animated in the classic "Brick Film" way, but the fact that it is dominantly CGI does not take away from it feeling real.
Final Thoughts
This is truly one of the smartest animated films to have come out in a long time. It is relentlessly funny. So relentless that you'll have to see it a couple of time to see all the jokes you might've missed the first time. It is truly a family film and a smart one that doesn't need to dumb things down for the kids to understand. This is definitely one of the best animated movies of the year so far.
SCORE: 9.7/10 - Relentless and heartwarming all at the same time
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