Film Review, The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part

Everything is awesome – or is it? In the final moments of The Lego Movie, our heroes both Lego and human were confronted with the most terrifying sight of all: Duplo, the cutesy, pastel-coloured building bricks for little kids. What would the presence of a new mini-builder and architect do to the Lego universe we knew and loved?

Cause chaos, that’s what. Duplo characters don’t follow the rules: of controlled combat, of organised architecture, of dark dystopian coolness – coolness embodied by ‘Apocalypseburg’, the new home of badass warrior Lucy (Elizabeth Banks) and still-chipper Emmet (Chris Pratt). No, Duplo invade and attack using strategies Sun Tzu never would have seen coming: airborne attacks of glitter; audio-sensory torture of incessantly cheerful pop music; and demands for a forced marriage between Duplo Queen Watevra Wa’Nabi (Tiffany Haddish) and Apocalypseburg’s most famous tortured “bat-chelor”, Batman (Will Arnett). In the face of such horrors, Lucy urges Emmet to embrace his dark side and defend Apocalypse from succumbing to enemies that are so, well, girly.

As ever, the voice-cast are hilarious, with Pratt playing the double role of innocent Emmet and suave adventurer Rex Dangervest, who teaches Emmet how to toughen up. Pratt himself becomes the punchline of some meta jokes, as Rex Dangervest’s back-story – he was an adorable schlump who then transformed into a chiselled hunk surrounded by dinosaurs – may sound slightly familiar.

Gendered toys, adolescence, toxic masculinity and the pull between being cool or kind are all explored – and may cause some tears amidst the laughs. Though the rules and boundaries of the Lego-verse and the real world become muddled and messy, the movie is never less than brilliant fun.

4/5