Anyone who knows me knows how much I love LEGO and I used to do LEGO blogs but haven’t in a while but considering I have been going all out looking at villains, I thought it might be fun to tap into LEGO villains.
The LEGO Movie imo much like Barbie after it was a true celebration of the toy. LEGO means play well and the first LEGO movie understands this and goes out of its way to show there is no one way to play. This is what we see with Lord Business and The Man Upstairs both being played by Will Ferrell. The movie pulls a Peter Pan in this way with Lord Business representing all the negative qualities that Finn, the son of The Man Upstairs sees in his father.
Both Lord Business and The Man Upstairs disparage creativity and only view LEGO as modeling tool. Which being fair as someone that often goes to BrickFair, I understand the notion of using LEGO as an art form. There’s a whole reality show about the idea that celebrates the creativity of LEGO.
Even if I am a builder that prefers to follow instructions, the creative side of LEGO shouldn’t be ignored and this is the lesson that both Lord Business/The Man Upstairs need to learn. It’s a moment of realization for The Man Upstairs when he sees Lord Business looks like him.
I’ve honestly never been good at play or being creative but I try and that’s the message of the movie wether you play like Emmet following the instructions or play like a Master Builder, it doesn’t matter as long as you play. A life without play is boring.
First Appearance
We see Lord Business right at the beginning of the movie and this is where we get a true sense of how evil he is as he blinds Virtious just because of the prophecy about the Special which as we learn later on was made up and there is no special. This is the inverse of Snydrome from Incredibles who gloats that if everyone is super, no one is whereas The LEGO Movie is saying that everyone has something in them that makes them special. Is this corny? Yeah but it’s a kids movie and it fits the core message I’ve always associated with my favorite toy that as long as your having fun, it shouldn’t matter as being you makes you special.
Personality/Grand Desire
We once again have to the idea that Lord Business represents the worst attributes of Finn’s father or rather how Finn views his father. He wants order and control. Nothing that goes against conformity as he hates anything that is different.
This can be seen with his plan is to use the Kragle to glue he world together and keep everything in one place. I find this kinda funny as many LEGO builders consider the idea of gluing bricks together to a huge no-no. The idea many believe the bricks should be stable to interlock themselves. Yet again this goes against the core idea of the movie being that there is no on way to play.
This is something that is spelled out throughout the entire movie with Business’s Taco Tuesday plan as it goes back to his desire for order and control. He is a person who hates when things are different but that’s the beauty of LEGO. It isn’t just one theme as LEGO caters to many different kids and adults with various themes (unfortunately that also includes a TERF author).
Yes, he puts on a facade as President Business acting as though he cares but it is so easy to see through as he isn’t even wearing a mask to hide who he really is.
Lackey
Bad Cop
Bad Cop is Liam Neeson doing parody long before The Naked Gun as Bad Cop is a character that’s just him in LEGO form. Going beyond that though when you look at him more, he is a victim of Lord Business as he has his Good Cop side erased to serve Lord Business more diligently. This again goes back to the idea of order and how if something isn’t how Lord Business likes it, he will change it to get what he wants.
Most Evil Deed
The Evilest Deed that Lord Business commits imo has nothing to with the main characters but rather forcing Good Cop/Bad Cop to watch as he glues his parents to the ground. This is a form of torture as he forces Bad Cop to watch as a form of getting what he wants.
Redemption
Looking at the end of the movie here, instead of demise I wanna look at redemption and this again ties into what The Man Upstairs asks Finn what would Emmet would say to the business guy and that is how we get his message of everyone is special.
This goes back to what I’ve been saying throughout about how the movie celebrates LEGO and that there is no one way to play. Once Lord Business hears this message, it gets him to open up and see that the people of Bricksburg are inspired by him and it opens his mind.
Is Lord Business A Good Villain?
Absolutely, he’s a great villain that goes against what my favorite toy brand is all about being play and creativity. I could gush about great The LEGO Movie is and I think I’ve done that a lot. Join me next time as we head to the sequel and look at
Rex Dangervest
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