Cinema: The LEGO Movie

Summary
The protagonist of the movie is Emmet (Chris Pratt of Parks and Recreation), just your everyday, average LEGO figurine who loves being around other people but lacks notable special qualities. When he stumbles across a conspiracy to destroy his world and home, he is forced to become the savior of the universe and unites with other LEGO figurines Wyldstyle (Elizabeth Banks of The Hunger Games series), Vitruvius (Morgan Freeman), and even Batman (Will Arnett of Arrested Development) to foil the schemes of the evil Lord Business (Will Farrel) and his lieutenant Bad Cop (Liam Neeson).
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Ah...LEGO. I think every kid before, in, and after my generation has played with them in one form or another. Whether they played with the actual bricks and figures, watched LEGO cartoons on TV, or played various LEGO video games, those good old construction toys never let us down with their creativity. Of course for me it's been quite a while since I last played any of those, so when they announced a full-length LEGO movie to be released in cinemas, I was puzzled at what they could possibly do with the idea.

I had seen various trailers and didn't know what to make of it. At a glance it looked like a random, silly and stupid movie with jokes, the fun of different licensed LEGO properties being in the same movie, and random moments that don't really connect with anything or make sense. I decided to see it for the heck of it and went in with no expectations.

What I got was something completely unexpected: A really fun, good, and enjoyable movie that had more layers of depth to it than I imagined. At a first glance we've seen this story before; the nothing guy becoming the ultimate hero to save the universe. For me that is the only determent since it's forced to use a plot we've seen tons of times in other stories. But everything else is pretty solid.

First, the setting and the world it takes place in. What sets this apart from other LEGO media with story is the fact that they know its LEGO. They know that this movie is about construction toys and they go all out. It takes place in a city, the Wild West, a medieval kingdom, etc. Practically everything that is not the sky or natural landscapes is completely LEGO. The animals are LEGO, the plants are LEGO, the water is LEGO, even lava is LEGO. It's 99% pure LEGO fantasy and it really sucks you in. It is this factor that really helps the movie and makes the story (at a first glance) unique. They know that it's a silly idea and silly concept and they don't take themselves way too seriously. When the characters are stuck in a situation, they know that they can get out of it; they can make anything out of LEGOs!

A motorcycle out of parts of a building, lampposts, trash cans and discarded wheels? Can do!
A submarine made out of ruined homes? Definitely!
Attaching a wagon wheel to the top of your head so it becomes a makeshift car wheel? Yes!

Secondly, the characters. None of the characters are out of place in the movie. They all play their parts and are completely memorable. Emmet is a positive upbeat guy that's content with being a face in the crowd, but he's willing to his best to save the world. Wyldstyle is your no-nonsense action girl that yearns to be the best. Vitruvius is your usual crazy cooky old wizard, Batman knows he's Batman and enjoyable overplays the character, and other characters like UniKitty, 1980's-something-space-guy, and Metalbeard all have their moments too. The villains too are enjoyable. Lord Business and Bad Cop are great villains but are not overly dark, moody or killjoys. They have their humorous moments too that actually make you sympathize with them.

And of course, being LEGO and having tons of licenses, they have a lot of fun with the characters and go nuts. If you ever wanted a movie with Batman, Gandalf, Milhouse, Michelangelo the painter, Superman, Abraham Lincoln, Han Solo, Speed Racer, Wonder Woman, Dumbledore, Shaq, and Michelangelo the Ninja Turtle, this is it!

Thirdly, the animation. Those who have read my past reviews on my Facebook may know that I usually don't care for animation. I'm not one of those folks that prefer hand-drawn over everything else and whatnot. For me, if it works, it works. And while it worked for me in this movie, I actually found the animation to be one of its strong points. A common misconception is that this movie is stop-motion. It's not, it's CGI, but the way it looks and feels, it might as well be stop-motion. Kudos to the animation department for going the extra mile to make it look like the actual toys are coming to life and movie around, while still have a bit of stiffness to it.

Lastly, the theme. This is where the movie really surprised me and where the major core of the story lies. In the movie, Emmet sacrifices himself to save his friends from death, and throws himself into a void. It is then revealed that the LEGO world, characters, story and himself is actually a vision of a young boy's imagination in real life. This boy is actually playing with his father's (Will Farrel in live action) perfectly made, by-the-numbers LEGO sets, which the father is aghast at. We can clearly see the focal point of the movie and the connection: the plot of Lord Business to superglue the LEGO world together and make everything perfect is an allegory of the real-life-father's desire to keep his LEGO sets untouched and according to set and instructions. The real-life-boy's desire to play with all of them and creatively make something new is exemplified in Emmet, who helps his friends and the LEGO world fight back by creating amazing objects out of ordinary LEGOs and from different sets all around.

The message boils down to what makes LEGOs fun to begin with: The ability to be creative and go beyond the instructions. You can be who you want to be, make whatever you want, create anything because your imagination makes you special. And everyone is special one way or another. The father sees this when his son is acting out the movie's story with various creations made out of different LEGO sets. In the end, the two reconcile and the father sees the error of his ways. It's a nice message that can hit home to both the child and adult viewers, in particular those who have played with LEGO.
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Final Thoughts
Aside from the old cliche of the nobody becoming a somebody, The LEGO Movie is just a really great movie. It's a movie that goes above and beyond a film about toy construction bricks, has a great cast of characters, amazing CGI animation, and has a large and surprising depth and heart to it that most animated movies wish they can have. If you have played with LEGO yourself, this is the movie for you. If you have a child who plays with LEGO, they will enjoy it. It's definitely worth your time and money. My personal cinema experience for 2014 so far is off to a good start.

****/5 STARS

Oh, and one final note. The McDonalds Happy Meal promotion for this movie is to give freaking drinking cups? FAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIL!!!!!!!