Did you like The Lego Movie? Of course you did. And the breakout star of the 2014 saga has now got his own action-packed, completely batshit superhero spin-off that's opening in Shanghai cinemas tonight.
The first Lego film was a real surprise: what could have been a lazy cash-in turned out to be sweet, funny and fiendishly original in the way it acknowledged and celebrated its own artificiality. And one of the film’s highlights was its take on Batman: a self-involved millionaire playboy who dresses in black body armour to fight crime and chase chicks. The inept egomaniac is a time-honoured comedy archetype – think Jack Sparrow, Daffy Duck or Donald Trump – but thanks to razor-sharp writing and Will Arnett’s snarling, impossible-to-hate vocal performance, this Batman felt fresh and fun.
Whilst there might be worries of a contrived plot or general sequel disappointment, this a ferociously paced, wildly silly pastiche of those comic-book blockbusters we’re all getting a bit sick of. That's according to Time Out's Tom Huddleston anyway – long press and extract the QR code to see our star rating and buy tickets.
