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This article is about the movie. For the theme, see The LEGO Ninjago Movie (Theme).

The LEGO Ninjago Movie is a spin-off of The LEGO Movie released in theaters on September 22, 2017 (USA) in 3D, 2D, Dolby Cinema and IMAX 3D by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film received generally mixed reviews from critics and has currently grossed $97 million worldwide against its $70 million budget. The film is based on the existing LEGO theme known as Ninjago, and was decided to be developed in response to the positive reception during the release of the official trailer for The LEGO Movie. Similar to the previous cinematic LEGO movies, The LEGO Ninjago Movie was created with a stop-motion style CGI.

Plot[]

Original Overview[]

Ninjas, samurais, and sensei fight side-by-side against dragons, armies of snake men, and a once-banished warlord who is now seeking to return to power.

Official Plot[]

Ninjago is the story of six young ninja tasked with defending their island home, called Ninjago. By night, they’re gifted warriors, using their skill and awesome fleet of vehicles to fight villains and monsters. By day, they’re ordinary teens, struggling against their greatest enemy: high school.

Synopsis[]

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A young boy meets the mysterious owner of a relic shop, Mr. Liu, who tells him the story of Ninjago, a city within the LEGO universe. It is frequently terrorized by the evil warlord Garmadon and his army of sea life-themed henchmen. Garmadon's constant attacks backfire on his son Lloyd, who is despised by everyone in Ninjago City for his relation to Garmadon, putting him under emotional stress. Unbeknownst to everyone, Lloyd is the Green Ninja, the leader of a ninja team comprising Kai, Cole, Jay, Zane, Nya, and their master Wu (Garmadon's brother), who always stop Garmadon from taking over Ninjago by fighting with mechs. When Garmadon is again unsuccessful at conquering Ninjago, his tech division shows him a giant new mech.

Following their victory, Wu tells the ninja that only their "unique element" will permanently vanquish Garmadon. Lloyd is frustrated to learn his element is "green" while Kai has fire, Cole has earth, Jay has lightning, Zane has ice, and Nya has water. Wu also mentions the "Ultimate Weapon", giving Lloyd new hope of stopping Garmadon, despite Wu warning them that nobody can ever use the device. The next day, Garmadon attacks Ninjago with his new mech and this time defeats Lloyd. As Garmadon gloats, Lloyd returns with the Ultimate Weapon and fires it, only to discover it is actually a laser pointer that attracts a live-action cat named Meowthra. Garmadon points the laser at the ninja's mechs, which the cat destroys, but Lloyd breaks the laser pointer. As Garmadon celebrates his victory, Lloyd unmasks himself and denounces his father, leaving Garmadon confused.

Lloyd meets up with his friends and Wu, who tells them they must use the "Ultimate, Ultimate Weapon" to stop Meowthra from destroying Ninjago, which can be found on the other side of Ninjago Island. Garmadon overhears the conversation, follows close behind, and intercepts the ninja. Wu and Garmadon fight, and although the former manages to trap the latter in a cage, he falls off a bridge into the river below. Before being swept away, Wu tells the ninja they must find "inner peace". The ninja continue on with Garmadon leading them, much to Lloyd's annoyance. Despite this, the two bond throughout their journey, while the ninja learn not to rely solely on their mechs to fight. The group survives an encounter with Garmadon's fired generals, and Garmadon teaches Lloyd to throw.

They eventually crash down onto the Temple of Fragile Foundations, Garmadon's childhood home. He tells Lloyd that his mother, Koko, was once a warrior named Lady Iron Dragon and that he wishes he had stayed with them after deciding to conquer Ninjago, but he couldn't change his ways so they had to stay apart. The ninja find the Ultimate, Ultimate Weapon, a chest consisting of a set of LEGO pieces that resemble their elemental powers, only to have it stolen by Garmadon, who remains resolute in taking over the city after Lloyd rejects his offer to replace a mutinous general. In an unexpected turnaround, Garmadon locks the ninja inside the temple as it begins to collapse. Lloyd realizes that "inner peace" means that they must unleash their elemental power, and they escape from the collapsing temple. As they fall off a cliff, Wu saves them with the ninja's flying ship, the Destiny's Bounty, and they head back to Ninjago City.

