RATING: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
ONE SENTENCE SYNOPSIS: After Batman tells Joker that he is not his archnemesis, the Joker and crew submit themselves to Gotham City’s new police commissioner, Barbara Gordon, leaving Batman without any crime to fight, but the quiet does not last for long because Batman has unknowingly adopted orphan Richard “Dick” Grayson (aka Robin) and must face his deepest fear: family.
I have seen this film twice: once in theaters and once on-demand. Now, there are two reasons I would do this, reason one being that I am unsure from one watch that the film is good or reason two being that the film is AWESOME, and I need to see it again. The Lego Batman Movie is the latter.
First of all, all of the fan-service jokes are great. In fact, you almost have to watch this film twice to get them all just because there are so many jokes. All the references to previous Batman films are spot-on. Seeing live-action Batman incarnations in Lego form, what else could a person ask for? Perhaps it is a meta-fest, but I think that it works well in a film that prides itself on the often-humorous mythology of Batman.
Now, if you are not into Batman lore or know nothing about Batman, the fan-service will most likely annoy you or become tiresome. I completely understand that: nothing is more annoying than not being in on a joke that everyone else shares. Rest assured, there are plenty more jokes that you do not have to be in on to understand.
One of my favorites occurs in the very first scene when two pilots of a McGuffin Airlines plan is inquiring of Gotham’s control tower if they can land:
“We are transporting 11 million sticks of dynamite, 17 thousand pounds of C4, about a 150 cute, little, classic, bomb-type bombs, and two best friends, and request permission to fly over the most crime ridden city in the world.” A character in the control tower says, “I’m just looking at all guys’ faces here in the control tower…and yep, I think we’re cool with that.”
Yes, this is the sort of in-your-face humor that this film delivers near perfectly. It fits so well with this iteration of Batman.
Speaking of which, this Batman is exactly the sort of egotistical, brooding Batman that all previous iterations of the character shy away from. For instance, Batman/Bruce Wayne lives in a gigantic mansion on an island slightly large enough to fit it. The password to this monstrosity? “Iron Man sucks.” I have to admit that even Iron Man’s ingenious creations pale in comparison to the Bat-themed creations located in the Batcave. Ultimately, the film explores the excessiveness of Batman’s materialistic lifestyle and how this has been a sidetrack to his fear of family. I would argue that Alfred is every bit a family member, but the film seeks to find other family members for Wayne. Even the Joker, who persists that he is Batman’s archnemesis, becomes a sort-of-maybe?-member of the Bat-family.
What more can I say? The voice acting is great. There are several Bat-raps throughout the film. Batman laughs at the “You had me at hello scene” in Jerry Maguire. Me too, Batman, me too.
I’ve gushed enough: time for a review of the final act.
Perhaps not quite the surprising and heartwarming ending of The Lego Movie, The Lego Batman Movie does not shy from a long third act, complete with explosions and a neat “click” to assure viewers that friends, family, and foes hold their proper positions in the subject’s heart. I am not a fan of long, drawn-out third acts, especially in superhero films, and this film is no exception. However, I will say that the final act seems in line with the over-the-top film and fits more perfectly than such an ending would in many “realistic” superhero films.
This film is great.
THE FILM ALIEN 