‘Average’ movie defeats the norm, sends inspiring message

Emmet+%28center%2C+voiced+by+Chris+Pratt%29+--+who+is+believed+to+be+The+Special+or+Master+Builder+--+joines+forces+with+Batman+%28Will+Arnett%29%2C+Wyldstyle+%28Elizabeth+Bands%29%2C+Vitruvious+%28Morgan+Freeman%29+and+others+to+save+the+world+in+The+Lego+Movie.+%28COURTESY+OF+WARNER+BROS.+PICTURES%2FMCT%29

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Emmet (center, voiced by Chris Pratt) — who is believed to be “The Special” or “Master Builder” — joines forces with Batman (Will Arnett), Wyldstyle (Elizabeth Bands), Vitruvious (Morgan Freeman) and others to save the world in “The Lego Movie.” (COURTESY OF WARNER BROS. PICTURES/MCT)

Being an ordinary person who is expected to be unique is terrifying. “The Lego Movie,” directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, is not notable because of its Lego-y animation (which made the action scenes sort of confusing to follow) or its admittedly amusing “humor.” It caught my interest particularly because of the central message it sent to its viewers. It was a novel and unheard of theme in the world of cinema: Instead of ‘It’s okay to be different’, the message was ‘It’s okay to be normal’.

It’s okay to be normal, and it’s definitely okay to focus little on the plot of this movie. Emmet (Chris Pratt), a simple standard Lego construction worker, is mistakenly thought to be ‘The Special’– the best, most important and most unique of all the Lego people. It seems farfetched by all of his MasterBuilder peers, considering that he isn’t creative, he goes with the norm and he’s afraid to step out of his comfort zone. Overall, Emmet isn’t special at all; he’s normal. He’s simple. He’s ordinary. However, he proved popular belief wrong: ordinary people can accomplish just as much as any ‘special’ person.

I found this movie intriguing because it deviates from every children’s movie message ever: ‘It’s good to be special!’, ‘Being weird is okay!’, ‘Accept your quirkiness’ or ‘ Oddballs accomplish great things!’ Such movies often overlook or even spite the ‘normal people’, portraying them as bullies or having a dull personality. “The Lego Movie” actually gives Emmet a personality, and it turns the tables as the ‘special’ and oddball Lego people condemn him for his normality and conformity. I found it refreshing that children’s cinema actually recognized that being average is okay, and that an average person is just as capable of great things as someone who is unique, creative and smart. That is, if they work at it.

One of the reasons I liked it so much was because I found it comparable to school life. If someone has average test scores and displays not a peek of exceptionality, he is often overlooked by both peers and faculty. “The Lego Movie” exists to condemn those who give up on anyone who isn’t super great. After all, not everyone can be special. However, that doesn’t mean that we can give up on those who aren’t unique. We can work on anyone.

“The Lego Movie” was also pretty funny, even for a stick in the mud like me. Emmet himself was pretty humorous, even for such a normal guy. I appreciated the movie’s attempts to get the adults to laugh, too. I think it worked. Other than being refreshing and funny, “The Lego Movie” is also very popular among its audience. Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 96% and IMDb gave it 8.3 out of 10 stars. Perhaps others too realized the validity of its new message. It’s okay to be normal. If you are normal and you know it, you are just as likely to succeed if you work at it.

 By Morgan Loxley