Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

The LEGO Ninjago Movie 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman December 24, 2017

The LEGO brand's transformation into an entertainment empire took a major step forward with the company's innovative, hilarious, exciting, and touching film The LEGO Movie, a film about an ordinary guy tasked with doing something extraordinary in a make-believe world of larger-than-minifig-life bricks and buoyant personalities. The spin-off The LEGO Batman Movie didn't find quite the same level of narrative excellence but veered its story more to the comedy side of the spectrum, exploring some emotional drama but largely building a fun, fast-paced movie around Batman's personality (and Will Arnett's exemplary, character-defining voice work). Now, the third feature from LEGO takes the line's popular Ninjago world and figures and drops them into a movie that feels more like the first, a film in which comic overtones and large-scale action support a touching core story about a father-son relationship that gives balance to the film's epic laughs and huge action pieces.

Lloyd (voiced by Dave Franco) isn't much loved at school. He's shunned and people whisper behind his back, not for anything he's done but because his father happens to be Lord Garmadon (voiced by Justin Theroux) who has long been estranged from Lloyd and makes it his life's work to take over the city of Ninjago. His attacks are thwarted time and again by a group of select and powerful Ninjas, each fueled by an element -- fire, earth, ice, lightning, water -- except for the Green Ninja, who unbeknownst to most is actually Lloyd. When the ninjas thwart Garmadon's latest attack, the villain is forced to go back to the drawing board, fire his top generals, and find a way to conquer Ninjago once and for all. Meanwhile, a new threat rises within Ninjago, and Lloyd and the ninjas, under the tutelage of the not-too-terribly-old and very wise Master Wu (voiced by Jackie Chan), must learn to harness the power of the The Ultimate Weapon and The Ultimate Ultimate Weapon if they are to finally bring a lasting peace to their city.

Jokes flow regularly and relentlessly in Ninjago, whether original humor born of the characters, world, and moment or others that are finely folded in from other sources, including a barrage of Wilhelm screams or reworked lines from Independence Day, Top Gun, They Live, and The Empire Strikes Back, just to name a few movies that earn hilarious verbal cameos. Unlike some other blockbusters from 2017 that don't know when to stop, Ninjago's relentless humor defines the story rather than undercuts it, and the jokes pause long enough to allow the critical moments to breathe, even if some of those moments -- the picture's climax included -- are built around a larger gag.

It's impossible to watch the movie without a smile, minus a middling midpoint that's more a temporary pause in pace than it is a movie killer. Action is large-scale and well choreographed. It can get a little messy, and it's often so fast that it's hard to soak in all of the wonderful little details the filmmakers have put into the movie and explore and enjoy the elaborate detail with which the LEGO engineers have constructed the various mechs and environments (each sold separately to be sure), but the overall tone and pace and presentation of the core spoof of old Martial Arts films -- with some wonderful live-action and stylized cut-ins, including a charmingly battered and aged Warner Brothers opening logo -- are easy to see and appreciate. Characters lack significant depth but the core story -- Lloyd's distant relationship with his father -- proves funny and tender alike, striking that now-expected LEGO balance wherein great storytelling can be whittled down to the basics if it's presented in an agreeable and approachable way. That said, the film's villain is a bit too Lord Business-ish, and Justin Theroux seems to have taken his voice acting cues from Will Ferrell, but the personality suits the familiar character well, anyway, and does little harm to an otherwise highly enjoyable film. Meow!

The LEGO Ninjago Movie 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The LEGO Ninjago Movie's UHD presentation offers the expected boost for a film of this variety, i.e. a modest uptick in detail and color but nothing that blows the companion 1080p Blu-ray out of the water. The 4K image is likely an upscale from a 2K DI (IMDB's tech spec page offers no clarification, though it does mention Dolby Vision color, which this disc lacks). Nevertheless, the UHD delivers a more stable, crisper, better defined picture. Plastic-y LEGO figures reveal finer definition, whether smooth surfaces, rough edges, or Garmadon's textured capes, the latter of which sees a particularly healthy upwards boost. Close-ups capture significant edge and surface wear on characters and environments. HDR-enhanced colors offer a pleasing, but not excessive or significant, saturation beyond what the Blu-ray can show. There's no doubt that colors are punchier, more vivid, more intensely and finely saturated, but the jump isn't a leap, more like a pleasant hop. The live action bookends do reveal greatly improved sharpness, more pleasant colors (even in the room's warm lighting), and more stable shadow depth and detail. This is definitely a superior image over the Blu-ray, but fans shouldn't expect a revelation.

