Skewered superheroism

For anyone like me who suffers from a condition I’ve started to think of as ESF—extreme superhero fatigue—a movie that centers on a caped crusader could provide a surprising antidote. The Lego Batman Movie, the sequel to 2014’s surprise hit The Lego Movie, skewers the self-aggrandizing, tortured dramatics that have come to characterize the genre.

Having vanquished all his enemies, Batman (a hilarious Will Arnett) discovers his last, greatest nemesis resides in his own heart—his fear of becoming part of a family again. This same subtext has played a part in other Dark Knight incarnations, but never has a film mined it for so many laughs. Even Joker (Zach Galifianakis) feels the sting of Batman’s emotional unavailability. “I would say I don’t currently have a bad guy,” The Dark One shrugs to the Joker’s vast heartbreak. “I’m fighting a few different people.”

A couple of crude bits notwithstanding, this kind of smart PG-humor characterizes the entire movie. A press conference where the cute new Commissioner Gordon (Rosario Dawson) argues for establishing a functioning police system rather than just relying on the Bat-Signal will have parents rolling in the aisle.

That said, while the manic, inside jokes never stop and practically beg for repeat viewings, Lego Batman doesn’t quite match the brilliance of its predecessor, one of the best and most delightful children’s movies of recent years.

From its incorporation of everyday household items like the “Kragle,” to its wild combination of characters and backdrops, to the father-and-son framing device that bookended the plot, The Lego Movie was a practically perfect representation of childhood imagination and the joy of play. So it’s no surprise that while it’s a ton of fun, the sequel, which focuses on the much smaller subject of why we’re drawn to superheroes, doesn’t reach the same heights. The Lego Movie was a kids’ movie for the ages. Lego Batman is a smart, cheeky movie for right now.