‘Piece By Piece’ Review: Pharrell Tells His Amazing, Animated Life Story Through LEGOs

October 11, 2024

Source: Focus Features / Tremolo Productions / The Lego Group / I Am Other

SPOILER NOTICE:

The following movie review does not contain direct spoilers for the film Piece By Piece, however general information in regards to the plot, characters, key climax points and themes explored in the film will be heavily discussed.
Please read at your own discretion, or after seeing the film in theaters

A blockbuster biopic can be told in a variety of ways. You have the straightforward acting approach, getting an A-list star or rising Hollywood sensation to tell the true story of an equally or at times more iconic legend in the game. There’s also the documentary lane, which gets the person at the center of it all to tell their own story in their own words. On the rare occasion a dynamic life story has been adapted through animation, as we saw with DreamWorks’ classic 1998 musical life story of Moses in The Prince of Egypt.

However, in a move that is not in the least bit surprising for his ever-animated spirit, music icon Pharrell Williams decided to take a combination of all those aforementioned movie-making elements in his new biographical film, Piece By Piece, with help from the colorful crew over at LEGO®. What is surprising though is how well it all came out in the end, which we got a chance to check out at the film’s NYC premiere earlier this week.

Part bio, part docu-style and all animation, Piece By Piece is the heartwarming and inspiring story of a Virginia Beach-born Black boy who dared to dream outside of the box and build the blocks of his life through a vision of his own imagination. What resulted was a decades-spanning career in entertainment that intersects through music, film, fashion, sneaker culture, streetwear, skincare — the list stretches as far as the spectrum of LEGO hues your eyes will soak in throughout this 93-minute visual experience. The film features many of Skateboard P’s contemporaries in the game as well — hip-hop heavyweights like Pusha-T, Kendrick Lamar and even the boss man himself Jay-Z get their LEGO on! — including an appearance by former N.E.R.D. production partner Chad Hugo, who both made headlines recently for the current state of their friendship. Granted, Piece By Piece was produced just as the title suggests over a whopping five-and-a-half years — a lot can happen in that span of time.

Nonetheless, having things told in “first-person” documentary style combined with a blend of voice acting and one talented team of animators who took the time to draw in tears and all types of facial expression made the viewing experience all the more vivid.

Source: Focus Features / Tremolo Productions / The Lego Group / I Am Other

The team behind the scenes of Piece by Piece deserve some credit as well. Director Morgan Neville jumps into the animation as well with impressive results, producer Mimi Valdés continues her longstanding legacy of insisting in telling important stories of hip-hop culture and everyone at The Lego Group did a bang-up job at literally giving the film its color.

In addition to the aforementioned big-name drop-ins, you’ll also see and hear cameos from the likes of superstars Gwen Stefani, Timbaland, Justin Timberlake, Busta Rhymes, Snoop Dogg, Missy Elliott, N.O.R.E. and Daft Punk.

Source: Marion Curtis/Starpix for Focus Features / Marion Curtis/Starpix for Focus Features

Overall, there is no age limit on who can and/or should go see Pharrell’s amazing, animated life story told through the lens of LEGOs. From the soundtrack to special guests that pop up throughout, you get an understanding that, just as Pharrell figured out in his fascination with toy bricks, we’re all capable of building up the pieces in our lives however we see the narrative to fit.