The original Despicable Me is a little overrated in my opinion. Not a bad movie, but nothing too good or really memorable. I consider it decent entertainment. I originally had no intention on seeing the sequel, especially since the trailers were so “meh.” I ended up seeing the film anyway and was surprised by the outcome. Despicable Me 2 doesn’t hold a candle to Monsters University in terms of story, characters, and well, everything but it’s great entertainment for kids and parents, and teens like me will get a few laughs out of it. Just don’t expect greatness.
Despicable Me 2 takes place after the events of the first film. Gru (Steve Carrell) is no longer a villain and has his minions make jelly while he spends time with his three adopted girls. Gru is kidnapped by Lucy (Kristen Wiig), an agent from the Anti-Villain League (AVL), and brought to the AVL headquarters. There Gru learns that somebody has stolen a chemical that makes any living thing it comes in contact with into invincible killing machines. It’s now up to Gru and Lucy to find the perpetrator and the chemicals.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlbnGSMJQbQ[/youtube]
The story is very straightforward and worked very well for the film. It has a subplot about Gru finding love which does what a good subplot should and works into the main story wonderfully (somebody call The Lone Ranger and tell them how it’s done). Unlike the first film, the movie doesn’t have much heart to it which some might find disappointing but I didn’t mind all that much. The story works completely fine for the film.
The dialogue for the film was actually pretty funny at times. Nothing gut-bustingly hilarious but a lot of chuckles. You’ll have the occasional joke that will fly over kid’s heads which I always love in these kid’s movies and some decently smart humor. The Minions do their whole schtick again but the writers thought of plenty of new material for the Minions thus making them entertaining as always. Some of the dialogue and jokes might be a little too childish for older folk to really enjoy but it should still be entertaining because of the great voice work.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qsH_LFRr6k[/youtube]
Despicable Me 2 knocks it out of the park with its voice acting. Steve Carrell, Kristen Wiig, Elsie Fisher, and the voices of the Minions all do a phenomenal job with their characters. Instead of just saying their lines and getting out of the recording studio with their paycheck, these actors actually felt like they put character into their characters which makes almost every second of the film really entertaining and a joy to watch.
The animation in the film is also pretty solid. It’s nothing drop-dead gorgeous like Brave or impressive in the cartooney way like Monsters University, but it’s nice and colorful animation. There’s no real eye-candy though so animation enthusiasts, don’t expect beauty. I didn’t see the film in 3D so I can’t speak at all on that part.
THE VERDICT
There’s really not much else to say about Despicable Me 2. Kids will have a ball with the film and the movie will make a billion dollars through Minion stuff animals alone, so you can definitely expect a Despicable Me 3 (a Minions movie is already coming out next year). As for this film, the movie is good entertainment. If your kid isn’t dragging you to the theater, a rental for this movie is perfectly fine. Great voice acting and a lot of chuckles make Despicable Me 2 one of the better animated movies of the year.
For reviews and more from me, Petey Oneto, you can check out my blog but be sure to check back with Resident Entertainment for more of my posts in the future.
