Despicable Me came out in 2010 and I’ve been eagerly awaiting Gru’s army of Minions to star in their own movie. The Minions are mischievous, loyal, have a simple diet of bananas and have taken on a life of their own. If you’ve been to Universal Studios Hollywood, gift shops come alive with Minion shaped slippers, mugs and other adorable merchandise to keep the obsession with them healthy and simpatico.
Not only are the Minions in town, but our family was in town! We shared the Minions experience with Nanny, cousins (ages 6-12), Aunt Jess and Uncle Tim! Thanks to Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures for treating us to a morning at the movies. What made this trip even better was Kevin, Bob and Stuart were actually at the screening for some memorable photo ops! I have to admit, Bob is my favorite. He’s so cute! With Pez Minion dispensers in hand, and 3D glasses in place we were ready for a zany cinematic adventure!
I was excited that Minions is an origin story. I’ve had so many questions about them. And sadly, I still do! What language do they speak? Is it a mash-up of Spanish, French and Italian and English? Why do they serve despicable masters? Can they work for a good guy? And what exactly are they? Are they tad poles? Why do they like bananas? Is it because of their skin color? I walked away wanting more but maybe I need to simplify my expectations. I did learn where their uniforms/overalls came to be!
The story begins with an evolution overview of our lil yellow friends and after a series of unfortunate early exits from some of their early villainous leaders, Kevin, Stuart and Bob (all voiced by Pierre Coffin) break away from the tribe to search for a new leader. And throughout this adventure they represented their colony of friends with dignity, comedy and valor!
The Villain in this film is Scarlet Overkill voiced by Sandra Bullock. She was determined and evil but I wasn’t overly impressed with her as the lead villain character. I did like the cameos from Dracula, Napoleon, TRex, and caveman. What is it exactly that attracted the Minions to these character types?
I enjoyed the film but I think the Minions work best as a secondary character in Despicable Me and not as a full-feature movie. The comedy seemed forced. There’s lots of smacking around and kooky behavior maybe at too high a dose. I didn’t laugh as much as expected and, as usual, the funniest moments were in the previews.
I have to admit the highlight of the movie for me was seeing a young Gru! And I feel like that’s when the real story begins….leaving us with a sequel!
Minions is rated PG and is in theaters on July 10!
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Still dying to see even if the funniest parts have been shown in the previews ; (