The Lego Ninjago Movie

"It's okay, Lloyd.  Nobody's parents are perfect."

"I mean, my mom is weird, and collects seashells.  Your dad levels cities and attacks innocent peopel. So, they've all got their quirks, ya know."

The evil Lord Garmadon (Theroux) wants to control the city of Ninjago.  He regularly launches attacks on the city from his volcano lair.  His actions cause the town to hate his son, Lloyd (Franco).  Lloyd lives with his mother Misako (Munn) and wants nothing to do with his evil father.

Ninjago is protected by 6 ninjas.  Each ninja wears a different color, but no one knows their true identity.  The ninjas are teenagers and are taught by Master Wu (Chan).  Master Wu says that they each have power over a different element: Nya (Jacobson) is water, Kai (Pena) is fire, Jay (Nanjiani) is lightning, Cole (Armisen) is earth, Zane (Woods) is ice, and Lloyd is "green."  Can Lloyd and his friends defeat his father?


This is the third film in the LEGO franchise, and the first to feature characters that did not appear in the previous films.  The film follows The LEGO Movie in 2014 and The Lego Batman Movie in 2017.  The story is based on the LEGO Ninjago toy line.  Due to the success of the line, they also created a TV show Lego Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu which ran from 2011-2017.

I was aware of the show, but did not have any other knowledge of the plot / background.  The trailers looked funny, and based on the success of the other Lego films I was interested in watching this film.  It has some funny moments and I enjoyed the opening stunt with Jackie Chang (in the live-action portion).

The film received mixed reviews from critics and audiences.  The general consensus is that it has good moments, but isn't as funny as it's predecessors.  Fans of the Ninjago show were disappointed in the film.

It is still worth checking out.

The Lego Ninjago Movie (2017) 101 minutes
Director: Charlie Bean, Paul Fisher, Bob Logan
Starring: Dave Franco as Lloyd Garmadon
Justin Theroux as Lord Garmadon
Fred Armisen as Cole
Abbi Jacobson as Nya
Olivia Munn as Misako "Koko" Lor
Kumail Nanjiani as Jay
Michael Pena as Kai
Zach Woods as Zane
Jackie Chan as Master Wu