Director: Chris McKay.

Voiced By: Will Arnett, Michael Cera, Rosario Dawson, Ralph Fiennes, Zach Galifianakis.

Who doesn't love LEGO? Apart from when you stand on a brick bare footed, of course. According to Brand Finance, LEGO is now considered the most powerful brand in the world, taking over number one spot from Ferrari. There's some noticeable product placement from fellow high ranking brands also, even using the sounds and voice of Siri during the film, actually being credited as 'Puter.

Now, it wasn't that long ago we had Emmet Brickowoski kick off the First LEGO movie in 2014, with Will Arnett voicing Batman in that film who obviously caused such a stir, why not make a film solely devoted to the Dark Knight. I have to say, I wasn't totally won over by the LEGO movie, but found it very entertaining nonetheless, especially with the strong cast of voice performers and the overloaded "other" movie gags.

Chris McKay, the director from the hilarious Star Wars parody, Robot Chicken takes the helm, this being his first theatrical feature. He does incredibly well to maintain the style and perspective, and with a different team of writers (too many to mention) they do give us a polished LEGO movie much like the previous.

Now, who doesn't love Batman? Everyone loves Batman. From the comics, the animated and live action TV series and all the films over the last few decades. The Batman legacy is huge! So it's a no-brainer to make a LEGO Batman Movie. LEGO, Batman, what could go wrong for the studios bank balance?

Arnett returns to voice the narcissistic, egotistical and obnoxious yet lonely Batman/Bruce Wayne among yet another star studded mic setup. Just to mention a few, Ralph Fiennes perfectly fitting Alfred, Michael Cera playing the young and impressionable Robin and Rosario Dawson voicing the adamant Batgirl.

Zach Galifianakis voices the iconic Joker also amongst a large bank of recognisable Batman Villains and a few questionable additions (condiment man?) Zoë Kravitz, Conan O'Brien and even Billy Dee Williams reprising his role as Two Face from the '89 Batman. But audiences are spoilt more as Warner Bros. have more than a few secret weapons in their arsenal, being some quite unexpected surprises that should please most viewers across the ages.

Batman, being the isolated night stalking vigilante gets somewhat lonely, though incredibly reluctant to admit it, even upsetting his apparent non-nemesis, The Joker, who as a result, embarks on an ultimate plan to unleash disaster on Gotham, unfortunately using a portal (portals being that fashionable mode of transport for Earthly invasions) in the sky to bring an unprecedented swarm of enemies. Batman not only has to deal with the impeding disaster, his recent crush on the new commissioner and his loneliness, but also his accidental orphan, Dick Grayson, AKA Robin.

It's touching in little bits, actually bringing an emotional level to Batman, fans might not be accustomed to, but is it funny? Having seen the trailers countless times you fill in the words as the characters speak which is a shame, but I'm not saying all the best bits are in the trailers, but it's not far off.

Lorne Balfe does a super, triumphant score which in parts, echoes the Zimmer/Newton Howard score from Nolan's trilogy and sometimes hints at Neal Hefti's 1960 iconic theme song, but can anyone be surprised when finding out he worked on those very scores closely. The soundtrack boasts quite a mixture, but is catchy and suits the film brilliantly, especially with Richard Cheese! A personal favourite cover artist with his Lounge Against The Machine band famous for taking popular songs from all genres and converting them into often comical swing songs. Alas, if has long retired now but used to be available for people's weddings and other private functions but at quite a cost, and a long list of funny conditions. If you haven't heard his music I strongly suggest you do. I digest, the soundtrack is a great mix.

I can't say if it's better or worse than Emmett's outing, certainly on par with it. The animation can't be faulted yet I'm hoping the incoming LEGO NINJAGO Movie is a step up. Surely the joining forces of Batman and LEGO would be a sure fire hit, on it's first try, or maybe it'll get better after a flurry of batarangs.

Running Time: 7

The Cast: 8

Performance: 7

Direction: 7

Story: 6

Script: 7

Creativity: 8

Soundtrack: 9

Job Description: 5

The Extra Bonus Point: 0

Would I buy the Blu-ray?: hmm, maybe.

64% 6/10

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