‘Lego Ninjago’ is missing some pieces
Lord Garmadon fires his military generals out of a volcano, attacks the city of Ninjago daily and seems incapable of using his power for good.
But his biggest character flaw is that he keeps forgetting his son Lloyd’s birthday.
“How can I ruin your life?” Garmadon complains. “I wasn’t even there!”
“The Lego Ninjago Movie” is at its best — and funniest — when it centers on the absurd human drama between the two central characters. And it’s good that this dynamic is a large part of the film because almost everything else, for the first time in recent Lego movie history, feels like an effort to sell toys.
This franchise is definitely in a cycle of diminishing returns. “The Lego Movie” (2014) was absolutely superb, one of the best animated movies in recent memory, combining rapid-fire pop culture humor with an emotional sneak attack in the final act. This year’s “The Lego Batman Movie” was about 20 percent less good, but still very entertaining.
“The Lego Ninjago Movie” is another 20 percent worse than that, and now contained entirely in the less familiar Ninjago world.
Lost is the hyper-focused vision of “Lego Movie” directors Christopher Miller and Phil Lord, who are listed as producers here. Instead, “Lego Ninjago” has three directors, with eight credited writers. An honest effort is still being made, but the committee approach is felt onscreen.
“The Lego Ninjago Movie” starts strong. Lloyd Garmadon is a teenage boy in the city of Ninjago, hated by his classmates because he’s the son of the evil Lord Garmadon, whose attempts to conquer Ninjago are thwarted by Lloyd and his ninja friends in secret identities.
There are some funny lines, but also forgettable twists and turns — something about ultimate weapons and a giant cat — before a frenetic ending. Jackie Chan voices ninja mentor Master Wu and plays a wise shopkeeper in a real-life bookend sequence that has charm but lacks the sentimental surprise attack of the “Lego Movie” live action scenes.
Justin Theroux and Dave Franco, as Lord and Lloyd Garmadon, have more chemistry than most flesh-and-blood actors playing a father and son. Both deftly balance a comic self-seriousness and thinskinned obliviousness. While the world crashes around Lord Garmadon, he focuses on a personal slight. Lloyd wants approval from his dad, no matter how many people are shot from a volcano.
The soundtrack is always an asset in these scenes, with some original music and well-timed classics. Jim Croce’s “I Got a Name” will never find a better home.
But as time passes, it’s clear there’s a piece or two missing. Earlier Lego movies were designed to please both nostalgic parents and the children still playing with the toys. “Lego Ninjago” skews much more heavily toward the latter group. Gone are the Lego versions of familiar characters, amplifying the neurosis of icons such as Batman and the Joker for comic effect.
In the end, we’re left with a perfectly fine piece of disposable entertainment. You’ll smile, your kids will laugh, and hopefully no one else will analyze the film as seriously as I just did.
“Lego Ninjago” is still nowhere near bad “Alvin and the Chipmunks” sequel territory. But at this rate, we may be only one or two movies away.