Hammerman Ikon

Hammerman Ikon Film Guide

The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part
2019
**½
Director: Mike Mitchell
Cast: Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Will Arnett, Tiffany Haddish, Stephanie Beatriz, Charlie Day, Alison Brie, Nick Offerman, Maya Rudolph

The Lego Movie took the world by surprise. This sequel must not only try and match or top the fresh and inventive original, but make amends for the mediocre The Lego Batman Movie and The Lego Ninjago Movie, which badly diluted the franchise. Five years have passed and Bricksburg has become a post-apocalyptic ghost town. When Lucy, Batman, and his other friends are kidnapped and taken to the Systar System in the Duplo universe, Emmet must find the hero inside him. Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who co-wrote and co-directed the first movie, are back with a script which offers a natural if somewhat predictable extension to the story. The good news is that the characters maintain their likeability and the soundtrack features another guaranteed earworm (titled Catchy Song). The bad news is that the franchise hasn't come up with anything new, and the old shtick has become way too familiar by now.