Sunday, February 3, 2019

Review: The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part

Release date: February 8, 2019
Running time: 106 minutes
Starring: Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Will Arnett 

The Lego characters are back for a follow up to the surprise 2014 hit about the iconic childhood toy.  The story follows the events of the first film, with the heroes encountering a powerful new adversary that causes their world to change into a decidedly less awesome and more desolate place.  Can Emmett's relentless positivity survive in this harsh world?  That is one of the many questions that are answered in this second movie.

As far as sequels go, this one is a decent successor.  It changes enough about the first film to keep everything fresh, and introduces a host of new semi-Lego characters to change up the formula.  All the main characters have returned and it introduces fun new ones to liven up the adventure.  The animation is as stellar as the first, with plenty of Lego details that are lovingly thrown in.  The attention to detail is insane, with oceans of legos, great modern effects "de-mastered" into lego style, and wear on the various characters that one would expect from typical rough play.

However, the movie isn't without its flaws.  The story, while being a new adventure, wasn't as engaging as the first one.  I found myself wondering several times why certain events were happening and when the story would move on.  There is a ton of foreshadowing in the movie that also makes the plot predictable.  Maybe this film just isn't as special as the first one.  The first movie was such an amazing breath of fresh air, a unique animation style for an old children's toy, that perhaps this film just couldn't live up to that.

The Lego Movie 2 is a good sequel to the phenomenal first movie, but the story is easy to follow and it doesn't have the same special charm that the first film had.  Only masterbuilders should see it in theaters.  Everyone else should:

Rent it



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