“The Lego Movie” is a lovable and funny film filled to the brim with references, jokes, and enough puns to keep a smile on even the most harsh critics’ faces. Meet Emmet Brickowski (voiced by Chris Pratt), your normal, everyday Lego character, who happens to be someone more special than any could imagine. Emmet leads a boring, everyday life that’s about as bland as it gets. He wakes up, follows the instructions for living a happy life, and keeps on his own ordinary way. According to those around him, Emmet is about as unoriginal and average as it gets! Everything changes though, when he falls down a hole at his construction site and finds the “piece of resistance” that can save the world.

Suddenly, Emmet is faced with some of the most drastic changes of his life that he has ever encountered. Upon meeting up with Wild Style (voiced by Elizabeth Banks), one of the master builders, Emmet discovers that he may be not only special, but the most important person in the world. As the movie progresses, Emmet is faced with more and more challenges until he can prove himself to be “the Special”.

One part of the movie that was truly awe-inspiring was the impressive scenes. Although it would seem that this whole movie was made from stop-motion animation, as others of its kind have been, the majority of the film was produced through various animation programs. These programs allowed the makers to use digital lego blocks to make the buildings, characters, and landscapes seen. So, as Emmet journeys from place to place, those aren’t actual lego bricks and crocodiles. The makers definitely used this new technology and the Lego idea to make some funny points.

Humor is a major part of “The Lego Movie”, and there is a good laugh waiting around every corner. From puns about other major productions in theaters to just plain silliness, this movie got everyone, including me, laughing hard at parts. There were constant references and jokes that were witty enough to challenge the mind, but simple enough to be understood. The delivery and timing of the jokes in the film were excellently scripted into the main story. Laughter wasn’t the only good part about the movie, though.

As the movie continued, some serious character development occurs. Emmet goes from a somewhat dull person to something much, much more. Other characters also see changes in mood, feelings, and even their entire outlook on each situation encountered. Visible differences in characters allow the audience to feel as though this is an actually interesting and engaging movie, not just a 100 minute comedy routine.

Critics definitely agreed on this one; “The Lego Movie” is a strong, well made film great for any age. The critics from IMDB gave the movie a strong 8.5 stars out of ten. Critics from Rotten Tomatoes gave “The Lego Movie” a five star review, and 96% of people liked the movie.

Some may say that the movie seems incredibly boring from the trailers, and even kind of silly. After all, legos are a thing of the past right? The way this movie has been made will definitely prove that legos still have quite the future ahead of them. With the charm and witty humor brought every minute, this movie surpasses all questions of doubt and shows that everyone is special, and that we need to embrace our uniqueness. This movie is definitely a must see, even for those not convinced yet by its originality and message.

by JOEL TIMMS