The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special – Film Review
Rey (voice of Helen Sadler) leaves her friends to prepare for Life Day as she sets off on an adventure to gain a deeper knowledge of the Force. At a mysterious temple, she is hurled into a cross-timeline adventure. Will she make it back in time for Life Day?
Although we may not be getting a fully-fledged live-action Star Wars movie this year, there’s no need to panic. Honestly, I get it. For me, it just doesn’t quite feel like the holidays without a Star Wars movie. For the past five years, we have gotten one and it has made the holiday season feel that much more magical. And despite the fact that The Rise of Skywalker wasn’t as good as the first two installments in the sequel trilogy, it was still a beautiful and exciting send-off to the long-running Skywalker Saga.
But the folks over at Disney have given us a new Star Wars-themed present for us all to enjoy this coming holiday season, and it’s in the form of The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special, directed by Ken Cunningham. It is most certainly nowhere near as fun and exciting as the live-action films, but this animated flick is sure to put a smile on your face, even if it is extremely short.
Courtesy of Disney+
It’s one of the film’s biggest problems really. With a running time of just forty-four minutes including credits, there are several moments where you get the feeling like the film can’t go anywhere truly amazing. This movie purely exists just to serve as an amusing little treat for families to watch, and I think it will succeed in that regard.
Mainly because the film is genuinely quite funny. Surprisingly, The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special pokes fun at a lot of things that fans have criticized in the sequel trilogy, and although I am a megafan of that trilogy, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t laughing quite hard at the majority of this film’s jokes. There’s even a scene involving three different Obi-Wan Kenobi’s that is sure to be turned into a meme.
At the end of the day, The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special is one of those films that is a lot of fun to watch in the moment, but you probably won’t be itching to rewatch it anytime soon, and that’s okay. Not every movie has to be the next best picture or anything. This movie wants to be a funny and exciting adventure for young children and families, and it’s perfect for doing that. Sit back, relax, and have a fun time. And rest assured, this is a million times better than the Star Wars Holiday Special that was released in 1978. Much, much better.
The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special isn’t a revolutionary film by any means, but its self-aware sense of humor mixed with its fun scenes are enough to make this a delightful treat.
Overall Grade: B-
MPAA Rating: TV-G
Cast: Helen Sadler, A.J. LoCascio, Anthony Daniels, Ben Prendergast, Billy Dee Williams, Dee Bradley Baker, Eric Bauza, Grey Griffin, Jake Green, James Arnold Taylor, Kelly Marie Tran
Directed by: Ken Cunningham
Distributed by: Disney+
Release Date: November 17, 2020
Running Time: 44 minutes