Grade:

Transfiguring Adoption awarded this movie 4 Hoots out of 5 based on how useful it will be for a foster/adoptive family. [Learn more about our Hoot grading system here]

Movie Info:

Item: LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special (2020)
Rating: 4
Author: Steve Madole

Rating: TV Y7
Genre: Action, Adventure, Animation, Kids And Family, Sci Fi
Runtime: 47 min
Studio: Disney

From the Cover of LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special by Disney:

Rey leaves her friends to prepare for Life Day as she sets off on an adventure to gain a deeper knowledge of the Force. At a mysterious temple, she is hurled into a cross-timeline adventure. Will she make it back in time for Life Day?

[Buy the FULL Comprehensive Review & Discussion Guide]

Transfiguring Adoption’s Overview:

The target audience appears to be all children. It also appears this movie would be best for all families that enjoy the Star Wars film series. With characters from every facet of the Star Wars universe making an appearance this special is one the whole family can enjoy. Foster and Adopt families can benefit from this because of the wide range of eras it covers. It can be a bonding experience for parents that grew up with the original trilogy or even the prequels to their kids who watched the new trilogy and The Mandalorian. The movie also hits home the importance of connection as well as training which is a great reminder for all parents.

As a massive Star Wars fan, I liked the special. The Lego series movies and shorts are always put together well so adults and kids can both enjoy them and this one is no different. To inside jokes and visual gag humor this special checks all of the Star Wars fandom boxes and at only 47 minutes is a perfect length of our viewers with shorter attention spans.

** Spoilers Could Be Ahead **

How is This Relevant To Adoption & Foster Care?

Discussion Points:

Bonding over a Shared Interest
Since Star Wars stretches 40+ years it can be a bonding experience for many generations. Talk about favorite characters, themes and plots from the various movies and tv shows. If children are only familiar with the more recent franchises this can even be an opportunity to introduce them to the older movies and talk about how you enjoyed them as a child also.
Things Not Going as Planned
Rey makes a big mess of things while trying to become a better teacher and it takes roughly 30 minutes of hilarity to clean up the mess. A key takeaway is that no matter how big you mess things up there is always a solution and sometimes asking for help or guidance can make things move faster.

Cautionary Points:

- Some cartoon LEGO violence
  Nothing scary or graphic. Mostly character losing parts and getting rebuilt in classic Lego fashion
- One scene with a shirtless Kylo Ren Lego mini fig
  The Lego team makes fun of Adam Driver’s shirtless scenes from the newest trilogy. It is really funny how they bring in the Easter eggs from all the movies into the special.

Discussion Guide:

1. Who is your favorite Star Wars character?
  Caregiver Note: 95% of us have at least one favorite character and as long as it isn’t Jar Jar we are all good. I would guess that many people, old and young, are either the Mandalorian or Baby Yoda right now. Since Star Wars stretches 40+ years it can be a bonding experience for many generations.
2. What is Life Day?
  Life Day is a holiday celebration in the Star Wars Universe. It may be a representation of Thanksgiving, Christmas, Kwanzaa, or Hanukkah. It is a generic Holiday Celebration to be as inclusive as possible.
3. What would Life Day look like for our family?
  Caregiver Note: Life Day is a version of Christmas but could also be any holiday celebration between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Talking about what traditions they would include in this created holiday might provide insight into children’s past holiday experience and what might be important to them during the holidays.
4. Tell me about a time you were frustrated.
  Caregiver Note: Rey is having a hard time training Finn to be a Jedi. She is frustrated with Finn and herself because he is not learning what she is teaching from the books. Rey can’t see why Finn isn’t getting it.
5. Have you ever put work ahead of friends and family?
  Caregiver Note: Just as the crew is getting ready to set up for a big Life Day celebration Rey abruptly leaves to try and find better ways to train Jedi. The other characters do their best without her help, but she could have been a great help to them.
6. What have you learned from the past? Did it make you a better person?
  Caregiver Note: Rey discovers a key to help her investigate the past and she witnesses key training sequences between Yoda and Luke, Qui-Gon and Obi Wan, Obi Wan and Anakin, Obi- wan and Luke and even the Emperor and Darth Vader. These lessons help Rey to see that even the strongest Jedi masters had issues training their apprentices.
7. Tell me about a time when you tried to do something great, but nothing seemed to go right.
  Caregiver Note: Rey’s intentions with the key were good, but she allows it to slip into the hands of Darth Vader and the Emperor which is not a good thing. Now Rey must battle Vader and right the wrong while also trying to not mess anything else up.
8. Do you believe that we can learn from failure?
  Caregiver Note: Yoda confronts a downtrodden Rey and reminds her that even the greatest Jedi Masters failed and had to learn from mistakes. This is a daily life lesson for EVERYONE. Failure is ok, it is what happens after we fail that decides whether it is right or wrong. If you fail but use the failure to better yourself it’s still a win. If your failure doesn’t result in a positive change and becomes repetitive you can count that as a loss.
9. What is more important, connection or knowledge? Can you have one without the other?
  Caregiver Note: Master Yoda proves once again why he is the best teacher in the Star Wars saga. While teaching Rey about failure he also points out the relationships between the master and pupil. They were friends and that is why the training went better. Psychologist Karen Purvis preaches CONNECTION before CORRECTION! It is the same concept in this movie. In order to train someone in the force correctly you must first build your bond with them as a friend.

About the Author: Steve Madole

I am an adoptive dad of three boys living near Grand Rapids, MI with my wife, our cats and dog. We also fostered many other children in the last 5 years! I have done many trainings with the Dr. Karen Purvis Institute and try to keep up on different trauma training’s monthly. My whole family nerds out on comic books, video games, movies and regular books! We often read a lot of the same comics and books which can lead to some awesome conversations!

**Transfiguring Adoption is a nonprofit organization seeking to nurture growth in foster and adoptive families by giving a HOOT about their families. Transfiguring Adoption does not intend for its reviewers nor its review to be professional, medical or legal advice. These reviews and discussion guides are intended to help parents to better be able to connect and understand their children who come from traumatic backgrounds.