Mom's Movie Review: The Lego Movie

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Last weekend our family went and saw an early release showing of The Lego Movie. We were all pretty excited. With two boys ages 8 and 6 years old, who wouldn't be excited. The movie is in 3D (pretty much every movie now is) and the kids got these cool covers for their glasses and a Lego activity book to keep them busy before the movie started. At one point I thought my youngest was going to pee himself with excitement – he couldn't stand the wait any longer.

The Movie Starts

One thing I personally like as a parent is that the kids' movies of today (I sound so old) are funny and have adult humor that goes over the kids' heads. My husband and I look at one another and laugh but for a very different reason than the kids. The Lego Movie did not disappoint for the kids or us. It has fiery chases, superheroes, a supervillain, a good guy, a love story and an inner meaning that as parents we understand and hope our children internalize.

The Story

The real hero of the story is Emmet, played by Chris Pratt (love him). He lives in a world where everyone follows an instruction manual (sound familiar)? Everyone listens to the same song ("Everything Is Awesome"), which by the way I am singing now constantly in my head as my kids sing it while playing with their Legos. They do all the same things, because it's what they thought they should be doing. There is one wise wizard (Morgan Freeman) who believes there is one "Master Builder" who will save the world from this conformity. A rebel (Elizabeth Banks) mistakenly identify's Emmet as that "Master Builder". All these characters are brought together in car chases, fights, sentimental moments and lots of laughs.

The Meaning

The movies brings all the Legos together in one space. Think of all your sets of legos – Star Wars, Harry Potter, Pirates, ponies – all working together, interlocking, interchanging (God forbid). I heard once that there are…

3 types of Lego people

  1. You get a set, put it together and it becomes a show piece.
  2. You get a set, put it together, play with it, take it apart, put it back together again.
  3. You don't get sets but just pieces; you build your own creations using just your imagination.

I was (because we didn't have sets back then) and my children are today in that third category. We have a ton of Legos and they build their own ships, houses, castles, cities, etc.. We bought the sets and they (I) put them together, and then they break apart, they get pissed and take the whole thing apart and build something completely new. Ok, getting back to the movie…..

Basically the message is that you should just throw out the manuals and use your imagination, think for yourself and be independent. We are not just talking Legos but life in general. At times we get so consumed with what life "should" be that we forget about what we "want" and conform. In my opinion as parents we have our children's life so structured with school, sports, clubs, play dates and anything else we can fit in so they are not bored. We have forgotten that they are children, they need time to play, use their imagination and become free thinkers – THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX!

So take the kids to see The Lego Movie, totally worth every piece of popcorn. Just maybe, afterwards, you may find yourself sitting on the floor with your kiddos exploring, creating and becoming the "Master Builder" that you always wanted to be. 

Trina O'Boyle is a Drexel Hill, PA mom of two boys. This post is adapted from her blog, O'Boy Organic.

 

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