Phil Roberts 
With so many fantastic elements, The Lego Movie 2 will easily appease fans of all ages and have them queuing at the cinemas for weeks to come.
With the unprecedented critical and commercial success of The Lego Movie back in the summer of 2014, it was only a matter of time before fans of all ages were calling for a sequel, and it has arrived at long last in the form of The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part.
The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part | by Warner Bros. Animation
Phil Lord and Christopher Miller have returned to bring us the next chapter in the Lego adventure following their immense success with The Lego Batman Movie and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. As with Lego Batman, Lord and Miller have relinquished the director’s chair to Mike Mitchell instead opting to continue sculpting the world of Lego from the writers and producers’ chairs. The template for the original Lego Movie called for a fresh approach with a requirement of not taking itself too seriously, a plan that proved to be a recipe for success with fans of all ages and The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part has replicated this with fantastic results. The movie is entertaining, fun and visually spectacular, utilising the same animation style of its predecessor that will surely prove to be a hit with the fans.
Chris Pratt returns to the role of the lovably innocent construction worker Emmet Brickowski, Elizabeth Banks reprises her role as the rebellious master builder Lucy / Wyldstyle and as always, Will Arnett returns as the dark and broody Lego incarnation of everyone’s favourite DC superhero Bruce Wayne / Batman.
The breaking of the fourth wall in the finale of the last adventure was a bold move for the franchise but it has paid dividends in the sequel. The adventure is set five years after the events of the first film and follows the further adventures of Finn and his younger sister Bianca who has started taking some of his Lego creations from the sets in their basement to play with in her own room. The aftermath of these “abductions” has been catastrophic to the characters of the Lego universe who have seen their blissful Bricksburg paradise descend into a war-torn, post-apocalyptic wasteland known as… Apocalypseburg.
With Batman defending this new wasteland from all threats, Apocalypseburg is a dark and foreboding place which survives in the grip of deadly fear. The everlasting threat of further attacks from the Duplo invaders torments the residents on a daily basis which prompted the Justice League to set off in and confront the threat. Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash and Aquaman, (hilariously voiced by Jason Momoa) set off aboard a Lego Justice League spacecraft to confront the invaders from the Systar System but mysteriously, they never return…
Amidst the bleakness of Apocalypseburg is Emmet. The happy go lucky construction worker has managed to maintain his positive attitude from the first film and continues to believe that “everything is awesome” despite the world around him descending into chaos. However, our hero begins to have visions of impending doom which he calls “Ar-mom-ageddon”, a catastrophic event that will bring about the end of everything. And, when an envoy from the Systar System arrives and kidnaps Batman, Lucy, Benny, Metalbeard, and Unikitty, Emmet is forced to embrace his inner darkness and sets off on a quest to rescue his friends. Converting the dream house, he had constructed for Lucy into a spaceship he begins his pursuit. En route, he is saved from colliding with an asteroid field by Rex Dangervest (also voiced by Chris Pratt), a rugged adventurer who thrives on his daring escapades in the space between the realms with his crew of trained Raptors.
With Rex joining him on his quest and promising to teach him to embrace his inner darkness, Emmet resumes his journey to the Systar System where his friends are being brainwashed by Queen Watevra Wa’Nabi, the ruler of the Systar System who is frantically trying to convince Batman to marry her, a union that will unite their worlds once and for all. What follows is a fun and often hilarious adventure with Emmet and Rex racing to rescue their friends and evert “Ar-mom-ageddon” which they believe will be triggered by Batman’s marriage to Queen Watevra Wa’Nabi.
Review:
After the success of The Lego Batman Movie, one can be forgiven for thinking the quality of the series would degrade with each new instalment but thankfully that isn’t the case with The Lego Movie 2. Lord and Miller have earned their writing chops with their previous efforts and with this new sequel they have only emphasized their brilliance at producing thoroughly entertaining movies. The characters are still hilarious and the interactions between them are endearing to both adults and children alike. The larger storyline, which as always is governed by the pivotal events happening in the real world is a perfect reflection of bedrooms around the world and will resonate with everyone in the most unexpected way.
The movie is an enthralling experience that boasts several stunning set pieces, jokes aplenty and a tale of family and friendship that is sure to resonate with us all. As expected, the movie is littered with hilarious pop culture references which are tailored for the “bigger” kids among us and they will have your sides splitting from time to time.
As was the case with the first film, the soundtrack is bursting with excellent music, some of which will quickly become the sound of your spring season and will be stuck in your head for months…and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. After “Everything is Awesome” overwhelmed our mp3 devices for the better part of a year in 2014, it is refreshing to hear a catchy new tune which is destined to have a similar impact. Composer Mark Mothersbaugh returns to maintain the soul of the first film and builds upon his endearing original score with a similarly robust soundtrack which accentuates the action on screen brilliantly.
Much like the original movie, the immersive animation style of Animal Logic continues to impress and grounds the movie in a pleasing fashion which is only reemphasized from time to time by the sudden cutaway sequences of ships flying through space which are comically represented by a child’s drawing of space and a toy ship levitated by a string. The combination of both styles delivers a pleasing result which when combined with the score offers a fresh and glossy adventure for us to enjoy.
As for the characters, and as expected Chris Pratt approaches the sequel with the same infectious drive and vigour, he brought to the first outing. His charisma is alluring, and this adventure only helps us connect with Emmet on a more deep and personal level. Elizabeth Banks’ Wyldstyle, the rebellious master builder is swept away on an adventure of self-discovery which will offer moments of poignant pause and reflection for every member of the audience. But, of course, Batman steals the show. The tongue in cheek references delivered by Will Arnett’s caped crusader is stunning and highlight many of the rigours of recent events in the DC Universe. The new additions to the cast bring a pleasant freshness to proceedings but sadly, they do not live up to the hordes of great characters used in the previous outing. In fact, many of the characters used in the original movie are lost in the sequel and sadly, it detracts from the overall finish of the movie and leaves the adventure feeling somewhat smaller.
Final Thoughts:
Sadly, despite its many positives The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part does not live up to the expectation set by its predecessor. This is through no fault of the film or the writing, neither is it a result of the score or the animation. In truth, there is no fundamental flaw. The reason is simple. The freshness of the original Lego Movie is lost in the sequel. Audiences have grown accustomed to the world of Lego and despite its incredible set pieces and glossy animation, quality filmmaking and pulse-pounding soundtrack, the movie is…just another Lego Movie.
What this means for future instalments of the Lego franchise remains to be seen, however, with so many fantastic elements making up this sequel, The Lego Movie 2 will easily appease fans of all ages and have them queuing at the cinemas for weeks to come. And, rightly so. A film this fun deserves no less.
Everything is STILL awesome!
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Phil Roberts is the Owner, Daily Content Manager, and Editor-In-Chief of The Future of the Force. He is passionate about Star Wars, Batman, DC, Marvel, Star Trek, Indiana Jones, Ghostbusters, King Kong, and the Ray Harryhausen movies. Follow him on Twitter where he uses the force and babbles frequently!
