Review of The Lego Ninjago Movie (2017) by Joseph D — 21 Sep 2017

First, there was the Lego Movie! Next, came Lego Batman! Now, we have little plastic NINJAS!!!!!

THE LEGO NINJAGO MOVIE!

Now I'm not a fan of the Lego Ninjago TV series, I only saw part of an episode once by chance, so this review's gonna be based solely on the film's quality by itself, so I hope you can forgive me if I don't mention any series in-jokes, nods, or winks; I'm just reviewing the film.

That said, it was....probably the weakest Lego franchise movie, but still pretty ok.

Let's start with the cast. The six ninjas & their mentor. They gave me a "power rangers parody" vibe, but they played it pretty straight, & it kinda worked. Each ninja had their own story, which was presented via quick exposition, which normally feels forced, but here fit into the fast paced hyper feel of this world. Jacky Chan's take on the eccentric Asian mentor figure was a combo of the clown & the straight man, it kinda worked, but might confuse younger viewers. The villain was totally full of himself, like a kid friendly version of Dr Evil, he was very entertaining. And his connection to the heroes gave the story a depth not usually seen in kid's shows. As usual in a Lego film, every side character is worth watching, they were all eye-catching & phrenetic, nobody was idle.

The story itself was, I'm guessing, like a typical episode of the series, just stretched to about two hours, with live-action bookends. It was a bit slow at times, but the action sequences were a pretty good payoff, & the character development during the slow moments was a good way to use that time.

The effects have finally reached perfection! I felt like I was watching true stop-motion with real Legos! It was amazing! Not only did everything have weight & detail, but the characters were truly able to emote & felt like real people.

The music was pretty much a pop culture medley, but it worked with the film; 'course, it can't hold a brick to it's predecessors, but it wasn't terrible.

3 stars out've 5, this film might be proof that Lego films are getting a bit tired, but the Lego Ninjago Film wasn't bad by any description. I do think that it was tailored more for actual fans of the show though, which is fine.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm late for spin-jitsu class, ninjaaaaaa GO!!!!!!!!!