Ninjago (2017)

For a movie clearly made just to further Lego’s sale on its Ninjago franchise, is it worth the watch? Definitely

Ninjago serves as the 3rd cinema level Lego film by Warner Brothers. The concept is novel enough with ninjas being a timeless classic to both kids and kids at heart and with the success of the previous lego films capitalizing it seemed like the right decision by WB. Feeling a hint of nostalgia while watching the film though, it’s easier to describe its ups and downs as concisely as possible.

Ups

-The fight choreography
For something as inanimate as legos, WB really did a good job of leaving nothing left to imagination. If you thought about how lego would fight, remember that Jackie Chan was a part of Ninjago so that should a clue on the kind of action you’d expect. And on the topic of Jackie Chan…

-Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan really does make any film better between his great delivery (both normal and deadpan), character work and just his influence in general. Sure he may not be able to do Action films like he used to before but when the compromise is Jackie Chan doing martial arts in lego form, the tradeoff isn’t really that bad. Also when you think about it, the Ninjago movie feels more like a Karate Kid movie than the Jaden Smith Reboot (ew)

-The Detailing
Warner Brothers really came a long way when it comes to digital animation and it really shows with this film. To see what I mean, just watch the film and look at any random detail.

-The low brow humor
Being a lego movie, you can throw all sense out the window and that’s a good thing. Between every pun, bit of wordplay and visual humor, Ninjago is sure to deliver especially when you need something to cheer you up

Downs

-A weak start
Sure it starts with the usual action you’d expect ala the Lego Batman movie but when you take a step back, while watching the film, it’d feel as if there were too many things happening in the screen at the same time. It might be just me but the first few minutes really gave me this impression.

-Character tropes a plenty
I saw the Ninjago cartoon once on tv and sure I may not have seen previous episodes but the characters were clearly developed and had their own unique personalities. It felt like Suicide Squad all over again with too many characters being introduced at the same time but then again it’s a kids movie so it’s not really that much of an issue.

Is Ninjago worth watching? Definitely, but at the end of the day we have to remember that it’s a kids move and a really good kids movie at that. G rated humor a plenty with nothing that would fly over your head in sight, Ninjago is a great way to spend the Weekend with your kids or if you just need a good laugh without needing to think.

7.5/10 for me but take away Jackie Chan and I would’ve graded this film a 6 or 7

#DobyWatchesInanimateObjectsTheMovie