Utter LUNACY! In a good way!

Rating: 9/10 (13 July 2014)

As if progressing from such experiences as Scott Pilgrim and Wreck-It Ralph, The Lego Movie fully embraces its decision to simple exist that what we get is magical, insane, inspiring, childish and so unbelievably happy. I had a stupid, stupid grin on my face constantly.
Emmett is a construction worker living in a world of regimented order, social control and live literally by the book (they have instruction manuals on how to live.) But when an evil tyrant called Lord Business looks to glue their world together, he discovers that a prophecy deems him "The Special" and will save the world from a fate worse than death.
What's incredible about The Lego Movie is how even critics like it. I'll be honest, perhaps a quarter of the way through I was asking myself: "What am I actually watching?? This is literally an insane concept! Stupid." But those thoughts left as quickly as they came... A movie about Lego couldn't be (and shouldn't be) anything other than this!
This film is never on the rails; it is permanently unhinged and borderline surreal. We have wonderful animation techniques (CG stop-motion) that capture the plastic and printed nature of the toy, that looks charming up close and dissolves into absolute chaos when the bricks start flying! It becomes such a joy to watch, despite how airhead and loopy it is. You have tonnes of cameos too, Lego have rights to almost everything and here they do not pull their punches. Batman is a main character, Wonder Woman, Superman, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Lincoln, Gandalf, even Shaquille O'Neal, all feature.
That should be your inner child sated, kids will love it. But if I may delve a little further, this movie's theme actually speaks about Lego as a creative medium too! What's more devastating in a child's mind than someone + gluing Lego pieces together?? That's terrible, and in terms of Lego plight that's as evil as it can be! The film goes further still, but I wouldn't want to tell you everything.
It is utter madness and there's a lot to be said about how it is a nonsense stitched together with a generic prophetic "zero-to-hero" storyline... But really, it says "The Lego Movie" on your ticket, this is what you should expect and, and a little bit more!