The world's favorite modular brick playset is coming at you in 3D, with The Lego Ninjago Movie being the first 3D flick we've seen head to theaters in some time. So naturally we're going to take a look at the film and reveal whether or not you, the audience, should spend that hard earned LEGO money on some recyclable spectacles. Get ready for a deep dive beyond the window, as To 3D or Not To 3D is back to save the day!
If you're curious as to how much we enjoyed the film, you'll need to consult the review of the film proper. But if you're ready to see if you should be taking your kids and/or friends to see The Lego Ninjago Movie in 2D or 3D format, you've come to the right place! Eyes up, glasses down, because we're on the move!
Whether 3D conversion fits The Lego Ninjago Movie is a no-brainer, really. With The LEGO Movie and The LEGO Batman Movie before it taking advantage of the format, another round of bricks being thrown at the audience, zooming through the air, and being built into new and exciting forms is an easy 3D home run. At least, it should be, if the people behind the conversion do their due diligence in the crafting process.
At best, The LEGO Ninjago Movie can be considered a decent 3D experience. There are some aspects that stand out better than others, with only select sequences really taking advantage of the third dimension enhancements. However, the hallmark of where this film's 3D goes right is in the crisp visuals that manage to overcome some of the most problematic areas of this medium. So there's some silver lining to this here cloud.
Eye-popping visuals are a huge part of what make 3D truly spectacular, as throwing items at the audience is part of what defined the format. Yet The LEGO Ninjago Movie doesn't do anything hugely innovative with this part of its 3D picture. Apart from some objects sticking out at the audience, and one particular sequence where some fun stuff is done to send objects protruding past the frame and into the audience, the window is barely smashed throughout the film.
For a film with a lush variety of backdrops, The LEGO Ninjago Movie fails to take advantage of their true depths. While the film does maintain firm spacial reasoning between its characters, their vehicles, and their backgrounds, you can clearly sense where the background stops. This is one of the greatest disappointments, as most other films in 3D have a better sense of conveying a deep background, which only helps draw its characters in the foreground that much better.
Now here's something truly awesome: The LEGO Ninjago Movie is a pretty damned impressive film when it comes to the brightness being shown to its audience. Seriously, there are a good compliment of night time shots, dark castle shots, and various conditions that are presented in this film. Yet everything is crystal clear behind your 3D glasses, as the picture is brightened enough without the glasses on to accommodate their presence. Though your mileage may vary on this factor, because not all theaters calibrate their 3D rigs properly when switching between 2D and 3D showings.
Usually, the amount of blur in a 3D picture is a good indicator of just how good its depth of picture is. But sadly, The LEGO Ninjago Movie doesn't have your average amount of 3D blur, confining whatever blur the film does have mostly to the background. A good portion of this film has the LEGO characters front and center for a lot of the action, and if you take your glasses off in these scenes, you could have sworn you'd walked into a 2D showing. Whatever background blur you do get is pretty blurry, but the foreground in The LEGO Ninjago Movie tends to be a clean viewing experience, which is bad for 3D.
It's probably because of the lack of substantial blur in the 3D presentation, but The LEGO Ninjago Movie definitely won't upset your stomach. It won't even touch your eyesight, as it doesn't strain or push your vision at all. So another good piece of news out of this 3D prognosis is the fact that even if you're adverse to 3D films, you'll probably be able to sit through this one with absolutely no trouble at all.
If you're going to see The LEGO Ninjago Movie, you're probably better off seeing it in 2D, as there's not enough pizzazz to really recommend the extra ticket money. The visuals in this conversion are rather middle of the road in the 3D department, so you won't exactly be impressed, but you won't be offended by what you see. In fact, if you do manage to be talked into a 3D showing, you won't be walking into an unwatchable affair, as some aspects of the film are crisp as anything.
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