The LEGO Ninjago Movie

Bookended by two live-action sequences featuring costar Jackie Chan as a Chinatown curio store narrator, this animated film delves once more into the world of plastic toys. Indeed, it almost duplicates The Lego Movie (2014), redundantly utilizing a wise guru and a sought-after Ultimate Weapon that turns out to be a common household object. On the Asian island city of Ninjago lives average high school student Lloyd (voiced by Dave Franco), whose father is wicked, egomaniacal Lord Garmadon (Justin Theroux). Lloyd is an outcast with obvious daddy issues. Riffing on the Luke Skywalker Star Wars mythology, the film revives the combative good son/evil father concept, with Lloyd's overprotective mother (Olivia Munn) serving as the voice of reason. Meanwhile, martial arts Master Wu (Chan) has been training a color-coded, elemental Ninja team to battle pompous, four-armed warlord Garmadon, who also happens to be his brother. And Lloyd, as the Green Dragon Ninja, secretly trains with them. Other Ninjas are voiced by Michael Peña, Kumail Nanjiani, Abbi Jacobson, Zach Woods, and Fred Armisen. Eventually, the Ninjas will team up with Lord Garmadon to save their metropolis from annihilation by Meowthra, a giant house cat. Drawing on a script full of pop-culture puns and gags carelessly cobbled together, directors Charlie Bean, Paul Fisher, and Bob Logan have made a frenetic, familiar family film that serves as another commercial for the titular brick-building toy franchise. Optional. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director Charlie Bean and crew, promotional material (21 min.), a “Team Supreme: Building Ninjago” making-of featurette (8 min.), a “Rumble in the Bricks” production featurette (5 min.), deleted scenes (8 min.), music videos (7 min.), a “Rebrick Contest Winners” segment (5 min.), outtakes (5 min.), and the mini-movies “The Master” (5 min.), “Shark E. Shark in Which Way to the Ocean” (3 min.), and “Zane's Stand Up Promo” (2 min.). Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are bonus DVD and digital copies of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for what feels like a retread movie.] (S. Granger)