Directed and Co-written by Phil Lord and Chris Miller, ‘The Lego Movie’ is the story of an ordinary construction worker who discovers he is destined to save the world.
Set in Bricksburg is the tale of regular old Emmet, who goes from his everyday life to discovering he’s the ‘Special’ and that he must stop the evil ‘President Business’ from destroying the world with the deadly ‘Kragle’. Along the way Emmet travels to The Old West, Cloud Cookie Land and the evil Octan Tower, whilst finding himself caught in a love triangle between himself, Wyldstyle and, ummm… Batman.
The voice performances are all top draw, from the naive innocence of Chris Pratt playing Emmet, Elizabeth Banks’ heroine Wyldstyle to Will Ferrell’s villainous President Business, along with a hilariously droll Morgan Freeman as Vitruvius.
For one of the most culturally mainstream and commercially successful toy companies of all time to produce a movie that is inherently anti-mainstream and countercultural is astonishing. The plot is basically Toy Story 3 meets The Matrix, but all great stories are based on archetypes and this film is no different.
Parents thinking The Lego Movie is just another animated turkey they’ll have to sit through for the sake of their kids are in for a pleasant surprise. This film is sharp, witty, satirical, sarcastic, silly and daft. For a film based on a children’s toy it is clearly written for a family audience with plenty of laughs for both adults and children alike.
The visuals are as inventive as they are spectacular, with a fully realised world that seems to have been handed over to a hyperactive child. It genuinely does look wonderful and needs to be seen on the big screen.
For all the great performances, for all the great visuals, what is truly great about this film is that it is downright hilarious. There are more gags per minute in The Lego Movie then you will ever find in your typical gross out comedy bore fest. The fact that it is able to throw in all those great visuals and countercultural references without detracting from the overall story and most importantly the laughs, is amazing.
There are also a couple of great twists in the movie which give the film an emotional touch that it may otherwise have lacked. As a result this film is up there with Pixar and Aardman’s best work.
What could have easily been another terrible toy spin off turns out to be one of best animated movies in years. It is a genuine blockbuster that everyone needs to see because in The Lego Movie, Everything Is Awesome!
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