10) The Lego Movie
Two more examples from the past year of remakes done well—both in the horror genre, oddly enough—were Evil Dead (which most seem to agree was very good) and Carrie (which was divisive, but I found the stronger arguments to be in favor). Both were probably completely unnecessary but both turned out to be perfectly fine and good. If the past few years were awash with 1980s remakes, then we are in the midst of a growing trend of movies based on household objects and toys, going from Transformers to Battleship, and this year, The Lego Movie. The difference is that where those movies tried to be macho action movies, this one looks like it embraces the absurdity of its premise and takes it to its logical comedic end (for evidence of this, see the trailer below).
Judging a movie based on its premise is beyond cliché at this point. It’s an even more annoying version of judging a book by its cover, because it’s not even based on anything remotely concrete—at least you can look at a cover rather than just have a vague impression of what an upcoming remake might be like. Arguing for the necessity of any movie is an uphill battle, and it’s hard to make the case for a piece of entertainment changing the world. Some do this, but just because This Is The End does not doesn’t mean it should be dismissed as Hollywood rubbish.
It can still be valuable as a work of art, as a bit of distracting entertainment, mindless or engaging fun, or anything else, even if people want to cast its existence as “unnecessary.” That’s a label that doesn’t mean anything. Just because something’s not necessary doesn’t mean it’s without value, any more than citing various films’ value doesn’t make them necessary.
