- "Piece by Piece" film tells Pharrell Williams' life story using Lego
- Critics praise film's originality and freshness after Telluride premiere
- Oscar buzz surrounds film for animated feature and original song
The new film Piece by Piece, which chronicles the life of musician Pharrell Williams entirely through Lego animation, has garnered a range of early reviews following its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival.
Pharrell Williams, renowned for hits like “Happy” and for his work with the production duo The Neptunes, also serves as a producer on the film. Piece by Piece explores Williams’s journey from his early years in Virginia to his rise to fame using Lego bricks to bring his story to life.
According to Deadline, the film brings “a freshness and originality to a docu format that makes it feel all new again.” The Telluride Film Festival, one of the major autumn festivals alongside Venice and Toronto, often serves as a launchpad for potential Oscar contenders. Piece by Piece is anticipated to be a strong contender in the Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song categories, bolstered by five new tracks recorded by Williams for the soundtrack.
Directed by Morgan Neville, known for 20 Feet From Stardom and Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, the film has received praise for its inventive approach. Deadline’s Pete Hammond noted, “Piece by Piece leaves you with hope and a whole bunch of songs you will not be able to get out of your head. Is it a documentary? A biopic? An animated movie? A musical? A character study? You bet – and more.”
The Hollywood Reporter’s Lovia Gyarkye acknowledged Williams’s unique career that aligns with the film’s unconventional style but pointed out that the film, while inventive, does not entirely escape the typical pitfalls of celebrity-produced biopics. Gyarkye remarked, “Neville’s doc can’t quite avoid the trappings of the celebrity-produced biopic, and is expectedly marked by typical hagiographic evasiveness.”
IndieWire’s Caleb Hammond highlighted the creative use of Lego in the film, stating, “Well-executed gags and fantastical visual flourishes make creative use of the Lego framing, proving it much more than an empty stunt.” However, Hammond criticized the limited focus on Chad Hugo, Williams’s collaborator and fellow NER*D bandmate, suggesting that the film could have benefitted from more insight into Hugo’s contributions.
Entertainment Weekly’s Maureen Lee Lenker had mixed feelings about the film’s execution. While some sequences are praised for their whimsical nature, Lenker found that other moments, particularly emotional scenes, felt incongruous when portrayed with Lego figures. “It feels downright odd to watch something like Pharrell’s interview with Oprah recreated in Lego, rather than just seeing clips of the interview itself,” Lenker said.
Despite some criticisms, J Don Birnam of Next Best Picture commended the film’s imaginative approach, stating, “Neville creates a wonderfully magical world that feels both real and impossible, subtly messaging that we can all fit into the construction of something greater with enough perseverance.”
Mark Johnson of Awards Daily described the film as an “upbeat, feel-good experience” and praised it for capturing “Pharrell’s boundless creativity and imagination.” He added, “It’s a joyous, colorful portrayal of his rise from humble beginnings to musical stardom.”
Piece by Piece will be released in the US on October 11 and will have its European premiere at the London Film Festival shortly thereafter. Co-produced by The Lego Group, the film comes a decade after the success of The Lego Movie, which grossed nearly $500 million and was followed by sequels and spin-offs.
