REVIEW: 'LEGO Batman' nearly too much fun for its own good - East Idaho News
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REVIEW: ‘LEGO Batman’ nearly too much fun for its own good

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An old moviemaking cliche says anything that’s possible to do in live action, isn’t worth doing in animation. That certainly holds true for “The LEGO Batman Movie,” an animated family flick so dizzyingly packed with dazzling visuals, the big scenes leave your head spinning. Packed with action, jokes and eye-popping animation, “LEGO Batman” is so stuffed with stimulating stuff, it nearly burns you out.

But it’ll leave you with a smile. So there’s that…

“LEGO Batman” finds our built-from-blocks titular hero (voiced by Will Arnett) loving his life. He beats up bad guys and basks in the adoration of the Gotham citizens. But then he goes home to his cavernous home (on its own island, no less), where he’s all alone, save for his butler/confidant Alfred (Ralph Fiennes).

Meanwhile, the Joker (Zach Galifinianakis) hatches a plan that will prove, once and for all, he is Batman’s greatest adversary. On top of this, Batman suddenly finds himself charged with a youthful ward, Dick Grayson (Michael Cera), and has to learn to let other people into his life. Can he learn his lesson and save the day? You can probably guess, but the joy is in the journey, not the destination.

“LEGO Batman” is quite the journey. It opens with laughs, continues with some impressive action and introduces us to some zany characters. Many zany characters. Honestly, too many. Not only do Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon turn up, but we also meet a huge chunk of Batman’s rogue’s gallery, not to mention an entire Phantom Zone full of baddies from all over pop culture.

batman lego

The big battle scenes feature dozens, if not hundreds, of brightly-colored characters in vividly rendered sets. It’s nearly impossible to take it all in. It’s actually exhausting, and if I’m honest, I tuned out for some big scenes. Not that the story is hard to follow, but the scenes are just busy and too full of characters demanding your attention.

Thankfully, enough of the smaller, funnier scenes work to make “LEGO Batman” enjoyable. There are a ton of references to Batman’s screen and print history. Arnett is perfect as this version of the Caped Crusader, and Cera is hilarious as Dick Grayson. The rest of the cast is rock solid, and the soundtrack has some great surprises.

On top of that, this is a LEGO movie, and that means many of the creations that grace the screen are imaginative. The vehicles Batman cobbles together are wonderfully inventive. The animation style reminded me of the herky-jerkiness of old silent comedies. Although some of the bigger scenes are overwhelming, the rest of the movie more than makes up for it.

If you’re looking for a fun movie that the kids will dig and you get a fair amount of chuckles out of you, “The LEGO Batman Movie” will do the job. It’s funny, action-packed and as visually impressive as any animated movie out there.

3 ½ Indy Fedoras out of 5

MPAA Rating: PG

Thanks to Fat Cats in Rexburg for providing screenings for movie reviews on EastIdahoNews.com.

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