"The Lego Movie" (2014) - Film Review (7/10)

Rating: 7/10 (25 February 2015)

Batman: I only work in black and sometimes very, very dark gray.
Initially, the most promising thing about "The LEGO Movie" was its enormous cast of recognizable names (and voices). Other than that, I wasn't sure if the film would have anything interesting to tell us. It sounded like a bad idea, one that would have some decent child humor but nothing beyond that. For like the 10th time in one year, I was wrong. 2014 was full of surprises, and "The LEGO Movie" was a big one.
Besides the many stars in the movie, all of the characters are interesting, mainly because we know a lot of them from other films, shows, LEGO sets, etc. but here they play a caricature of the real thing, exaggerating their characteristics. It's actually quite funny for anyone at any age. That's the main great thing about this film, its wide appeal to people of all ages. It's the definition of "fun for the whole family".
The story in "The LEGO Movie" is hectic and not entirely serious, but there are actually a few interesting lessons to be taught. Not of morality or life choices (obviously, it's a movie about LEGOS), but ones about freedom to play with LEGOS how you want to. Sound silly? That's because it is, and it's proud of it. So yes, the movie has a nice, interesting, visually awesome story.
The last thing I want to talk about is how interesting the movie is visually. EVERYTHING is made from LEGOS. Look in the backgrounds, everywhere, it's all LEGO. The creativity is massive, and the visuals and colors alone will entertain kids. Add in some really clever humor coming from the voices of stars we've come to know and love, and you've got an excellent family film that will be remembered for a long time.