The much anticipated sequel to 2014's surprise hit, The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part blasts off into theaters with as much, if not more fun than the first.
LEGO Movie 2
Everything is still awesome. The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part is exactly what it should be and that is more of the fast paced humor, heart and amazing animation from the first one.
It takes place five years after the original, and Emmett, Wyldstyle and the gang are in a wasteland filled with dread and broodiness. And eventually, Emmett has to learn to fight and be "tough" and has Rex Dangervest (basically all of Chris Pratt's past characters rolled into one) teach him his manly ways.
This is a movie that is 100 percent made for everybody. The animation is dopamine for your eyeballs. There's humor that will make the whole family giggle.
Writers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (The Lego Movie, Spiderman: Into The Spiderverse) have another hit on their hands, transforming an easy cash cow into a legit movie franchise. - Zach Keast, JD Roberts
Velvet Buzzsaw
Right from the very beginning of Velvet Buzzsaw, the audience is told that this movie will be a ridiculous satire of the evolution of art appreciation and art consumerism.
Directed by Dan Gilroy and starring Jake Gyllenhaal as Mort Vandewalt, Velvet Buzzsaw's actual plot is that an aspiring art collector finds a stash of amazing art inside a old dead man's apartment and then over time paintings start coming to life and murdering the people who appraise and sell art.
But the film goes beyond that, satirizing not only criticism of art but the consumerism that has surrounded it. It's reminiscent of the work of Vincent Van Gogh and how he did not gain fame until after his death and people profited off of his wonderful art.
Although the send up of the art world is fun, it's Gyllenhaal's portrayal of Morf that really sets this film a part. It is "mesmeric" and almost beyond anything he has ever done in his career. - Michael Buckner