Despicable Me 2

Despicable Me 2 - Dirs. Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud (2013)

Despicable Me was a delightful surprise from Universal's fledgling Illumination Entertainment. Although it ended on a satisfying conclusion, its box office take of over $543 million ensured that a sequel was forthcoming. Despicable Me 2 certainly didn't disappoint, at least in terms of ticket sales, it pulled in over $918 million and stands as the fifth highest grossing animated film of all time.

For those who missed it, Despicable Me followed eccentric super-villain Gru (Steve Carell) on his diabolical quest to steal the moon. As part of his scheme, Gru was forced to adopt three little girls: Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier), and Agnes (Elsie Fisher). Gru was the proverbial Grinch whose heart grew two sizes bigger once those adorable moppets wormed their way into his life.

The sequel finds Gru more than comfortable in his new life as a single father. Things are going great though a little dull as Gru attempts to turn his elaborate laboratory into a factory for jams and jellies. Luckily, Gru is recruited by Silas Ramsbottom (Steve Coogan), the erudite leader of the Anti-Villain League. A mysterious mastermind has stolen an experimental serum that could be used to create an army of monsters and only Gru has the experience needed to find him. Gru is reluctantly paired up with agent Lucy Wilder (Kristen Wiig, who previously voiced Miss Hattie) to go undercover at a glossy shopping mall where the bad guy might be hiding out. Gru has his eye on Eduardo Perez (Benjamin Bratt), a boisterous restaurateur who may secretly be the infamous El Macho, a villain who supposedly died while riding a shark strapped with explosives into a flaming volcano. However, Gru's most fearsome foe may be young love when Margo falls head over heels for Eduardo's suave son Antonio (Moises Arias).

The biggest criticism lobbied against Despicable Me 2 is that the lead protagonist has lost his edge. An opening sequence where Gru dresses as a fairy princess for Agnes's birthday party might attest to that. Screenwriters Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio may have dulled Gru's fangs a bit; they've still captured the madcap pace and unique sensibilities of the first film. We see Edith running around in a ninja outfit and a bizarre subplot in which Gru goes on a blind date. Despicable Me was like a candy colored Bond adventure and its successor continues those threads with the AVL's underwater base and other high-tech gadgets. There's a submarine car, lipstick taser, Gru's trademark freeze ray, fart guns, and an opening sequence in which a giant magnet snatches up an Arctic research station. The sequel builds to a thrilling conclusion with Gru going into full John Woo mode with guns that shoot his foul-tasting jelly.

Steve Carell gives it his all with a slick Slavic accent, but its Benjamin Bratt who gives the best vocal performance as Eduardo. His over-the-top energy perfectly matches the zany tone of the movie. Oddly enough, Al Pacino was originally cast in the role before Bratt stepped in at the last minute. It's hard to imagine anyone else playing that character.

The real scene stealers though happen to be the Minions, Gru's not-so-helpful helpers that look like a bred Oompa Loompas with Twinkies. They speak in their own unique language and their kooky antics are a constant source of Three Stooges-esque slapstick. The Minions might sidetrack the main plot from time to time, but the cute factor is undeniable. Unsurprisingly, their presence is beefed up here and they're set to star in their own picture in 2015.

With Pixar and Dreamworks having a virtual stranglehold on the animation genre, its nice seeing another player emerge in the field. Despicable Me 2 is a delightful sequel with plenty of heart that will please young and old alike.

Rating: *** (*****)

Despicable Me

Despicable Me - Dirs. Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud (2010)


Despicable Me is the first film from Illumination Entertainment, Universal’s new animation division headed by Chris Meledandri, the former president of Fox Animation. It’s also the first supervillain-centric movie of the year with Dreamworks’ Megamind coming out in November. Despicable Me was co-directed by European animators Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud from a script by Ken Daurio & Cinco Paul who previously wrote Horton Hears a Who and The Santa Clause 2.

Steve Carell adopts an indiscernible Slavic accent to voice Gru, a criminal mastermind who considers himself the world’s number one bad guy. In his employ are an elderly inventor named Dr. Nefario (Russell Brand) and an army of Minions, diminutive creatures who look like Oompa Loompas crossbred with Twinkies. With their assistance, Gru devises a scheme to steal a shrink ray in order to hijack the moon and hold it for ransom. More importantly, Gru hopes to finally impress his hard to please mother, played by Julie Andrews in anti-Julie Andrews mode. Gru’s plan is derailed when the Bank of Evil refuses him a loan and the shrink ray is stolen out from under him by the nerdy Vector (Jason Segel). A dweeb with a bowl cut and an orange track suit, Vector is the new number one whose fortress is impenetrable.

Meanwhile at the orphanage for girls, three adorable little moppets named Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier), and Agnes (Elsie Fisher) sell cookies door-to-door for the stern Miss Hattie (voiced by Kristen Wiig, modeled after Edie McClurg). Noticing they can enter Vector’s domain uninhibited, Gru adopts them and before you know it, his icy exterior is melted away.

Despicable Me isn’t the type of multi-layered film that Pixar has mastered. It is fairly one-dimensional, but that one dimension is incredibly entertaining. The movie goes for the gusto as much as possible. If they’re going to have three cute, little girls, they’re going to make them as cute as humanly possible. The same can be said for the movie’s use of 3D, putting the audience on a rollercoaster and throwing various objects at the screen.

Is it as good as Toy Story 3 or How to Train Your Dragon? No, but Despicable Me is well worth seeing on a big 3D screen.

Rating: ***