What is it about?                                                                                                                     The LEGO Batman Movie is about Batman, or at least the LEGO version of him, the breakout star of the original LEGO Movie. Set in Gotham City, the Joker uses an entire rogues gallery of villains to take over Gotham City. Meanwhile, Batman struggles with the idea of being part of a family, as he tries to raise Dick Grayson, a young orphan he adopted and deal with Barbara Gordon, the new police commissioner who wants him to team up with the police.

How is it? 8.8/10                                                                                                                     Batman was a huge hit in The LEGO Movie, so he got his own, and it delivers on a ton of levels. The LEGO Batman Movie is an absolute burst of joy from start to finish: literally the first frame is hilarious. Its only shortcoming is that it doesn’t quite reach the heart of The LEGO Movie.

The Ups

LEGO Batman is chaotic, frenetic, and fun-filled adventure that will leave a smile on your face for, well, the whole thing.

This movie has such a strong sense of humor. The LEGO Batman movie is made up of gag after gag, and is unceasingly funny, yet it never feels forced. It is one of the most meta, self-deprecating movies I have ever seen, and references pop-culture every other minute. This movie is packed throughout its 104 minutes with winks, nods, and jabs at other movies and itself.  It references about every Batman movie or TV show you can think of, and I mean every. It also takes some fun jabs at the currently failing DC Cinematic Universe that will have you laugh out loud. This is all best demonstrated in the first ten minutes, which is a spectacular mix of visual and spoken pop culture references, fantastic voice acting and cameos, and chaotic action. I almost burst laughing at this, and let’s just say there is a very…unique sequence involving Batman rapping. Being a huge Bat-fan, I got a huge kick out of the references, but Batman fans, movie fans, and casual viewers alike will all enjoy it.

Speaking of the voice acting, all of the voice stars are great. Will Arnett, who was hilarious in The LEGO Movie is back and funny as ever, along with newcomer Michael Cera (playing Dick Grayson/Robin), who is innocently funny. Ralph Fiennes shined as butler Alfred, and Zach Galifinakis was a humorous, fresh take on Joker.

One of the things I loved about LEGO Batman was the play on Batman and Joker’s relationship. In comics before, they have been seen as needing and completing each other, which is put on play here. Joker desperately wants to be Batman’s greatest villain, but the fact that he just can’t say it causes Joker to crumble, resulting in some hilarious sequences.

The animation here is superb. All the computer animated facial features are very clear, and I was in wonder at the visual effects used. This pays off in the action, which, especially, in the third act, is chaotic and crazy, but still very smooth, providing an excellent experience.

This movie also has heart. It has a very good message of being part of a family, and it is touching near the end.

The Downs

I am a huge fan of The LEGO Movie: it is incredibly witty, very clever, hilarious, but most of all, heartfelt. I would say LEGO Batman is funnier, but it doesn’t match the freshness, cleverness, or emotion of the original: the original’s message about being yourself was truly brilliant, and this one’s about family is sweet, but not as good. Finally, the humor, sadly, does slow down a bit around the middle, as the concept of family is explored more.

Overall, The LEGO Batman Movie is a GREAT movie, with fantastic animation, great vocal performances, an amazing sense of humor, and unceasing meta and pop-culture references.