My movie recommendations tend to fall into pretty heavy R-rated territory: the AIDS crisis, slavery, a suicide ward, adults falling out of love, and a documentary narrated by warlords to name a few recent examples. While I still see kids movies, even the ones I love are nearly always graded on a heavily nostalgic curve. Heartwarming but simplistic storylines, one-dimensional characters, and hopefully “a little something for the parents.”

The Lego movie proves that there’s an exception to every rule. This was a quick-witted, hyperactive fever dream of a film, with more laughs than any “adult” comedy I saw last year. Creative style, plenty of fun social commentary, and an all-star voice cast. Kids will love the frenetic pace, and non-dead-inside adults will have a (refreshingly clean) blast. Review below.