Garmadon tries to defeat Meowthra with the Ultimate, Ultimate Weapon, only to end up eaten by the cat. Lloyd and the others arrive and begin fighting Garmadon's army. As Lloyd approaches Meowthra, he reveals to everyone that he is the Green Ninja and realizes that "green" means life and that his element is what connects the ninja and his family together. He comforts and tames Meowthra and apologizes to Garmadon profusely, saying that he forgives him. Garmadon cries tears of fire, causing Meowthra to regurgitate him back out. After Lloyd and Garmadon reconcile, Meowthra becomes the mascot of Ninjago and Lloyd is hailed as a hero.

As Mr. Liu finishes his story about Ninjago, he informs the boy that he has the potential to be a great ninja warrior and tells him that they will start training at dawn.

Cast[]

Additional voices by Viola Baier, Craig Berry, Noël Brydebell, Fiona Cyprienne, Graham Elkins, Johnathan Elkins, Serena Elkins, Ryan Folsey, Maryann Garger, Mark Gillins, Jesse Goldsmith, Chris McKay, Matt McMillan, Yoriaki Mochizuki, Samantha Nisenboim, Madeleine Purdy, Magali Rigaudias, Carmen Perez-Marsa Roca, Jennifer Stellema, John Venzon, Natalie Wetzig, Tom Wheeler, Lauren White, and Jialing Danni Zhang.

DVD and Blu Ray Release[]

The LEGO Ninjago Movie DVD was released on December 19, 2017. The film can be bought in a one DVD set, a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray disc version, A Blu-Ray disc version, a Target exclusive version or a Best Buy exclusive. The Target exclusive features 6 trading cards.

Special Features[]

Blu-ray[]

  • Featurettes
    • Team Supreme: Building NINJAGO
    • Rumble in the Bricks
    • Rebrick Contest Winners
  • Animated Shorts: A "play all" function is included.
    • Shark E. Shark in Which Way to the Ocean
    • Zane's Stand Up Promo
  • The Master: A LEGO Ninjago Short: Master Wu, high priest of Ninjago, struggles to get his opening credits right.
  • LEGO Ninjago TV Series Sneak Peek
  • Music Videos
    • Oh, Hush! ft. Jeff Lewis "Found My Place"
    • Everybody Have a Ninja Day
    • Warlord Ballad
    • Rocktagon
  • Deleted Scenes: A "play all" function is included.
    • Animation Bridge Test
    • Baby Fight
    • Dock Scene
  • Gimme Some Outtakes!
  • Promotional Material
    • The Lego Ninjago Movie: Behind the Bricks
    • Please Silence Your Cell Phones
    • Please Put on Your 3D Glasses
    • LEGO Sets in Action
    • The Lego Ninjago Movie: Ninja Formation
    • Find Your Inner Ninja with Jackie Chan
    • Ninja Jokes with Jackie Chan
    • Kicks and Bricks: Making of The Lego Ninjago Movie
    • The Lego Ninjago Movie: Back to School
    • Me and My Minifig
  • Commentary

DVD[]

  • Deleted Scenes: A "play all" function is included.
    • Animation Bridge Test
    • Baby Fight
    • Dock Scene

Development[]

The movie was first announced to be in development June 27, 2013; in response to the positive reception from The LEGO Movie's Official Trailer. The development for a Ninjago movie was announced alongside the development of The LEGO Movie Sequel; and it was eventually decided by LEGO to release the Ninjago movie first, pushing the date for the LEGO Movie Sequel back to 2018 (and eventually pushed back to 2019, being succeeded by The LEGO Batman Movie).

The movie was written by brothers Dan and Kevin Hageman, who have also worked on Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu and The LEGO Movie. On May 21, 2014, it was revealed that the release date of the film will be September 23, 2016 and it would be written by Charlie Bean.

Unlike the previous portrayal of the LEGO Ninjago theme as a television series in Ninjago: Masters of Spinjitzu, the film was described to be set in a new universe that diverges from the show.

The film was later announced to be delayed one year to 2017.

Filming[]

In order to give the film a more believable father-son atmosphere, Dave Franco and Justin Theroux recorded most of their lines where their characters interact with each other together in a single Recording studio. During the process, Franco openly admitted he found himself uncontrollably crying while recording some of his lines. Franco stated "I found myself getting caught up in the moment and basically crying harder than I have in any live-action movie I’ve ever been in"

Animation[]

Similar to The LEGO Movie and The LEGO Batman Movie, the film uses CGI animated bricks made to mimic "brickfilms", or LEGO stop motion videos. However, a stark contrast between The LEGO Ninjago Movie and the previous theatrical LEGO movies is the non-brick environments that are used.

