Lego potential is virtually endless. Whether they come with elaborate instructions or in a giant bucket with nothing but imagination to guide the builder, these tiny blocks remain a source of endless fun for children and sometimes aggravation for parents who find themselves struggling with step-by-step fold-out instructions or otherwise digging the tiny blocks out of their bare feet. Beyond toys, Legos have gone on to be a source of entertainment in video game form and a source of wonder in art form. And coming next year, legos will be available in movie form. The above trailer not only teases the humor and the plot of this charming looking film, but also the stellar voice-cast. Because anytime Morgan Freeman is among the voices of a film, the word "stellar" applies, especially when his character is wielding a pointy staff and being wise and authoritative.
The Lego Movie comes from Warner Bros. and centers on an average-joe Lego mini-figure who's mistaken for an extraordinary MasterBuilder and is recruited to join a mission to take down an evil Lego tyrant who aims to glue the universe together. That does sound like the kind of thing a Lego villain might do. Probably also a jigsaw puzzle villain, if one existed. Someone has to stop that madness, and somehow Emmet's gotten roped into it. As you can see in the above trailer, he seems a bit reluctant about his part in this task, but maybe the adventure is just what he needs to change his life and save the Lego world.
Going by the trailer, The Lego Movie seems like it could be Warner Bros.' answer to Wreck-It Ralph, likely banking a bit on mass appeal and a bit on nostalgia. After all, Legos have been around for generations. While the Disney film used familiar video game characters in its movie, The Lego Movie has Lego versions of popular characters, like Batman, Wonder Woman, the 2002 NBA All Stars, Michelangelo and Michelangelo - be sure to distinguish the pronunciations on those last two, because there's a difference - you can also tell them apart by the fact that one has a beard and one is a lego turtle. (These are the kind of jokes that I laugh at, so I'm in.) The trailer also manages to tap into a nice blend of current and nostalgic, using the melody from Pitbull's "Feel This Moment," a song that won't stop playing on the radio and also happens to sample A-ha's 80's "Take On Me." For comparison's sake again, Wreck-It Ralph used a bit of Talking Head's "Once in a Lifetime" in its first trailer, along with Flo Rida's "Good Feeling." Nostalgic and current.
Joining Freeman among the voice cast are Chris Pratt, Will Ferrell, Elizabeth Banks, Liam Neeson, Will Arnett, Nick Offerman and Alison Brie. The film was originally set to arrive in theaters at the end of February, but was later moved up to February 7.
Here's the poster, via Yahoo:
