Despicable Me:
Gru, a bald-headed, middle-aged villain, lives in a tall, dark, Victorian house in a suburban neighborhood. He is somewhat lonely, only accompanied by his aggressive mutant dog Kyle, his elderly mad scientist friend Dr. Nefario, and his thousands of "Minions", funny little yellow people in blue overalls and goggles. Gru must now compete with younger villains, such as Victor "Vector" Perkins, who recently pulled off the greatest heist in history: stealing one of the Great Pyramids of Giza. Gru plans to one-up Vector by stealing the moon, but when three young girls enter his life, he begins to change and become what no one expected him to become: a great father. Now, despite all the critical praise this film got when it first came out, I saw this recently, and I have to say, I don't get it. Now, there's some pretty funny moments, good animation, and a nice story. But people are going on and on even now about how good this film is, and how it's a modern animated classic. Now, although I couldn't put it up there with the greatest animated films ever made (hell, it wouldn't even be in my favorites list), this film has some real talent behind it. The voice cast includes comedians like Steve Carell, Jason Segel, Russell Brand, Kristen Wiig, Jemaine Clement, Jack McBrayer, Ken Jeong, Danny McBride, Mindy Kaling, and Will Arnett. It also includes the talents of Julie Andrews, Miranda Cosgrove, Chris Renaud (storyboard animator for Ice Age, and co-director of this film), and Pierre Coffin (a French animator/artist, who co-directed this film). The animation is lively, colorful, and beautiful. This is probably the best film to come out of Sony Pictures Animation since the first two Ice Age films. The music in the film is partially done by Pharrell Williams (a rap/hip-hop musician known for his recent collaboration with Daft Punk for their alternative hit "Get Lucky"), who also did all the original songs, such as "Despicable Me". The music and songs are actually quite good and unique, as is most of Pharrell's music. The Minions are honestly what make the movie. Despite being there for the little kid appeal, they actually offer laughs for all ages and even make references that aren't per se "adult', but children wouldn't get. The characters are pretty good, too. Gru may be a dick at first, but is relatable as he had a bad childhood, and was made fun of by other kids and his mom, who still mocks him to this day, even in her old age. The little girls can be slightly annoying, but overall, they're okay too. Vector is a bit obnoxious and irritating, but that was the point of his character, too. Ultimately, he just wants to please his dad, which is something people can relate to. Ultimately, Despicable Me is an enjoyable, albeit slightly overrated, animated family comedy that deserves to be viewed at least once. 3.5/5 stars.
Despicable Me 2:
Now, this is a case of a sequel being better than the original. Unfortunately, it's also a case of a film being highly overrated. I recall hearing of a critique that said "One of the funniest movies ever made." Unfortunately, this is not so. Fortunately, it is quite funny. This time around, Gru is getting used to being a father, and the girls have grown on him more. Gru is hired by the Anti-Villain League to help them catch a new mystery villain who has stolen an entire base from the Arctic. Gru then teams with Lucy Wilde, a sweet but somewhat overly excited agent, to infiltrate a shopping mall where the villain may be headquartered to take him down. This film is not only funnier than the first, I enjoyed it more. Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Miranda Cosgrove, Russell Brand, Ken Jeong, Chris Renaud, and Pierre Coffin return from the first film (Coffin and Renaud also return as directors). Ken Jeong and Kristen Wiig now play different characters, and Wiig has a much larger role, being a main character rather than a supporting one. The voice actors do a great job, and there is some good chemistry between Carell and Wiig. (Wiig is again playing Carell's love interest in another highly anticipated sequel, Anchorman 2, which is being released in December.) Steve Coogan, Benjamin Bratt (in a role originally intended for Al Pacino), Nasim Pedrad, and Kristen Schaal are new here, and do a good job. The animation is again really great, and the story this time around is better. The Minions, again, make the whole movie, and have more references that kids wouldn't get (The Village People, All-4-One, Alien, and Love Boat) The film is also slightly less sappy than the original, although there are some moments like that. You could say in a way that the film is "darker", in that the villain actually poses a serious threat, unlike Vector, who was more like competition. A character also makes a brief reference to that people actually get murdered in this world when he states the Anti-Villain League only cares about large-scale crimes, not killings or robbery. Speaking of serious threats, one of the villains mentioned in the film is similar to Bane from Batman comics, in that he's a very muscular Latino man who can pull off crimes with just his super strength and wit. With more humor, a better story, good chemistry between the two leads, and more Minions, Despicable Me 2 is better than the first, but still isn't quite as good as it's made out to be. 4/5 stars.
(Images: Wikipedia)
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