Tonight's Movie: The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part (2019)

It's hard to believe it's been exactly half a decade since the dazzlingly colorful and creative THE LEGO MOVIE (2014) debuted.

I wrapped up my holiday weekend theatrical viewing today with the brand-new sequel, THE LEGO MOVIE 2: THE SECOND PART (2019). While the new film may not have the surprises of the original film or the heart and wickedly sharp humor of THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE (2017), it's still entertaining and worthwhile, on a level with the most recent film in the series, THE LEGO NINJAGO MOVIE (2017).

Without wanting to get too specific, THE LEGO MOVIE 2: THE SECOND PART builds on the relatively profound big "reveal" at the end of the first film, which gives this movie a different and interesting dynamic. The stylized back-and-forth melding of different "universes" in this film reminded me vaguely of SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE (2018).

This time around Bricksburg, home of our heroes, has been attacked by aliens who are attracted to anything "cute." This results in Bricksburg turning into a dirty, gritty place so as not to lure the destructive monsters. When Emmet (Chris Pratt) can't resist building an ultra-cute house for Lucy (Elizabeth Banks) -- complete with a room for Unikitty (Alison Brie) and an entire room filled with toasters! -- the bad guys soon arrive to attack.

The monsters, headed by Queen Watevra Wa'Nabi (Tiffany Haddish), kidnap Lucy and Batman (Will Arnett), so it's Emmet to the rescue, soon aided by a new friend, Rex Dangervest (also voiced by Pratt).

The movie has some interesting dramatic themes; I loved the concept of the trauma of ending up under the dryer and the fact not all the characters are exactly what we first think. There are also lots of amusing and visually attractive moments and a good score, including a reprise of the first film's catchy, Oscar-nominated "Everything is Awesome."

As with the other films, much of the appeal here is that it's a children's film made for adults, who will enjoy and be moved by the film on a different level from younger viewers.

THE LEGO MOVIE 2: THE SECOND PART was directed by Mike Mitchell from a screenplay by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.

Parental Advisory: This film is rated PG. I'm not sure why; destruction of a Lego city?

For some fun additional reading, Brian Truitt of USA Today has ranked the four LEGO films. I completely agree with his assessments.