Movie Review: Piece By Piece
The film Piece By Piece relates the life story of musician Pharrell Williams through the use of LEGO animation. This unique presentation results in making the story more engaging and, perhaps, a bit more whimsical than it would have been if attempted with a more straight-forward approach.
The film moves quickly across the seminal moments in Williams’s life and career, simultaneously buoyed by a jubilant soundtrack that makes everything that much more entertaining. Along the way, the LEGO depiction of Williams, interacts with similar depictions of stars like Kendrick Lamar, Gwen Stefani, Snoop Dogg, Justin Timberlake, and Busta Rhymes to name just a few. The story is guided by an interview with Williams conducted by the film’s director and co-writer Morgan Neville. This allows the film to adhere to a documentary-like structure at times before reverting to a more narrative brand of storytelling.
Director Neville does a masterful job of keeping things entertaining and the script – which he co-wrote along with Oscar Vazquez, Aaron Wickenden, and Jason Zeldes – moves along as easily as one of Williams’s beats.
The decision to tell the story through the lens of LEGO heightens not only the presentation of the film, but the effect of the story as well as it is unlikely that the same tale told as a straight-up biography would have the same zest or endearing entertainment value.
However, because of its chosen milieu and the manner in which it is conveyed, combined with the work of the players within makes Piece By Piece a fun and entertaining cinematic biographical experience that pretty much anyone will enjoy.
Mike Tyrkus
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