Just a Quickie Please: The Lego Movie Review

The directing trio of Lord, Miller, and McKay, of both Jump Street reboots, bring us this unique and absolutely entertaining animated feature that is one part stop motion masterpiece, one part thoroughly satisfying and engaging satire and parody, and one part multi-million dollar toy commercial mixed with a well-intentioned moral about the balance between individuality and cooperation.   I didn't really see the anti-capitalism angle that others observed so readily, rather, by the end, I garnered a more familial tale of self-expression, repentance, and finding one's self-worth.    It would seem ridiculously hypocritical to me that a massive and internationally renown corporate brand like Lego would create a feature "dissing" big business and the free market system.    The cast is delightful and their chemistry unmistakable.  Pratt is the every man's hero that we all can relate to and cheer for.  Freeman pulls off a perfect Shatneresque tongue and cheek performance.  And Ferrell, who I personally believe is one of the most overrated, annoying, and untalented comedians of his time, delivers a top flight portrayal as the villain who seeks order and universality above all else.  However, it is Arnett's egotistically insecure Dark Night incarnation and Liam's over the top gestapo style cop that utterly own every scene they are present in and inevitably steal the show.  The animation is incredible, effectively utilizing the infamous building block theme to the max and the story, though unavoidably predictable, is fluid and completely enjoyable.  This is a film that both kids and their parental units will immediately fall in love with.  4 out of 5 Kernels: artsy, funny, action packed, chaotic, and well written and acted, this movie has every piece fit perfectly to build one original and amazing cinematic construction.