So I went an saw The Lego Batman Movie. How was it you ask? Well, let me tell you...
Fan-freakin’-tastic! I was seriously laughing the whole way through it. There are so many jokes and references I could not even list them.
So it’s not a flat out parody like you’d think, it’s more of a homage to all things Batman told in a comedic way.
If you are a hardcore Batman fan, you will appreciate a lot of the in-jokes from all the movies, TV shows, comics, etc. But even if you know absolutely nothing about Batman, the comedy is so on point and perfectly timed, you will definitely laugh and enjoy it. It has the same sort of random, yet sophisticated humor that The Lego Movie has.
Like I said, there are so many references to all things Batman. It lovingly acknowledges/makes fun all things that are wrong with the franchise and the mistakes different incarnations have made, particularly things that fans and pop culture like to complain about and poke fun at (ex. “why would I get together a bunch of villains to fight other villains? That’s just dumb.”). I just loved all the references! Seriously, there wasn’t very much made up, just the general plot, but pretty much everything else was from the Batman universe. (One of my favorite parts: “We’re gonna hit them so hard, words will materialize, describing the impact” *boom!* *pow!* *wham!*)
Also, the Joker could have been extremely goofy and not scary for kids, which he was not scary exactly, but not for the sake of the kids watching the movie, but for the sake of the joke that “Batman always stops him”, therefore no one is afraid of him. But it is established that he’s definitely a bad guy. He does enough bad things to give him the title as “Batman’s greatest enemy” haha! The Batman and Joker dynamic in this movie was so hilarious. I actually really liked the direction they went with it. The Joker just wants to be appreciated!
The movie wasn’t all comedy though. All da feels! It had a lot of heart. There were some really impactful moments particularly with Batman and Dick Grayson/Robin. I almost teared up at one point near the end.
Also, can't forget the voice actors. Will Arnett carries over from The Lego Movie as Batman and does phenomenally! Michael Cera does Robin and captures that cute, innocent, fun-loving little voice so perfectly. Zach Galifianakis is hilarious as the Joker, Rosario Dawson blends right into her role as Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, and Ralph Fiennes is flawless as Alfred.
And then the graphics! Wow, so good! The builds, the lighting, the details on the characters. Super amazing! I mean, just watching Legos interacting and fighting with each other sounds a little dumb, but it’s actually really cool. This is like The Lego Movie x10 in terms of graphics!
If I had to criticize this movie, I’d point out two things:
First, while it did take a lot of opportunities, it did not take them very far. What I mean is it would bring up a lot of funny ideas, but missed some funny opportunities to take them even further. For example, they bring in the Justice League at one point and Batman interacts with them a little, but then they’re never mentioned again. I think there were a lot of missed opportunities there. They could’ve been brought in for the climax and Batman could’ve accepted them into his “family” and... well, onto my second complaint.
Secondly, (maybe a SPOILER ALERT) I’m not sure how I felt about them calling Batman a “bad guy”. If anything, Batman always has a heart of gold. He might mess up sometimes, but he does always have the best of intentions. I mean, I did get what that scene was trying to do (heck, the message of the movie was “take a look at yourself and make a change”), but I don’t know how I felt about that scene. It was more that he had been a jerk and not a “bad guy” before that. But, that might be a nitpick from a hardcore Batman fan such as myself.
END OF (maybe) SPOILERS
But otherwise, I thought it was a gosh-darn pretty good movie. Kids will love it, adults will love it, comic nerds will love it, everyone will love it! I think only pretentious people with sticks up their butts will not like it.
Overall, I give it a 9.5/10.
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