The Lego Movie: Everything is NOT Awesome.

       I recently watched The Lego Movie with the little girl that I nanny. I read in various blogs and reviews that this movie promised a “strong leading female role.” The little girl that I nanny was excited for this film because she had seen that there was a female character in it with purple and blue hair as she wanted such colors highlighted in her hair, but her mother would not let her. I remember suggesting another movie because I was scared that the movie would be a “boy movie.” But she insisted on seeing it, arguing that there was going to “be a girl in the movie.” I was intrigued to see if this movie would pass the “Bechdel Test.” On the Bechdel Test website, it passed, as that it passed 3 of the 3 tests. Unfortunately, it did not in my eyes, I would even argue that this test should be more rigorous that it currently is. 

The main character in this film- not surprisingly is a male character. I deem this fact fair just because of the marketing of Legos in general. We view Legos as more of a “boy” product than a girl one- the reasoning for this being that the idea of building or creating is a job for a boy versus a doll figure with interchangeable clothes for a girl. The main female character in this movie was named “Wyldstyle.” She was introduced in a very aggressive and wild (ironically) manner. Her first appearance on screen was on the search or mission to find a missing “piece” that would save the entire Lego community. Of course, it quickly changes to her flipping her hair and targeting the main character “Emmet” as viewing her as an “object” rather than another equal. She wore a conservative jacket that matched her blue and purple hair, and spoke in a very feminine voice. While she was mainly concerned with finding and saving the Lego community, we often hear her speaking about her boyfriend, and playing up how great he was and bragging about his various accomplishments. While she did portray a strong and “powerful” character, there were some qualities in her character that deeply appalled me. In one scene it shows her crying and “powerless” to when her boyfriend (Batman) leaves her/chooses another character/ his own wellbeing over hers. I would have been more happy to see her “defeated” in any other light- I felt that it was telling audiences (including the little girl that I nanny) that the only thing that drives a female is the idea of an important man figure standing next to her. That her self worth is defined by a male and not her own actions, thoughts, or accomplishments. 

This movie did surprisingly pass the Bechedel test. I completely disagree with this. Even the various commentors on the blog agree with me, stating that “all the conversations seemed pretty one sided, and directed through Emmett. As is a common refrain, please don't make this test even less rigorous than it already is.” While it did portray a character that had more “power” and “drive” adjacent the main male character’s, the idea of gender inequality was apparent. It played on the idea that women are more emotional and cannot overcome this emotion without the help of a male character. The idea is presented when Batman comes back to her and she rejects him because she knows that she was not longer susceptible to his power would have been a refreshing way to end the movie; however it does not stop there. The producers of this movie had to take it a step further to show that she only leaves him because she realizes that she has feelings for Emmet. This creates an idea in viewers that a strong female cannot be independent, that they need constant male significant others. I more recently read that there was an outrage of viewers that believed that this idea of a strong female character was false, so much so that Lego released a “pledge” to do a better job on the sequel. Overall, I was unhappy that this movie passed the test, and while I believed that I was not at all the target demographic for this movie, I am eager to see if the sequel will do a a better job portraying its female characters.