“The LEGO Batman Movie” is a hilarious, excellently animated film. However, despite its best efforts, it falls short in comparison to the narrative brilliance of the original. Three years ago, “The LEGO Movie” amazed audiences and reached worldwide critical acclaim. With its tongue-in-cheek pop numbers, meta references and a captivating plot, “The LEGO Movie” seamlessly generated animated cross-demographic appeal, usually reserved for Disney and Pixar productions. Warner Animation Group’s first production in 11 years, the film featured innovative animation technology. With “The LEGO Batman Movie,” audiences can witness the same technology in action with Will Arnett as Batman. The new film doubles down on everything that made “The LEGO Movie” great, above and beyond its predecessor. While the first was a funny film, “The LEGO Batman Movie” seems packed with visual gags, double entendres and outside references. The movie leans on the main character, exploiting its storied cinematic past to draw laughs from every generation in the audience — even featuring a small live-action clip of the Adam West version of “Batman.”
Following the footsteps of its predecessor’s pop hit “Everything is Awesome,” the film offers various musical numbers. The jokes are well-crafted, preventing a tedious dynamic. The animation is perfect for the film. Much like its predecessor, “The LEGO Batman Movie” masterfully uses LEGO bricks to create fun, bright and varied sets and characters. The film presents universally connectable bricks that create a continually changing world, reordered by Batman and his “master building” skillset. Overall, it adds to the film’s imaginative, hopeful nature — everything is possible in this world, where giant robots are quickly built out of spare pieces knocked from falling buildings. However, the film feels slightly empty in a way that “The LEGO Movie” never did. While packed with fun, entertaining sequences, “The LEGO Batman Movie” lacks the heart that kept “The LEGO Movie” smooth and effortless. While Batman’s heartening family narrative is sure to captivate, the general plot feels weak and underdeveloped, relying too heavily on visual gags.
However, the film acknowledges this deficiency with skillful self-referential humor. Surprisingly, the film’s emotional high point rests in the Joker’s arc, as he realizes he wants Batman’s attention and spends the film trying to get it. The film’s shift in director and writing staff may be behind its major flaws, losing the talented Phil Lord and Christopher Miller duo, which did the original film. While the movie fails to live up to the greatness of “The LEGO Movie,” it remains superior to most animated films. “The LEGO Batman Movie” follows a darker, edgier path than its predecessor. While battles, explosions and bombs are constant, the film’s tone remains innocent and good-humored for all audiences to enjoy. Still, the main characters are placed in constant danger, which can upset some of the younger viewers. The movie’s polished style shines through its star-studded voiceovers. Will Arnett flawlessly portrays Batman, capturing both the comedic and stern nature behind the enigmatic hero.
Zach Galifianakis is unrecognizable as the Joker, playing a surprisingly tender and lovable version of the character. Michael Cera as a bumbling, lovable Robin steals the movie. Rounding out the main cast are Rosario Dawson as Commissioner Gordon’s daughter Barbara and Ralph Fiennes as Alfred. Overall, the film is all you can ask for as a follow up to “The LEGO Movie.” It stands on its own as both a comedy animation and a Batman film. However, it understands its roots a little too well. It sets to imitate its predecessor, almost to a fault. It found what resonated with audiences in the original LEGO film, and hit those beats again, stronger and more frequently. It walks the careful line between satire and homage, a tightrope that too many “Batman” films have failed to achieve. The movie may not always succeed in execution and finesse, but its heartwarming and ebullient message is sure to resonate with audiences of all ages. Have a reaction to this article? Write a letter to the editor.
Tags: arts and entertainment, batman, cinema, entertainment, film, film review, guide, lego, lego batman, movie, movie review, the guide, the lego batman movieLike many stop motion animation fans I’m really looking forward to seeing The LEGO Movie coming out on February 7th. If you haven’t seen the trailer make sure to check it out!Looks like an amazing stop motion movie. If you look closely you’ll see that some scenes from The LEGO Movie trailer look digital, while other scenes look like they were animated using actual LEGO bricks. Some look like a mix of both. What’s going on here? In fact, not too many people are sure whether this is a digital movie or a stop motion movie. Because I was curious I did some research and found out that people have been asking the directors of The LEGO Movie about this for quite some time but the directors haven’t been very clear about it. Check out this panel from the 2013 San Diego Comic-Con. Directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller answer the question in the first couple minutes of this video:
I also found some tweets by Chris Miller from back in June that seem to confirm a hybrid animation style. To curious: #TheLegoMovie is a hybrid film. CG w/ real Lego elements done in a photoreal stop-motion style. & a secret bit of live-action. — Chris Miller (@chrizmillr) June 20, 2013 Day 1 of 5-day Lego Movie live-action shoot with Will Ferrell. — Chris Miller (@chrizmillr) June 4, 2013 So the answer to the question “Is the LEGO Movie stop motion or CGI?” actually could be both! And from the sound of it the Directors don’t want to let us know exactly what parts are CGI and what parts may be stop motion. Either way it’s still pretty cool to know that at least some parts of this movie may be made from real LEGO bricks. That’s a win in my book! On the day of the movie's release, more information is coming out about the production process. Here's another tweet from filmmaker Chris Miller @DrewAtHitFix it was mostly CG with some stop motion & also some real LEGO still sets comped in.
But Animal Logic made the CG photoreal. — Chris Miller (@chrizmillr) February 3, 2014 The film was made using mostly CGI. Special care was taken to ensure the LEGO world reflected the dynamics and appearance of real LEGO bricks. The creators examined parts under microscopes to better understand how they wore down over time. Animators experimented with different levels of dust and dirt on surfaces, and added imperfections to models, like tiny gaps between bricks. It's great to have confirmation of something we suspected all along. The creators of this movie were inspired by watching actual brickfilms. Here's an article in the NYT with more coverage of the production. This article at CGMeetup has a few more images from the studio. Check out the images of Emmet's expressions, video of the CGI animation process, and a real LEGO mock-up of a ship in the film in the video above! Did you enjoy this post? Learn more about stop motion with the Stopmotion Explosion Animation Kit - a complete animation package!