Most people who have seen The LEGO Movie can't help but be charmed and enthralled by the delightful animated epic. There are exceptions, however - and we're not just talking about the Academy. The Oscars have been joined in the Pool of Haterade by Screen Junkies’ Honest Trailers series. That’s because the latter has just explained that The LEGO Movie is basically just one long, cynical advert.
So, is everything not awesome then? You wouldn't think that there would be that much to hate about the nearly universally beloved film, but, as Honest Trailers has explained, there's an argument to be made that The LEGO Movie should never really have been turned into a film in the first place. It’s a toy franchise with no story or defined characters. There is also the fact that from a certain angle the movie can be seen as being simply a feature length commercial for various LEGO products that is packed to the brim with a variety of celebrities, a clichéd romantic angle and repetitive pop music.
Intensely capitalist as that may sound, though, Honest Trailers also points out that the plot of The LEGO Movie actually possesses some communist undertones as well. Will Ferrell’s Lord Business is only toppled after the world’s population decides to follow instructions, work together and sacrifice their personal goals. Uh-oh. Maybe Lenin was right after all? Surely if characters from the Star Wars, DC, Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings franchises can set aside their differences for the good of mankind, then maybe we should give communism a shot?
The LEGO Movie can be faulted for some of these sins, but who are we really kidding? The Phil Lord/Chris Miller written and directed film was easily one the best features to be released in 2014. Not only was it sweet, but it was a laugh out loud hoot too. And underneath its warm and heartfelt exterior were scenes of great toil and menace, such as the destruction of an entire planet and a police officer killing his parents. All in all, The LEGO Movie was supreme. It doesn’t matter what the Academy Awards think.
In addition to all its complaints, the Honest Trailer does take the time to point out that the Oscars’ decision to overlook The LEGO Movie was beyond preposterous. Surely one of the likes of Big Hero 6, The Boxtrolls, How To Train Your Dragon 2, Song of the Sea and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya should have been omitted for it. Hopefully one of The LEGO Movies’ impending sequels, which will include a Batman spinoff, will be rewarded with an even more rabid fanbase to make up for the Oscar snub.
