Growing up, my cousin had a twenty pound container of Lego bricks that could serve as a tub for a small child. I would sit in the tub uncomfortable, yet happy, searching relentlessly for orphan Lego mini-figure heads to stack on top of each other, creating a wand. Legos have always been a major part of my childhood and young adolescence. When I was about thirteen-years-old, suffering a minor injury in the hospital, my mother bought me a Harry Potter Lego castle play-set. Having a mission with the directions to complete the castle’s construction was satisfying, and kept my mind off my current state of health.
I was reintroduced to another twenty pound container of Legos, owned by a friend of mine, about a year ago. He had brought the container back from a visit from home and we shared similar memories of sitting in these tubs. Together we made up more offensive stories than I had as a child with my cousin. Perhaps a shark would attack a mini-figure resembling Samuel L. Jackson. Or maybe a ship from a Pirates of the Caribbean play-set would explode and kill all the giraffes on deck.
When I heard that there would be a Lego movie, I was skeptical. I had a feeling that once I watched the movie, a part of my childhood memories could be diminished. I enjoyed creating my own stories with Legos. I was not interested in having a story played out for me. A movie creating a story with the blocks seemed to defeat the point of these toys, which was to build something yourself with provided directions or your mind’s directions.
My decision to see the movie was a masochistic desire to diminish my childhood…or, at least, to see if the quality of the film was synonymous with the product’s standards. The Lego Group has held their product to the highest since the company’s inception in 1949. The pieces are manufactured at particular temperatures using quality molds. Their markup price is generally higher than other block toys. However, over the past nine years, their price has stayed pretty consistent in the United States. I could not imagine they would want a film bearing their name to anything but bolster their sales and emphasize the fun and utility in their product on the big screen. And, knowing the directors of the film were Christopher Miller and Phil Lord, creators of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and 21 Jump Street, I knew seeing the movie could not be that much of a mistake.
I may have been the oldest person without a child gracing the reclining theater seats, but I soon discovered that the movie is undoubtedly adult and child friendly. There are definite hints of violence and romance in this film; however, these elements are not over-saturating and coincide well. The story centers around a construction worker Lego mini-figure named Emmet Brickowoski (Chris Pratt) who lives in Bricksburg. This is a city operated by the dictator President Business (Will Ferrell) who strictly controls the city to the point of complete regulation. Emmet gets tied up in a frenzy when he is mistaken for the Master Builder by a mystic named Vitruvius (Morgan Freeman). He is assigned to defeat the leader President Business (Will Ferrell) and his Henchman Good Cop/Bad Cop (Liam Neeson), who have created a strict society of minions and aim to permanently seal the city with glue. Emmet struggles with his “conscience” and “feelings“ of inadequacy related to his inability to build, seeing as he is not the Master Builder. Many other Lego figures serve as allies to the mission, such as Shaquille O’Neal, Abraham Lincoln, Green Lantern (Jonah Hill), Wonder Woman, Batman (Will Arnett), Harry Potter, and Superman, among others.
Naturally, I thought a lot about the anatomical nature of a Lego mini-figure itself. In the film, the mini-figures burn like humans when lit on fire, as opposed to the reality of burning a Lego, which would result in melted plastic and an off-putting stench. It was also mentioned that Legos have internal organs—their heads could be chopped off with razors! I had never thought about the insides of Lego pieces, though in the stories I created as a child, they could die, and many times they did.
What was truly beautiful about the film was the creators’ ability to capture the nuances of Legos. For example, the clothes were too large for the figures’ bodies, which is always the case whether they were painted on or separate clothing items you put on the figure. All of the pieces were proportionate in size to the bodies and the same sizes as the few standard bricks I had remembered. The bulk of the film was created with a stunning mélange of extremely liberally-used CGI and stop motion by Australian company Animal Logic. Viewing the film in 3D had me feel as if bricks were being thrown at me, which is an actual event that has happened. In a way, it was like being in a very stimulating time capsule. The movie was also non-nauseatingly humorous, laced with subtle puns and entertaining accidents such as many small fires and vehicle collisions.
Recent controversy has surrounded the film. Fox Business host Chris Payne said the film is “anti-capitalist and business” because of the choice of a CEO, Mr. President, as the villain. He even went as far as to say it was bad for America’s children because of this message. It is claimed in the same news segment that the character Mr. President is the Lego equivalent of Mitt Romney. It is apparent that not all criticism has to makes sense. I believe that it is important to highlight the messages of encouragement in this film. It is said many times to Emmet “You can do it!” when he feels discouraged. That is a good message to transmit to an audience of people and Lego people, young or old.
The music, produced by Mark Mothersbaugh from Devo, includes a theme song by Tegan and Sarah that repeats the phrase, “Everything is Awesome!”. This film tells us that anything is possible if we believe in ourselves. The encouragement this film provides is not drowned out, but instead amounted perfectly throughout the film. Most importantly, the film teaches us that it is okay to think differently, and that looking different should not cause others to underestimate our capabilities. I believe that the positive and encouraging themes in this film trump any sort of nonexistent fascist themes interpreted by FOX News commentators. And I am completely sure, if anything, that this film has augmented sales in Lego products and the products featured as placements (including superglue, Titleist, and iPod).
I left the film highly entertained and yearning for more story. It carried many positive messages, the animation was beautiful, and can be enjoyed in 3D or 2D alike. The story was creative and visually stimulating. As a 20-something, I did not find it drab or tacky. I felt like I was riding along in this adventure with them, living inside their story. To any naysayers out there, I will just assume you have too much anger bottled up from having stepped on Lego blocks. Which, by the way, can be very painful!
