Bionicle: Mask of Light

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Bionicle: Mask of Light
Directed by	David Molina, Terry Shakespeare
Produced by	Conny Kalcher
Written by	Henry Gilroy, Tracy Berna, Bob Thompson
Starring	Christopher Gaze, Michael Dobson, Paul Dobson
Music by	Nathan Furst
Distributed by	Miramax Films
Release date(s)	September 13, 2003
Running time	70 min.
Language	English
Budget	US$5.2 million
Followed by	Bionicle 2: Legends of Metru Nui
IMDb profile

Bionicle: Mask of Light is first in three of the direct-to-video Bionicle movies based on the Lego toy series. It has sold over 40 million copies worldwide since it's release.

The movies revolve around an island called Mata Nui. The spirit protecting the island, put into a deep sleep, has returned and only the Mask of Light, in the hands of two Matoran who are assisted by six heroes, can return it to the Toa of Light and return his mask before it is too late.

The direct-to-video sales made Mask of Light one of the top selling DVD's of 2003 in the United States, and has helped in the development of two more movies in the franchise. It was praised for its visual effects and sound direction, but thought to be average in its storyline and character development.

Plot

The story starts out with the backstory briefly explained the story thus far (How Mata Nui brought the Matoran to the island that they named Mata Nui in his honour, how Makuta put Mata Nui into a deep slumber, etc). The story then shifts to the fortress village of Ta-Koro, which in located in a lake of lava. The island-wide Kohlii championship is about to start and Jaller is looking for his teammate Takua the Chronicler. He soon finds him, looking at a warning totem next to a molten river. Just before they are to leave, Takua picks up the totem, and the ground begins shaking. He drops the artifact into the lava, revealing a Kanohi mask that was embedded in the totem. At that moment, a wave of lava begins to rush through the chamber at Takua. He throws the mask to Jaller and tries to use a lavaboard to get across the lava river, but only gets halfway. Just as he is about to become "lava bones" (As Jaller later puts it), he is saved by Toa Tahu Nuva, Toa of Fire. The two then rush to the Kohlii field, and Jaller puts the mask in his pack. At the field, Turaga Vakama introduces the three Toa present: Tahu, Gali the Toa of Water, and Pohatu the Toa of Stone. He then introduces the three teams: Hewkii and Hafu of the desert Po-Koro, Hahli and Macku of Ga-Koro, which is built over a lake, and Takua and Jaller. The match caries on into the night, until Ga-Koro is the winner. At the end, the Mask Takua found falls out of Jaller's pack, shining a bright light on him. The Turaga deduce that this is the Mask of Light, which is to be worn by a legendary Seventh Toa that will defeat Makuta. The Mask of Light will lead its herald to the Seventh Toa, who is Takua. But he's too much of a wimp to admit it, so Jaller is mistakenly believed to be the Toa's Herald. Unfortunately for Takua, he still has to come along as well to chronicle Jaller’s heroics. Pohatu leaves to spread word about the Seventh Toa, and Gali has left already. The two leave Ta-Koro the next day on Takua's Ussal Crab, Pewku, with the Mask leading them to Le-Wahi.

Deep beneath Mata Nui, Makuta is fully aware of what is happening above. He talks to a large statue of a Kanohi Hau Mask, which he refers to as his brother Mata Nui. He then decides to release three of his spawns of shadow, the Rahkshi, to find and destroy the Herald. On the surface, Gali is at the Kini Nui, a giant temple near the center of the island. The Rahkshi burst from the centre of the Kini Nui and attack Gali, who narrowly escapes by hiding in a nearby river. Realizing the Rahkshi are headed for Ta-Koro, she gets there before them and alerts the city. The Rahkshi burst through the walls of Ta-Koro anyway, using their powers of shattering, disintegration, and poison to wreak havoc and eventually destroy the village, but all the Matoran escape unharmed. In the fight, Tahu's mask is scratched by the Rahkshi Lerahk’s poison staff, leaving a sickly green scratch. He doesn't care through, as he is more concerned about the destruction of his village. Takua and Jaller are heading through the jungle of Le-Wahi, following where the past of light shows them to go. They are then attacked by a Graalok ash bear, and are rescued by Lewa, Toa of Air, who gives them a faster way of traveling, a Gukko bird, with the use to fly to the icy Ko-Wahi. Upon their arrival, they learn of Ta-Koro's destruction, the message sent by the Drums of Le-koro. Lewa then flies to Ta-Wahi to find out more, leaving Takua and Jaller behind. They are caught in a blizzard, and run into Kopaka, Toa of Ice, whose personality is as cold as his powers. Upon arriving at Ko-Koro, they are attacked by the Rahkshi, and escape down the side of a mountain. Kopaka is knocked out in the escape, and Takua tries to get away across a lake, using Kopaka's shield as a raft and the Mask as a paddle. Just as the Rahkshi close in, Kopaka wakes up and freezes the Rahkshi in the lake. Pewku (who had been left behind in Le-Wahi) arrives, and Kopaka leaves to see to his village. The Matoran then leave for the underground Onu-Wahi.

