The Lego Movie poster campaign

 PREP You all have a handout with the individual character posters and the ensemble poster.

Analyse how gender has been represented in The Lego Movie poster campaign. Use the written handout to help you answer this exam question (10 marks). 

In a typical 'action and adventure' film, there's *normally* male characters represented as the heroes, whereas in the Lego Movie, it's the complete opposite. In the poster, on the other hand, the cover looks traditionally male dominated. E.g. male superheroes of Batman, Superman, Lloyd and Green lantern. Also, Lord Business is displayed as an aggressive person due to his appearance, mainly facial expressions. 

Emmet, the main character, is just an 'ordinary guy' who has no capability of saving the world but with the help of female superhero Wyldstyle, Wonder women and more, they successfully complete the mission.

Wyldstyle can do the following: drive cool vehicles like James Bond, fight like Batman, think like a genius and has many more attributes! On the other hand, Emmet can only have the intelligence of thinking of a 'double decker couch' which is described as "the worst idea ever"! Wyldstyle has skills that typical male heroes have but yet she's female. Awesome?

All of these points act as ways to break down gender stereotypes. 

Vitruvius is the final main 'stand out character' on the poster and he's displayed as a stereotypically male and portrayed as a wise and mysterious man who appears to be powerful (holding a staff / stick). 

LEGO REGULATION

PREP: Task 3: Go to the BBFC site and research age ratings. Why was The Lego Movie (2014) given a U rating? You need to click on the Ratings info

  

Go to the PEGI site and research what age ratings are about. Why is The Lego Movie video game classification 7+?

The Lego movie was given a 'U' rating despite the violence and occasional bad language. There are lots of fight sequences in which the good characters take on various baddies, including Lego robots and Lego skeletons. Furthermore, there is some very mild bad language, with uses of 'butt', 'bum', 'darn' and 'heck'.

"Age ratings are systems used to ensure that entertainment content, such as games, but also films, tv shows or mobile apps, is clearly labelled with a minimum age recommendation based on the content they have. These age ratings provide guidance to consumers and parents in particular."

LEGO INDUSTRY

• franchise - A collection of media products (like films, TV programmes, video games) all based on one original work. For example, Star Wars.
• synergy - The promotion of linked products across different areas of the media. For example, Lego released several products that helped to promote the film itself, such as Minifigures, building sets and more.
• tent-pole production - A film that can make large profits to support funding of other projects.
• ensemble cast - A cast made up of multiple important characters.
• conglomerate - A company that owns multiple companies involved in mass media enterprises.
• vertical integration - Where a single company (or merged companies) controls both the production and the supply of a product. 

LEGO MOVIE TRAILER

We start with the Lego movie. Watch the official trailer here

PREP Task 1: how does Emmet come across? How effective would this trailer be in promoting the film?

Emmet is just 'an ordinary guy' who's fragile and not agile and makes the most out of his life being a construction worker. He just happened to be the most important person in the universe due to a piece that he somehow will find... Emmet is forced into many crazy situations with modern day superheroes like Batman and is on course to become the hero of the Lego Movie. Although he isn't a traditional hero, and is often being told what to do, he proves that everyone has an inner strength!  

You can also see by the trailer that he clearly gets on well with everyone and is a little bit goofy, hence the will to pay $37 for a coffee (£27)!

This trailer would have been extremely effective in promoting the film as it tells a story of its own and leaves people wanting to know whether Emmet and the others will succeed. I personally laughed most at Batman when he said "First try" after clearly missing the entrance button many times.