Movie Review : The Lego Movie

Everybody's favorite miniature figures have finally made it to the big screen. Even with my age creeping towards 40 I looked forward to seeing this movie. Even though I don't play with the actual toys anymore I still love playing the video games that are based on them.

The story is about a "common" faced Lego named Emmet who is nothing "special" and is easily forgotten by his co-workers and so called friends. He lives day by day by the manual that was given to him and every other Lego in the city by President Business. On one particular day he comes across a young lady named Wlydestyle who is searching for something that we find out is called the Piece of Resistance. Emmet is informed by Wyldestyle and her mentor Vitruvius the wizard that President Business is really a bad guy trying to control everything Lego. Emmet joins up with the two and their fellow cohorts including all your favorite characters such as Batman, Superman and even Milhouse from the Simpsons to take down the President and his plans.

Bad Cop, who is the President's right hand man, is in close pursuit of Emmet and the gang as they have the Piece of Resistance and mean to use it against the President. Bad Cop chases them across various Lego lands trying to stop them but Emmet and friends take the fight all the way to President Business's front door. As things become bleak and the President has pushed back and is in control and Emmet is thought to be lost the film turns into something else completely that I didn't see happening.

Being a "kids" movie there could be no other ending but a happy one and that is what we are given with the movie twist being the reason behind it. Wrapped in a bow the movie ends with the inevitable sequel already being planned on and off screen.

VERDICT : With 20 minutes in or so I was slowly thinking that the movie was going to be a letdown but then Batman shows up. The movie does a complete 180 and all the inside adult jokes mixed with the kid jokes and visual ones brings my hope back. While Emmet is the focal character it is the supporting ones with their own "quirks" that make the movie. You have to be part geek to understand a lot of the understated jokes that you see or hear as if you don't know the source material you will probably not get some of it.

The ending while unexpected was a pleasant swerve that I didn't see coming in a kid's film but from my point of view it worked and I liked what they were trying to say there which were a few different things. If you like Legos, Batman and friends, cartoons or a combination of all of them then you will probably come out of the movie like me and give it a THUMBS UP to a viewing. While not one to own or see over and over again, for sure it is one to see at least once or at least that is what the kid in you probably thinks as mine did.