In the underground network of tunnels, Takua gets lost. He is surprised by Makuta, who appears before him in the form of two glowing red eyes. He warns Takua that if he does not give him the Mask of Light, Jaller will die. Takua refuses, but later panics and leaves Jaller and the mask and behind. Pohatu and Onua (The Toa of Earth), are telling the Onu-Matoran about the Seventh Toa when Takua and Pewku arrive. Guess who else arrives: the Rahkshi, only different ones this time. These Rahkshi have the powers of fear (makes victim incredibly afraid), anger (turns victims against each other), and hunger (saps victim of its strength). As the Matoran are forced to flee from their villages Takua realizes this is his fault, as he is the real Herald, meaning the Rahkshi are looking for him. Tahu, Gali, and Lewa arrive, and Tahu's scar has gotten worse. When he is hit by Kurahk’s anger energy, the poison and the anger cause his to attack Gali. He is stopped when Kopaka arrives, freezing the enraged Tahu in ice. Meanwhile, Pohatu and Onua cause a cave in, and the Toa are forced to flee the village. Gali, Kopaka, and Lewa later free Tahu from his madness.

Takua finds Jaller and the two head for the Kini Nui, which the mask says the Seventh Toa should be. Nothing happens, though, and all six Rahkshi surround them. The Toa come to their aid, and destroy all the Rahkshi except Turahk, who tries to kill Takua, but Jaller takes the blow instead. As the dying Jaller tells Takua "You were always different" the Chronicler realizes that the Herald doesn't find the Seventh Toa, the Herald is the Seventh Toa. Takua puts on the Mask of Light and becomes Takanuva, Toa of Light. He destroys Turahk, and then builds the Ussanui out of Rahkshi parts and flies down to Makuta's lair. After a "game of Kolhii" (played with a ball of protodermis) Takanuva and Makuta fall into a pool of protodermis and emerge as Takutanuva. The combined being leads the Matoran, Turaga, and Toa (Who had been lead down to witness Makuta's defeat by Hahli, the new Chronicler), through a gate in the Kanohi mask statue. Takutanuva, who is holding the gate up, then regenerates Jaller by sending some of his energies into Jaller's mask. However, this transfer leaves Takutanuva to weak to hold the door up, and it crushes him. As the dusk clears, only the Mask of Light remains. Takanuva is then revived as well, and his light makes a hole in the cavern, revealing the long lost city of Metru Nui.

Production

Miramax and Lego made a partnership in 2002 to develop and distribute two Bionicle movies. The directors Terry Shakespeare and David Molina noted that there were several already existing interpretations of the Bionicle look, including the flash web comic, comic book, and CG commericals, and eventually decided to base it on the CG commercial look. After attending several days of "Bionicle school" in Denmark, they were given a grounding in how they were developed. Several features were redesigned for the movie, including the introduction of a movable mouth to allow for a more human character. Also, the characters such as the Toa Nuva were redesigned, beginning with the creation of a skeleton and muscles. For the design, Shakespeare noted that "The first film had primary colors that were coded to the areas and a younger feel."

Two scripts for the Bionicle movie were created, one by writer Alastair Swinnerton (also one of the original Bionicle creators) and one from the other, Henry Gilroy, to see who would write the better script. Due to time constraints, however, the Gilroy script was accepted with some of Alastair's ideas included. He reported that the creator Bob Thompson, who had reportedly had some of the characters in mind for years. "I really made it my duty to stick close by his vision, while bringing my ideas of comical character and big screen action, all the while staying true to the LEGO ideals of construction and community." The Lego Company insists they would "never compromise their values for the bottom line." The movie was also an occasion for the expansion of the Bionicle universe by the addition of the Rahkshi and its line of toys.

Reception

The film premiered on September 13th, 2003, at Legoland in Carlsbad, California, which featured a huge mosaic built of Legos and a special effects show. The DVD was one of the ten best selling premiere DVDs of 2003. Cartoon Network acquired the license to broadcast Mask of Light, airing for the first time on April 17th, 2004.

Entertainment Weekly gave the first Bionicle movie a "B+" The film was thought to be spectacular with its visual effects and sound mix, but lacking in dynamic characters, and possessing a simple plot, though others thought that thanks to skilled voice acting, the characters were allowed to grow. The assumption that people are already familiar with the story made it difficult to follow for the uninitiated. Some reviewers noted references to Raiders of the Lost Ark ,Harry Potter and Peter Jackson's Lord Of The Rings lauded film trilogy (whose final film was released in December later the same year) throughout the story. A video game based on the movie was released on the Playstation 2, GameCube, Xbox, and Gameboy Advance receiving below average reviews. There was also a novelization of the film and a line of toys from it.

Bionicle won the Golden Reel Award for Best Sound Editing in a DVD Premiere Movie. Composer Nathan Furst was nominated for his second consecutive DVD Exclusive Award for Best Original Score. Mask of Light was also nominated for Best Director, Best Animated Premiere Movie, Best Visual Effects, Best Original Score, and Best Editing.