My kids love LEGO. (I've previously mentioned our growing interest in building robots for Mobile Frame Zero). I grew up in the golden age of LEGO spaceships. Naturally, we were SUPEREXCITED to head out to see "The LEGO Movie."
We were not disappointed.
The previews do a great job of highlighting the movie's joyous energy, but they don't give a way all the good jokes (though Batman's "First try" is one of my favorites).
The animation is deliberately a little choppy. LEGO guys move the way they would if your LEGO guy came to life, for the most part. That means limited range of motion (LEGO jumping jacks aren't much by the way of jumping jacks), but it also means a charming departure from the Pixar-type animation (which I love, though their imitators can't tell half the story that Pixar can).
The last 15 minutes departs a bit from the rest of the film--we need a lesson, after all--but it wasn't too jarring or overly heavy-handed.
It's funny, irreverent, well-acted, and well-animated.
And it has LEGO.
Four out of five Travis bricks.