Reception[]

Box Office[]

As of October 15, 2017, The Lego Ninjago Movie has grossed $51.6 million in the United States and Canada, and $45.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $97 million.

In North America, the film was released alongside Kingsman: The Golden Circle and Friend Request. Various tracking services had the film projected to gross anywhere from $27–44 million from 4,047 theaters in its opening weekend. However, after making $5.8 million on its first day, weekend projections were lowered to $21 million. It ended up debuting to $21.2 million, finishing third at the box office and ranking as the lowest opening of the Lego franchise by over 50%.

Critical Response[]

The Lego Ninjago Movie received mixed reviews from critics. On review website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 53% based on 109 reviews, with an average rating of 5.8/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Despite ample charm and a few solid gags, The Lego Ninjago Movie suggests this franchise's formula isn't clicking like it used to." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 55 out of 100, based on 33 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale. iMDB rated the movie 6.1/10, while IGN gave it a 7.5/10. 86% of Google users liked the film.

Notes[]

  • This is not Lloyd's first cinematic appearance. Lloyd had made several cameos in The LEGO Movie as one of the Master Builders.
  • It is also not Jay's first appearance as he made a cameo as a drawing on the wall in Luke Cage.
  • A LEGO version of Ferris Bueller from "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" makes a cameo appearance in both the second trailer and the released film alongside the other students moving away from Lloyd as he is entering the bus.
  • Kebab Bob, Garbage Man Grant, Panda Guy, Demolition Guy, and Ice Cream Mike from The LEGO Movie as well as the Minifigures line characters Deep Sea Diver, Surfer, Zookeeper, Artist, Sleepyhead, Hot Dog Man, and the Babysitter's baby make brief cameos in the film.
  • Meowthra's name is a reference to the Godzilla Kaiju Mothra.
  • Mr. Liu's decision to train the boy into a ninja may be a reference to The Karate Kid (2010) since Jackie Chan, the actor of Mr. Liu, also has an iconic portrayal as a mentor and sensei to another young boy and Dre.
  • After Lloyd discovers his element is green, he mentions three elements he has wielded in the TV series.
    • First he mentions gold, which is his element when he takes up the mantle of the Golden Ninja in the 2nd season.
    • Next he mentions wind, which he wields when Morro possesses him in the 5th season.
    • Lastly he mentions surprise, which although isn't an element, he uses it against Chen in the 4th season, during episode "The Forgotten Element".
  • Running gag: Lord Garmadon keeps mispronouncing Lloyd's first name as "La-Loyd". This is unlike in the TV series in which Garmadon already knows how to pronounce Lloyd's first name correctly.
  • This is Dave Franco's second voicing acting role in a LEGO film after The LEGO Movie (in which he previously voiced minor character Wally).
  • The trailers show Lloyd revealing himself to Garmadon at the bottom of Ninjago City. This was likely a work-in-progress scene as the final version shows Lloyd revealing himself to Garmadon on top of Ninjago Tower after Meowthra is unleashed.
  • The LEGO Ninjago Movie is the first theatrical film to be based on an original LEGO property.
  • The ninja have different hairpieces than in the TV series and LEGO sets, however for Season 8, the characters in TV series and LEGO sets were redesigned in order to match their movie counterparts.
  • Before the movie Storks, there was a short called "The Master".
  • This is the only LEGO theatrical movie not to be released in February.
  • The only LEGO movie not to have any DC Comics Characters.
    • "The Master" involves Sensei Wu fighting against Chicken.
  • The movie was initially planned to be released to theaters on September 23, 2016, but was later postponed to September 22, 2017, as Storks took the September 23, 2016 release spot instead.
  • This was the second movie from The LEGO Movie franchise to be released in 2017 with The LEGO Batman Movie being the first with release date on February 10, 2017.
  • This is the second LEGO theatrical film to be composed by Mark Mothersbaugh after The LEGO Movie.
  • This is the third movie of The LEGO Movie(franchise).

Gallery[]

Posters[]

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References[]

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