The LEGO Ninjago Movie 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The LEGO Ninjago Movie features a Dolby Atmos soundtrack that's as big and bellowing as the movie needs it to be. Action scenes explode through the speakers with incredible low end depth and chaotically engaging elements that zip, zoom, and zing every which way the configuration allows. Overheads engage with semi-regularity, commanding the stage with a handful of fun discrete effects, such as when Garmadon's fighters fly into Ninjago. A few computer voices saturate through the stage with commanding diffusion and a tangible top-end presence. Music is energetic, flowing through the stage with seemingly limitless power and confidence. Bass is particularly hard-hitting, noticed right at the beginning as a newscast's opening music flows through the listening area. Environmental supports are always well positioned and completely immersive. Dialogue plays with unsurprisingly rich and detailed clarity, enjoying firm front-center positioning and prioritization.

The LEGO Ninjago Movie 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The LEGO Ninjago Movie contains a number of extras, most of which are not listed on the back of the box. All of them can be found on the bundled Blu-ray; there are no extras on the UHD disc. A digital copy code is included with purchase.

• Team Supreme: Building Ninjago (1080p, 8:19): A broad overview of key filmmakers and their contributions, the film's locations and scale, location design, character design, feline involvement, humor, voice work, and more.
• Rumble in the Bricks (1080p, 5:19): A closer look at choreographing complex Kung Fu movements with limited-mobility figures with emphasis on Jackie Chan's involvement and live-action development.
• Rebrick Contest Winners (1080p, 4:39): A few fan-made shorts.
• Mini-Movies (1080p): LEGO-inspired animated shorts. Included are Shark E. Shark in Which Way to the Ocean (2:25), Zane's Stand Up Promo (2:02), and The Master: A 'LEGO Ninjago' Short (5:18).
• LEGO Ninjago TV Series Sneak Peak (1080p, 11:14): A preview for the television series.
• Music Videos (1080p): Included are "Found My Place" by Oh, Hush! & Jeff Lewis (3:21), Everybody Have a Ninja Day (1:06), Warlord Ballad (1:10), and Rocktagon (1:19).
• Deleted Scenes (1080p): Included are Animation Bridge Test (1:33), Baby Fight (2:50), and Dock Scene (3:16). With Director Charlie Bean overlay commentary.
• Gimmie Some Outtakes! (1080p, 4:42): Humorous asides from the "shoot."
• Promotional Material (1080p): Comical little shorts introducing the movie and characters and various other fun little bits. Included are The 'LEGO Ninjago' Movie: Behind the Bricks (3:59), Please Silence Your Cell Phones (0:47), Please Put On Your 3D Glasses (0:44), LEGO Sets in Action (2:32), The 'LEGO Ninjago' Movie: Ninja Formation (1:39), Find Your Inner Ninja with Jackie Chan (1:37), Ninja Jokes with Jackie Chan (0:27), Kicks & Bricks: Making the 'LEGO Ninjago' Movie (3:47), The 'LEGO Ninjago' Movie: Back to School (1:27), and Me and My Minifig (3:24).
• Audio Commentary: Director Charlie Bean, Editor David Burrows, Layout Supervisor Devin Scott, Animation Director Matt Everitt, Associate Producer Kristen Murtha, Production Supervisor Alex Kauffman, Editor Garret Elkins, Editor Ryan Folsey, Editor Doug Nicholas, Editor Todd Hansen, Editor John Venzon, Music Exec Nikki Sharon, and Music Exec Amanda Narkis all collaborate on a commentary track that is very informative with a wide range of insight, but the massive number of participants make it hard to keep up. Appologies for any misspelled names; some of these participants do not appear to be listed on the film's IMDB cast and crew page, there are no commentary subtitles available, and the menu screen's commentary tab does not list specific names beyond that of the director.

The LEGO Ninjago Movie 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The LEGO Ninjago Movie falls more in-line with Movie than it does Batman. Based on an original property rather than a hybrid (Movie) or one completely borrowed (Batman), the film soars with a wonderful balance of humor, action, and drama. Characters are a bit one-dimensional, but all of the surrounding bricks and pieces largely eliminate that roadblock and altogether lift the movie to highly entertaining heights. Warner Brothers' UHD is excellent. Video is strong but not a significant upwards move from the Blu-ray, Atmos audio is exceptional, and there are many more supplements than are advertised on the back of the box. Highly recommended, and were it not such a late release it probably would have snuck into my year-end top 10 list.