Starring (Voice Talent): Steve Carell, Jason Segal, Russell Brand, Julie Andrews, Miranda Cosgrove
Directed by: Pierre Coffin, Chris Renauld
Rated: PG for rude humor and mild action
Kids-in-mind.com ratings (each out of 10): Sex & Nudity-2, Violence & Gore-3, Profanity-2.
Run Time: 95 minutes
Distributed by: Universal Pictures
Bring the Kids?: Absolutely
Pixar and Dreamworks may finally have some new competition in the computer animated family comedies. Since 1998, these two companies have been rivals to produce entertaining movies and have been very successful in doing so. Universal Pictures, with two talented by novice directors (Pierre Coffin and Chris Renauld), enters the field with a movie as excellent as any Pixar or Dreamworks film. Despicable is a first effort from both a studio and these directors that is true and hits the mark. Despicable Me is a funny, thoughtful movie that is entertaining and brings something new to the table.
Gru seems like a lost member of the Addams family, dressed in odd clothes that vary shades of grey and black, with enormous eyes in a hawk-like face complete with elongated nose that make you wonder if he is Uncle Fester’s long lost son. He certainly has similar proclivities. Steve Carell (Date Night) provides the nasal, accented voice for bumbling villain that doesn’t always seem to be all there; not since Robin Williams played the genie in Disney’s Aladdin has there been such a good pairing of voice and character. Gru is given life by Steve Carell’s portrayal, a character that is unique and likeable, despite his despicable demeanor. At the beginning of the film Gru is truly despicable, making children cry and immobilizing people in line so he can cut in, and we get to see his supervillain world. Gru lives in a large, dark parody of the sub-urban homes around him, drives a car that seems more like a battleship with a jet engine attached, and has a basement complex filled with weapons, labs, and scores of little minions.
Before we go on, it must be said that the minions are worth the price of admission alone. An entire community of yellow, pill-shaped creatures who speak their own gobblety-gook that is almost, but now quite, understandable. Every moment these creatures, with names like “Dave”, “Jerry”, and “Tim”, are on the screen is like watching a funny, inspired movie you might catch on Youtube. The minions are funny, adorable, and a bit infectious. They love Gru like a rock star, and their enthusiasm and chronic misadventures are hilarious. We hope for years of animated shorts featuring the antics of these yellow clowns. They form the basis of Gru’s home life, which includes a lab accident as a dog, a nagging mother (Julie Andrews, Shrek Forever After), and a partner-in-crime, the aged Dr. Lothario (played against type by Russell Brand, Get Him to the Greek.)
Despite the love his minions have for him and the brilliance of Dr. Lothario, Gru is not terribly successful as a supervillain, but plans to commit his greatest heist yet when someone else steals a world famous landmark. Gru approaches the Bank of Evil (formerly Lehman Brothers) to finance his scheme to steal the moon. In order for this scheme to work, Gru must first steal a shrink ray. His heist is interrupted by rival supervillain Vector (Jason Segel, I Love You Man) who takes the shrink ray and Gru’s chances at completing his moon heist. In order to retrieve it, Gru adopts three orphan girls who sell cookies for the sole purpose of sending in robots disguised as cookies to gain entrance to Vector’s vault.
Immediately upon allowing these girls, Margo (Miranda Cosgrove, iCarly), Edith, and Agnes into his home Gru’s life begins to change as he grows more and more attached to his three young charges. This transition is difficult, at first Gru is clueless about children. He puts down a bowl of food for them, and makes their beds out of old munitions. The girls manage to invade and infringe upon every aspect of his life, happily distracting Gru from his plans. For the first time ever, Gru has something in his life other than outlandish criminal schemes to care about. It is a character transition that manages to be touching but never gets too sentimental. The three girls are all guaranteed to remind you of some little girl you know between the three of them, but are not given any backstory other than being orphans who are treated poorly at their orphanage. They are cute, adorable, and fun to watch, but the girls are not given much depth for main characters. Hopefully, the inevitable sequel will rectify this.
Gru’s ambitions to steal the moon are in conflict with his caretaking of the orphan girls. Doctor Lothario pressures him to choose between fulfilling his childhood dream of going to the moon (and stealing it) and being a parent to three loving children. The conflict divides Gru, who finally has meaning in his life. His actions, and final confrontation with Vector, bring the film to a satisfying conclusion which manages a couple of surprises.
Universal has arrived on the animation scene with a solid and enjoyable movie. Neophyte directors Coffin and Renauld should be proud of their effort, a non-Pixar, non-Dreamworks picture that is worth ticket price. After years of third rate efforts by second rate movie studios there is finally an excellent computer animated movie that is fulfilling. Hopefully Universal has plans for more films of the same caliber.
No comments:
Post a Comment