The Lego Movie

"Excellent"

The Lego Movie Review


Inventive visuals and a seriously deranged script make this animated adventure far more enjoyable than we expect, especially as it brings out the childish creativity in everyone watching. Filmmakers Lord and Miller are experts at finding offbeat comedy in the most surprising places (see Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs or 21 Jump Street). And this movie is often jaw-droppingly entertaining.

It's set in a Lego city where construction worker Emmet (voiced by Pratt) follows instructions to the letter. Like everyone else, he has been lulled into complacency by President Business (Ferrell), whose inanely catchy pop songs (the insanely hummable Everything Is Awesome!) and mindless TV shows (Where Are My Pants?) keep people from thinking creatively. He's also concocting an insidious plan involving a secret weapon called the Kragle. Then Emmet inadvertently discovers the Piece of Resistance and is declared "The Special" by the underground rebel alliance led by Wyldstyle (Banks) and Vitruvius (Freeman). With help from Batman (Arnett), a patched-up pirate (Offerman) and a groovy kitty (Brie), they go off-grid to save their civilisation, pursued by the president's vicious enforcer (Neeson).

As the story spirals from the city to the Wild West and Cloud Cuckoo Land, it develops an insane, free-wheeling tone that can't help but spark our imaginations. And the sassy 3D animation adds to this by evoking surreal stop-motion classics like Gumby or The Magic Roundabout while referencing other movies and playing merrily with iconic characters. Hill, Smulders and Tatum turn up as a trio of frustrated superheroes, while Daniels and Williams offer a bit of Star Wars silliness. All of the vocal cast members dive into their characters with energy, bringing out the warped humour and pulling us into the action and even some emotional moments.

Visually, the film looks astonishing, as everything seems to be rendered in Lego, including water and smoke. This may make the film look blocky, but it also adds a blast of imagination that reminds us that creativity is unlimited when you get your hands on a pile of Legos. Some action sequences are too frenetic for us to follow, and the general insanity of the plot sometimes wears us down. But it's such a riotous ride that we hang on and laugh, engaging with the characters in ways that bring out much bigger themes without resorting to sentimentality. Most of all, the film reminds us that no matter how old we are, we can still tap into our childhood curiosity.

Watch 'The Lego Movie' Trailer



The Lego Movie

Facts and Figures

Genre: Animation

Run time: 100 mins

In Theaters: Friday 7th February 2014

Box Office USA: $257.8M

Box Office Worldwide: $373.1M

Budget: $60M

Distributed by: Warner Bros. Pictures

Production compaines: Village Roadshow Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Comics, LEGO, Animal Logic, Warner Animation Group

Reviews

Contactmusic.com: 4 / 5

Rotten Tomatoes: 96%
Fresh: 192 Rotten: 9

IMDB: 7.9 / 10

Cast & Crew

Director: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller

Producer: Roy Lee, Dan Lin

Starring: as Batman / Bruce Wayne (voice), as Wyldstyle / Lucy (voice), Craig Berry as Blake / Additional Voices (voice), as Unikitty (voice), David Burrows as Octan Robot / Additional Voices (voice), as C-3PO (voice), as Benny (voice), Amanda Farinos as Mom (voice), Keith Ferguson as Han Solo (voice), as Lord Business (voice) / President Business (voice) / The Man Upstairs, as Abraham Lincoln (voice) (as Orville Forte), as Wally (voice), as Vitruvius (voice), Todd Hansen as Gandalf / Additional Voices (voice), as Green Lantern (voice), as Barry (voice) (as Jake Johnson), as Foreman Jim (voice), Kelly Lafferty as Lord Business' Assistant (voice), Chris McKay as Larry the Barista / Additional Voices (voice), Christopher Miller as TV Presenter (voice), Graham Miller as Duplo (voice), as Bad Cop/ Good Cop / Pa Cop (voice), Doug Nicholas as Surfer Dave / Additional Voices (voice), as Shaq (voice), as Metal Beard (voice), Chris Paluszek as Robot Foreman (voice), as Emmet Brickowski (voice), as Joe (voice), Jadon Sand as Finn, as Wonder Woman (voice), Melissa Sturm as Gail / Ma Cop (voice), as Shakespeare / Additional Voices (voice), as Superman (voice), as Lando (voice), Leiki Veskimets as Voice of Computer (voice)

Contactmusic


Links


New Movies

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Movie Review

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Movie Review

After the thunderous reception for J.J. Abrams' Episode VII: The Force Awakens two years ago,...

Daddy's Home 2 Movie Review

Daddy's Home 2 Movie Review

Like the 2015 original, this comedy plays merrily with cliches to tell a silly story...

The Man Who Invented Christmas Movie Review

The Man Who Invented Christmas Movie Review

There's a somewhat contrived jauntiness to this blending of fact and fiction that may leave...

Ferdinand Movie Review

Ferdinand Movie Review

This animated comedy adventure is based on the beloved children's book, which was published in...

Brigsby Bear Movie Review

Brigsby Bear Movie Review

Director Dave McCary makes a superb feature debut with this offbeat black comedy, which explores...

Battle of the Sexes Movie Review

Battle of the Sexes Movie Review

A dramatisation of the real-life clash between tennis icons Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs,...

Shot Caller Movie Review

Shot Caller Movie Review

There isn't much subtlety to this prison thriller, but it's edgy enough to hold the...

Advertisement
The Disaster Artist Movie Review

The Disaster Artist Movie Review

A hilariously outrageous story based on real events, this film recounts the making of the...

Stronger Movie Review

Stronger Movie Review

Based on a true story about the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, this looks like one...

Only the Brave Movie Review

Only the Brave Movie Review

Based on a genuinely moving true story, this film undercuts the realism by pushing its...

Wonder Movie Review

Wonder Movie Review

This film may be based on RJ Palacio's fictional bestseller, but it approaches its story...

Happy End  Movie Review

Happy End Movie Review

Austrian auteur Michael Haneke isn't known for his light touch, but rather for hard-hitting, award-winning...

Patti Cake$ Movie Review

Patti Cake$ Movie Review

Seemingly from out of nowhere, this film generates perhaps the biggest smile of any movie...

The Limehouse Golem Movie Review

The Limehouse Golem Movie Review

A Victorian thriller with rather heavy echoes of Jack the Ripper, this film struggles to...

Advertisement
Artists
Actors
    Filmmakers
      Artists
      Bands
        Musicians
          Artists
          Celebrities
             
              Artists
              Interviews