Movie Review: The Lego Movie

So maybe you're not a Lego fan or maybe you're not a fan of animated films but some of you out there still haven't seen The Lego Movie yet. In fact, I was a member of that group until last night. Now, there has been a lot of hype surrounding this movie leading up to it's release and that hype has only grown since then. With outstanding reviews from critics and regular movie going audience-folk alike being wildly positive, it would be really easy to be disappointed by a movie with such buildup. So how was it?
The Good

In terms of an action-comedy, The Lego Movie delivers. It's humor is subtle and quirky at times and outright goofy at others and while some of the jokes normally would be barely chuckle worthy, hearing respected voice actors like Morgan Freeman and Liam Neeson delivering lines like "He's coming. Cover your butts" draws the laughs out of you. You'll recognize tons of great comedic voices here too from Will Ferrell as the villain, Lord Business, to smaller parts like the Green Lantern, voiced by Jonah Hill. The Lego Movie is a fairly good movie just on those merits, period; but that's not what makes it stand out.

Growing up, I was never much of a Lego fan. My time was spent more with action figures and Ghostbusters back packs. Not that I never tried to get into them because I did; but something about the vast, endless possibilities scared me. Sure, I had directions and things they told me I could do, but then I'd see a friend whip up something totally original in 3 minutes. Not to mention that perfect picture on the front of the box that mocked us all.

The Lego Movie manages to capture this dynamic perfectly. Our hero, Emmet, is a direction follower and the world in which he lives looks just like the front of the Lego box: everything in order according to the directions. Before long, though, Emmet finds himself thrust into the world of the master builders. He must, as the wise mentor Vitruvious puts it, create the directions in his mind. It's this, the soul of my experience with Legos, that makes this a standout movie and far more than a cash in on a brand of toys.

Also, the ending is pretty great.

The Bad

This movie was made (almost) entirely in Lego. The water, the ground, the bullets flying out of guns, it's all Legos. Going into it, I worried that this would give me a claustrophobic feeling, instead it just made me a little dizzy. This only lasted for about twenty minutes while my brain adjusted, but that's twenty minutes I could have spent, living my life not feeling dizzy; but hey, not everyone will feel that way and, to be honest, I'm nitpicking.

The only other negative I would mention is the length. The movie is 100 minutes, which isn't that bad, but it feels like you're at the end three different times. I found myself growing tired of the "all is lost" trope as there were three such moments in a length of twenty minutes. I feel it could have been shaved down to 85 or 90 minutes and not much would have been lost.

The Verdict

A stellar voice cast delivering smart comedy and a keen understanding of Legos themselves definitely overcome any technical problems I had with this movie. In short, there's no reason you shouldn't see this movie!