“ every thing is AWesoMe.” spreAdibilit y And THE LEGO MOVIE
191
urged executives to “give the book to employees. It pays dividends!” 33 So
while the opening scene of The LEGO Movie is an excellent portrayal of the
transparent monetization of the human psyche that drives the self-help
and motivational industries, it is clear that Emmet is being coached to fit
in, like a faceless cog in the wheel who obeys the rules and contributes to
maximum productivity, while performing surveillance for the company
on the side (Step 18), and consuming the overpriced products of other large
corporations while smiling (Step 17). 34
This last point is, at least tangentially, connected to developments such
as those noted by Barbara Ehrenreich that involve “about thirty million
full-time American workers [who] lost their jobs in corporate downsizings”
between 1981 and 2003. 35 One particularly disturbing result of this trend of
downsizing as a means of increasing share prices has been the growth of
the self-help industries who dole out advice to the newly unemployed, and
those (still) employed who suffer from ever-greater intensification of work.
Likewise, these developments have also spawned a massive team-building
industry as the answer to deteriorating employment conditions. The irony is
of course that, “just as layoffs were making a mockery of the team concept,
employees were urged to find camaraderie and a sense of collective purpose
at the micro level of the ‘team’”. 36 And these industrial developments are
all, of course, reflected in Emmet’s careful and enthusiastic adherence
to the instructions for everything from work to personal hygiene (Step 4:
Take a shower, Step 5: Brush your teeth […], Step 7: Comb your hair, Step 8:
Wear clothes), and yet more volubly in the movie’s theme song “Everything
is Awesome.” This is Emmet’s favorite song which he “loves listening to
over and over again” while becoming indoctrinated into the notion that
“everything is cool when you’re part of a team!” In other words, the film
cynically follows management trends aimed at “helping” workers to accept
greater job precarity and shrinking opportunity with a smile, rather than
actually doing anything about the larger, macroeconomic problems that
give rise to worker precarity in the first place.
33 Ehrenreich, 100. Various aspects of the happiness industries and happiness culture are increasingly the target of criticism by authors like Sara Ahmed, Lauren Berlant, and William Davies. Sara
Ahmed, The Promise of Happiness (Durham and London: Duke UP, 2010); Lauren Berlant, Cruel
Optimism (Durham and London: Duke UP, 2010); William Davies, The Happiness Industry: How
the Government and Big Business Sold Us Well-Being (London and New York: Verso, 2015).
34 While the overpriced coffee moment in the f ilm is quite clearly a poke at Starbucks, it
equally advertises the franchise, however implicitly.
35 Ibid., 114.
36 Ibid., 120.
191
urged executives to “give the book to employees. It pays dividends!” 33 So
while the opening scene of The LEGO Movie is an excellent portrayal of the
transparent monetization of the human psyche that drives the self-help
and motivational industries, it is clear that Emmet is being coached to fit
in, like a faceless cog in the wheel who obeys the rules and contributes to
maximum productivity, while performing surveillance for the company
on the side (Step 18), and consuming the overpriced products of other large
corporations while smiling (Step 17). 34
This last point is, at least tangentially, connected to developments such
as those noted by Barbara Ehrenreich that involve “about thirty million
full-time American workers [who] lost their jobs in corporate downsizings”
between 1981 and 2003. 35 One particularly disturbing result of this trend of
downsizing as a means of increasing share prices has been the growth of
the self-help industries who dole out advice to the newly unemployed, and
those (still) employed who suffer from ever-greater intensification of work.
Likewise, these developments have also spawned a massive team-building
industry as the answer to deteriorating employment conditions. The irony is
of course that, “just as layoffs were making a mockery of the team concept,
employees were urged to find camaraderie and a sense of collective purpose
at the micro level of the ‘team’”. 36 And these industrial developments are
all, of course, reflected in Emmet’s careful and enthusiastic adherence
to the instructions for everything from work to personal hygiene (Step 4:
Take a shower, Step 5: Brush your teeth […], Step 7: Comb your hair, Step 8:
Wear clothes), and yet more volubly in the movie’s theme song “Everything
is Awesome.” This is Emmet’s favorite song which he “loves listening to
over and over again” while becoming indoctrinated into the notion that
“everything is cool when you’re part of a team!” In other words, the film
cynically follows management trends aimed at “helping” workers to accept
greater job precarity and shrinking opportunity with a smile, rather than
actually doing anything about the larger, macroeconomic problems that
give rise to worker precarity in the first place.
33 Ehrenreich, 100. Various aspects of the happiness industries and happiness culture are increasingly the target of criticism by authors like Sara Ahmed, Lauren Berlant, and William Davies. Sara
Ahmed, The Promise of Happiness (Durham and London: Duke UP, 2010); Lauren Berlant, Cruel
Optimism (Durham and London: Duke UP, 2010); William Davies, The Happiness Industry: How
the Government and Big Business Sold Us Well-Being (London and New York: Verso, 2015).
34 While the overpriced coffee moment in the f ilm is quite clearly a poke at Starbucks, it
equally advertises the franchise, however implicitly.
35 Ibid., 114.
36 Ibid., 120.