Review of The Lego Movie (2014) by Conrad S — 23 Sep 2016

It seems to me that every animated movie to come out from a major american studio (Excluding LAIKA) has had the same Critical Consensus: I wish the story and characters were as colourful and imaginative as the animation was! And for once, I don't have to say that.

This movie is essentially a story of stories, a satire of clichés resulting in a challenging and provocative movie. Social commentary is this films subtle intelligence, presenting a world that would be ideal for some, but dystopian for others.

The whole theme of dystopia is a huge driving force for the story, presenting the most realistic interpretation I've ever seen. It manages to do all this, and still be a engaging comedy. The characters are also all incredibly simple on the surface, but more and more complex the deeper you go down.

The fact that some characters can be taken for a personification of mental afflictions like bipolar, depression and anxiety really says something about the lengths the creators will go to. The animation is also a superb rendition of the feeling of playing with Lego, every chip and scratch is rendered in beautiful CGI.

I adore the fact that they lowered the frame-rate simply to make it more like stop-motion. The only problem I have with this film is that some action sequences are very hard to see, as the jittery character animation makes things happen so fast and blurry.

Many say that this film is just a commercial, and it is, however it's a well made commercial incorporating the philosophy of Lego, and an intriguing, funny and philosophical story. The Lego Movie is one of the most philosophical, politically challenging and clever movies that I own.