THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE Blu-ray Review

THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE (Blu-ray + DVD + Digital HD)

Release Date: June 13, 2016

Studio: Warner Home Entertainment

Video: 2.39:1 1080p Widescreen

Audio: English Dolby Atmos (TrueHD 7.1 Compatible), English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, English DVS 5.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1

THE RATINGS

The Movie Itself - ★ ★ ★ ★ ½

Video Quality - ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Audio Quality - ★ ★ ★ ★ ½

Special Features - ★ ★ ★ ½ ✰

Overall - ★ ★ ★ ★ ½

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THE FILM ITSELF Our Reviewer's Take
"Who always pays their taxes? NOT BATMAN!"

Reviewed by Gavin King

2014's The Lego Movie was a genuine surprise. Beautifully animated, funny, and filled with a shocking amount of heart, it set a caliber for its inventive animation techniques (looking as if it was stop motion, while it was really computer animated) but also tackled big themes, all brought together by incredibly talented voice work and laugh-a-minute gags. No doubt that that success is what spiraled this year's The Lego Batman Movie into shape. The film carries over all of the hugely positive standouts that made The Lego Movie so enjoyable - crisp animation, hilarious moments, a sprinkle of charm - but the film is more than just baseline Lego Movie related characteristics. It also delivers surprisingly big and bold (er, should I say, brave and bold) action and a story that may not be as deep as 2014's Lego but builds upon the classic superhero film with a bunch of inspired touches throughout, whether it be in its dizzyingly hilarious humor or its brisk, breezy, and bombastic plot.

The infamous duo: Batman & Robin!

Batman (voiced by Will Arnett) has saved the city yet again. He's taken out the Joker's (voiced by Zach Galifianakis) evil plots to set off a bomb that will destroy Gotham City and its poor citizens. Luckily, he diffuses the ticking explosive just in time, and Mr. Bruce Wayne again gets all of the raving recognition that he deserves. Outside of all his adventures with villainy, Batman lives a pleasant life in Wayne Manor, his mansion where he'll be greeted by his 'Puter, eat his Lobster Thermidor, and live life as only Batman can. One night he's caught looking at family photos by Alfred Pennyworth (voiced by Ralph Fiennes). He tells Batman that he's going to the winter gala to celebrate the commencement of Commissioner Gordon (voiced by Hector Elizondo), in which, at the ceremony, his daughter Barbara (voiced by Rosario Dawson) will take over his position in the city. But during Ms. Gordon's speech, the Joker takes over. But this isn't any ordinary mishap from him. He and his followers are surrendering, while his trusty partner Harley Quinn (voiced by Jenny Slate) is on a mysterious mission disguising as a doctor. Thinking that the Joker is up to something, Batman recruits an orphan named Richard "Dick" Grayson (voiced by Michael Cera) on a super-hero quest to steal the Phantom Zone Projector from Superman (voiced by Channing Tatum) - the one contraption that can send the Joker and his pals to the Phantom Zone, a meeting place for some of history's most iconic villains.

What made 2014's The Lego Movie so special was its rapid-fire humor, one of its strongest assets. This is something The Lego Batman Movie thrives off of in a gleefully maniacal fashion. The gags range from pop culture references (in which there are lots of them) involving some of Batman's past appearances in films such as The Dark Knight Rises and even the 1966 cartoony Batman TV series, from delightful eye candy and visual gags, with one of the most guffaw-inducing being when Batman and Robin (Dick) enter Superman's party and Batman asks Robin to perform a visual interpretation of a mathematical equation. If there's anyone who's masters at the art of animated movie comedy, it's Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (along with the brilliant mind of director Chris McKay). Their proof in the past for humorous hijinks was elevated in 2009's Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs and their comic stride has continued with movies such as The Lego Movie and, even if they're not directing this time around, The Lego Batman Movie.

The Joker and his Rogues skim through Batman's rom-com collection...

Visually, The Lego Batman Movie delivers. This is nothing short of a visual CGI astonishment. While it could be argued that there are a few minor elements in this film that may not hold the absolute inventiveness of The Lego Movie - for example, washing water in 2014's and real water used at the end of the film here - there's certainly no mistaking that Batman retains every bit of that visual awesomeness. One could easily be fooled into thinking that a majority of the film was shot via stop-motion animation. Rather, the entire picture was animated digitally, but to the film's animators and design artists excessive gratitude cannot be repelled enough; every last little intricacy of each Lego figurine, block, brick, and character has been painstakingly rendered to give audiences a truly one-of-a-kind digital experience.

Voice work is up to moot, too. Will Arnett, who voiced Lego Batman in the 2014 Lego Movie, reprises his role here, with his trademark gravely voice and recognizable darkness that comes from the Batman character. He's a remarkably hilarious performance here, because he knows how to balance tonal darkness with an exaggerated wit that - with the help of director Chris McKay and team - makes him one of the best voice performances in an animated movie in ages. The film assembles a hodgepodge of discernible voice talent - Michael Cera, Zach Galifianakis, Ralph Fiennes - but the highlight of the supporting roles is easily Jenny Slate, who plays the perky Harley Quinn in this version. If you've read my Blu-ray review of The Secret Life of Pets, you'll know that she plays the fluffy Pomeranian Gidget in that film, and her cracky, irresistible voice is perfectly cadenced here, interweaving anarchy and charm largely well. Not only a technical astonishment but also wonderfully enjoyable on a baseline level, The Lego Batman Movie fires on all cylinders. Now here's hoping September's The Lego Ninjago Movie continues the Lego film franchise's positive streak.


THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE Blu-ray - Video Quality

I usually go into reviewing animated movies with an unsurprising "(animated movie title) looks great on Blu-ray", but my, oh my, does The Lego Batman Movie look mighty gorgeous on Blu-ray. This is, hands-down, one of the best examples of digital animation on the high-def format. Colors are resplendent and candy-coated, with hues varying from location to location - bruisy blues towards the film's beginning, the brooding reds of Wayne Manor, the cotton-candy shades of the Phantom Zone - but never once caboosing behind when it comes to consistent vigor and pop. There's an unmistakable brilliance to the image. Much of the film's scenes provide a very real, very natural lighting that's reminiscent to real life. It's truly amazing what these digital artists can pull off to say the least. Fine detail on Lego figurines and bricks are impossible to miss, perhaps not quite so immediately noticable as the breakout The Lego Movie but never wanting for more true clarity and pinpoint sharpness right from the digital source material. Black levels hold firm and never delve into a milky pastiness. There a couple extremely minor, barely noticable instances of banding, but such instances don't deserve a knockdown in score. Aliasing, macroblocking, and other annoying compression artifacts are MIA. For a movie of this caliber, you couldn't ask for much more. It's reference-quality material all-around.

THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE Blu-ray - Audio Quality

The Lego Batman Movie features a fantastic Dolby Atmos soundtrack that will make use of every single speaker in your home theater setup. It may not be the most full-on aggresive soundtrack on the market today - there are a couple of moments where the surround involvement could be increased up a bit - but there's no denying that this makes for a wonderful listen with a number of memorable moments. Battle sequences are big and full, with aural attention paid to every laser blast, explosion, invasion, and other action-oriented moments that transport the listener from the home theater to the world of Lego Batman. Music is just as weighty, with a dominant front-end presence that lightly but noticably wraps around the backs for that extra sense of musical enveloping. Whether Lorne Balfe's action-packed score or more popular beats and tunes, the track's musical definition is spot-on and accurate, clear and faithful. A number of robust ambient effects immerse throughout. The hum of an airplane early on in the film, wind gusts down at Superman's place, or light din at the prison all prove excellently enveloping. Dialogue is well-prioritized and richly-presented in the front-center location. The Lego Batman Movie's lossless soundtrack offers fans pretty much everything they could ever wish for.

THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE Blu-ray - Special Features

- Animated Shorts include the following:

Dark Hoser Lego Batman is dragged into the Justice League of Canada.

Batman is Just Not That Into You Harley Quinn interviews the Joker about the relationship between him and Batman.

Cooking with Alfred Alfred Pennyworth, Batman, and Robin find making the perfect omelette a little tougher than they thought.

Movie Sound Effects: How Do They Do That? A few characters from The Lego Batman Movie show us how they interpret laser sound effects.

- The Master: A Lego Ninjago Short A Jackie Chan-like ninja battles a silly chicken to get the ever-wanted title of The Master.

- Deleted Scenes include the following: Batcave Studio, Lollipop, Batman & Mayor Swap, and Clayface.

- Featurettes include the following:

One Brick at a Time: Making The Lego Batman Movie This featurette treads through the film's storyline, the director Chris McKay, the painstaking animation process, the cast performances, and much more. This is a featurette that fans of the film will adore.

Rebrick Contest Winners Will Arnett introduces us to the top three winners from the Lego Batman short film contest. Each entry had to be 15 to 30 seconds long and needed to follow the storyline of Batman taking out villains.

Inside Wayne Manor Batman/Bruce Wayne takes us on a tour of the extravagant Wayne Manor.

Brick By Brick: Making of The Lego Batman Movie Cast interviews with fun moments behind the microphone.

Behind the Brick This promotional piece introduces us to the film's zany, action-packed characters.

Me and My Minifig The Lego Batman cast reacts to their Lego minifigures.

- Promotional Material includes the following:

Trailer 1 - With Will Arnett Intro

Trailer 2

Trailer 3

LEGO Life Trailer

Follow Me Online

Don't Skip

Happy Holidays Jingle

Batsby New Year's

Team Cutdown

Comic-Con Panel

- Director and Crew Commentary Director Chris McKay and his crew of 20 other people in his commentary deliver a blast of a track. Granted, their laughter can sometimes get a tad in the way things, but their enthusiasm is well appreciated and their are tons of informal pieces throughout.

THE LEGO BATMAN MOVIE Blu-ray - Overall Recommendation

The Lego Batman Movie is a fantastic movie that never takes itself too seriously - and that's one of it's biggest strengths. It's a film filled to the brim with positives - wonderful animation, hilarious gags, admirable cast performances, a tidy plot - and it's a welcome entry into the growing saga of Lego movies in the tradition of the spiraling success that 2014's The Lego Movie was. Some might even enjoy it more on repeat viewings, to look out for easter eggs that director Chris McKay and the Warner Animation Group team hid into the animated hodgepodge of goodness. More than just one of the best movies of the year so far, The Lego Batman Movie is one of the best animated movies of the 21st century, and I can't wait to see what the team behind the Lego films come up with next considering their already phenomenal streak. Warner Home Entertainment's Blu-ray is expectedly terrific; spotless video, high-quality audio, and a nice smattering of supplements round out the package. Very highly recommended.

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