Just hearing the
word “Lego” probably conjures up distinct childhood memories, ones that will no
doubt vary slightly from person to person. Some might remember digging into a
big bucket of those primary-colored plastic bricks and building elaborate
worlds out of whatever pieces you happened to pull out, while others may think
of the more modern branded Lego sets from the worlds of “Star Wars,” DC Comics,
or “Lord of the Rings” (among many others).
Such variety makes
basing a film on a toy like Lego somewhat difficult. With no set characters or
rules, or even a basic objective to playing with the toys (aside from, you
know, “build stuff”), where do you even begin? That wide-open freedom gave
writer-directors Chris Miller and Phil Lord (“Cloudy With a
Chance Of Meatballs” and “21 Jump Street”) license to do whatever they
wanted, and somehow they convinced Lego executives to sign off on it. From what
could easily have been a simple cash-grab designed to sell toys, Miller and
Lord have built — quite literally — a world of wit, humor, and imagination
that, despite it being only February, is likely to remain one of my favorite
films of the year.
The film’s hero is Emmet (Chris Pratt, TV’s “Parks and Recreation”), an
ordinary, mild-mannered construction-worker Lego who is content to abide the rules,
follow instructions, and fit into the cheerfully oppressive, homogenous culture
that President Business (Will Ferrell), the leader of the Lego universe, has
created. But then Emmet meets a mysterious woman by
the name of Wyldstyle (Elizabeth Banks), who believes
him to be “The Special,” the one person prophesied to save their world from
total annihilation at the hands of the evil Lord Business. Wyldstyle
recruits Emmet to join her fellow “Master Builders,”
including Batman (a hilariously deadpan Will Arnett) and a wise old sage named
Vitruvius (Morgan Freeman, gamely poking fun at the wise leader role he’s
played dozens of times before) in defeating the nefarious plot of Lord
Business.
The story is exactly
as nonsensical as it sounds, acting as parody of the standard “ordinary man
plucked from obscurity to save the world” adventure plot. Lord and Miller load
the film with rapid-fire jokes and clever details — this is a film that will
definitely reward repeat viewings — but also manage to work in some
surprisingly profound beliefs about the nature of creativity and play. The film
finds an ingenious way to make the idea that there’s no right way to play with
Lego into a crucial component of the story. This plot point leads the film to
make some rather risky choices in its third act, which may divide viewers,
though there are plenty of signs throughout that hint where the film might be
headed.
The film is computer
animated. But under the guidance of animation director Chris McKay, of “Robot
Chicken” fame, the animators attempted to duplicate the jerky movement of stop
motion, so the film appears as though it were made using actual Lego pieces.
Everything in the film’s universe is made of Lego, from the buildings
(naturally) all the way to explosions and ocean waves, and the directors
encouraged the animators to digitally build these elements brick by brick, so
technically it’s entirely possible to build everything you see in the movie
(though apparently it would take more than 15 million individual Lego pieces,
so it may take you awhile). The effect is only enhanced with the use of 3D,
which makes it seem that we’re watching the toys come to life.
“The Lego Movie”
mixes a fun, clever screenplay, amazing animation, and a hilarious voice cast,
making for a wacky and delightfully weird film. Like some of the best moments
from the “Toy Story” films, it captures the feeling of dumping all your toys on
the living-room carpet and seeing where your imagination takes you.
This article appears in Feb 5-11, 2014.
