In 2014, The Lego company teamed up with Warner Brothers to make “The Lego Movie.” It was very successful, but in that movie, one of the most memorable characters was Will Arnett’s performance as the voice of Batman. So, on February 10, 2017, Will Arnett’s Lego Batman character was given his own movie: “The Lego Batman Movie.”

Like the film it is spun off from, “The Lego Batman Movie” is not just a kid’s movie. It’s also a great film for not only Lego fans of any age, but any fan of the Caped Crusader himself, as the film is filled with many references to different DC properties and to many key points in Batman’s history.

Like its predecessor, “The Lego Batman Movie” is done entirely with fast stop motion and CGI animation with nearly all the set pieces being built with Legos and all the characters appearing as Lego minifigures.
One of the film’s greatest strengths is the amount of easter eggs and references that they snuck throughout the movie. Not only are there references to DC’s properties, but there are also references to other Lego properties, other Warner Bros Properties and even a Marvel reference snuck in there. There are also a list of easter eggs that specifically deal with Batman’s film and television history. With the amount of easter eggs snuck into the movie, viewers may not catch them all the first time around.

The film also features a great voice cast with Will Arnett returning as Batman, Michael Cera voicing Robin, Rosario Dawson voicing Batgirl and Zach Galifianakis voicing The Joker. The film also has several voice cameos, such as Conan O’Brien, Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Billy Dee Williams and Mariah Carey. The film also features many minor DC villians unknown to mainstream audiences and gives them their film debuts.

As far as plot goes, the film takes an original story for the movie. This is something that comic book films have not seen in a while, as most superhero movies are an adaption of a comic book story. While the film uses an original plot, it does borrow some elements from Batman’s 75 year history, including the origins of Robin and Batgirl and many callbacks to famous times in Batman’s history.

The first two acts of the film feel organic and fit together well; however, the third act does get a little crazy and feels somewhat rushed due to Lego trying to fit in as many cameos as they can during the film’s runtime. Other than the rushed ending, the film has a plot that does what most sequel films fail to do: be as good as the first.

As far as the soundtrack, “The Lego Batman Movie” features an original score composed by Scottish film composer Lorne Balfe. The film also features a diverse list of songs from different eras spanning several different genres, such as 80s pop and 2010s house music. Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith and Fall Out Boy frontman Patrick Stump also helped collaborate. They both helped write the original score of the movie.

So, what is the verdict on “The Lego Batman Movie?” Well, like “The Lego Movie” before it, it may have been targeted for kids, but it is still enjoyable for any fan of Lego or DC Comics. With DC’s latest cold streak for movies, this may be the best DC movie in years.