“Piece by Piece” is an unexpected addition to the Lego film series “The Ithacan.”

The new animated Lego movie Piece by Piece is a documentary produced by Pharrell Williams and follows his rise to fame. Parents beware: Despite the child-friendly animation and musical elements, the documentary structure might not be very exciting for a younger audience.

“Piece by Piece” is an animated highlight reel of Williams’ rise to industry success, with his greatest hits serving as the soundtrack. He goes from middle school band kid to leading man and producer of numerous hit singles, but the Lego documentary glosses over Williams’ triumphs and tribulations with superficial details.

Like most celebrity documentaries, “Piece by Piece” oscillates between talking heads and classic B-roll, with Lego animation replacing live-action footage. A scene in which minifigure Williams prepares for his interview excels in recreating a documentary stereotype with Legos. The vibrant animation brings Williams’ creative genius to life as each bar of his music explodes in bursts of color.

Hand-held shots and intense studio lighting push the previous boundaries of Lego animation, creating a look more like real life than a more realistic look than The Lego Movie or The Lego Batman Movie. While those films stood out for including numerous unexpected characters like Dumbledore and Wonder Woman as minifigures, Piece by Piece does the same with celebrities. Jay Z, Gwen Stefanie, Kendrick Lamar and Snoop Dogg are just a few A-listers who have been reimagined as Lego pieces.

The opening credits begin with Williams traveling back to his childhood and imagining himself as a glowing, guppy-like sea creature frolicking with Poseidon and a golden whale in the underwater kingdom of Atlantis. It’s a beautiful sequence that sets the tone for this feature, which emphasizes its unique style over a complicated story. Williams mentions his fascination with water early in the film and returns to the theme frequently, whether on moonlit beaches or roaring riptides. But – similar to many of the film’s subplots – this interest is never further developed or explained.

The film highlights hits with fantastically animated sequences and offers only a few glimpses into Williams’ life. It shows him growing up in the colorful Atlantis Projects in Virginia Beach, with a marching band that frequently breaks out into song and dance. In high school, Williams forms his band The Neptunes and signs a music contract to a talent show. However, a more interesting plot point explaining how they got out of that contract is unfortunately never explored. His conflicts in the film instead arise from him spending all his money, not getting enough attention, and being overly friendly, all of which is justified by Williams being “special.” But it’s hard to sympathize with him as he struggles to thrive on a private beach behind his luxurious villa. As a esteemed advocate for the Black Lives Matter movement, Williams’ activism deserves more screen time. The film would benefit from a greater focus on Williams the human being and Williams the pop star.

Academy Award-winning documentarian Morgan Neville has previously focused on beloved legends like Mister Rogers and Darlene Love before moving on to more contemporary icons like Anthony Bourdain. Unlike these other subjects, Williams is only 51 years old, is actively working and shows no signs of slowing down. He’s still dropping hit after hit and making music for the Despicable Me franchise. His achievements aren’t old enough to inspire nostalgia in audiences, nor does Williams seem willing to openly share his story, with all its flaws. In some ways, “Piece by Piece” feels like a retrospective commemorating someone still living, which feels like a false conclusion to Williams’ career.

Even if the overly sanitized narrative misses the opportunity to show the courage behind Williams’ pop star persona, it’s great that a new Lego movie is coming to theaters for the first time in almost six years. The scenes feature vibrant animation and numerous minifigure cameos featuring Williams’ superstar friends. For those looking for an upbeat film with a killer soundtrack and exciting Lego animations, Piece by Piece offers 90 minutes of escapist entertainment worth dancing to.