Pharrell Williams and his collaborators are transformed into Lego figures as he recounts his life story.
Clap along if you feel like watching a documentary narrative told via Lego.
The idea was actually Williams', a fact which aligns with the self-described “maverick.”
‘Piece by Piece’.LEGO/YouTube
It gives Williams' biography a playful, vibrant lens.
But after the novelty wears off, the plasticine nature of the Lego bricks reveal their limitations.
Particularly because Lego can’t cry; they can only pantomime emotion through the limited design of their faces.
‘Piece by Piece’.LEGO/YouTube
Perhaps the most head-scratching moment is watching the Black Lives Matter protests transformed into Lego animation.
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Piece by Pieceis a by-the-numbers or rather, by-the-brick biographical documentary complete with talking head interviews and flashbacks.
‘Piece by Piece’.LEGO/YouTube
But it never gives us a why for all of this.
Sometimes it fails to even give a how how did Williams create so many musical hits and catch beats?
What is the key to his sonic genius?
The movie certainly doesn’t tell us (or even attempt to answer that).
But despite touting an inventive concept, the whole thing remains fairly surface level.
Is it charming to watch beloved childhood days be implemented in narrative nonfiction storytelling?
And that is sure to leave audiences happy.
