Despicable Me 2

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is Despicable Me 2.

Directed by Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud.

Written by Ken Daurio & Cinco Paul.

Review #223

MPAA Rating: Rated PG for rude humor and mild action.

Run Time: 98 min

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Cast

Steve Carell...Gru (voice)

Kristen Wiig...Lucy (voice)

Benjamin Bratt...Eduardo / El Macho (voice)

Miranda Cosgrove...Margo (voice)

Russell Brand...Dr. Nefario (voice)

Ken Jeong...Floyd (voice)

Steve Coogan...Silas (voice)

Elsie Kate Fisher...Agnes (voice) (as Elsie Fisher)

Dana Gaier...Edith (voice)

Moises Arias...Antonio (voice)

Nasim Pedrad...Jillian (voice)

Kristen Schaal...Shannon (voice)

Pierre Coffin...Kevin the Minion / Bob the Minion / Stuart the Minion / Additional Minions / Evil Minions (voice)

Chris Renaud...Additional Minions / Evil Minions / Italian Waiter (voice) 

Despicable Me was a surprise hit. I mean that with regards to how good the film actually was. It was funny, light and had memorable characters. I mean let's be real about this. How could you not love those minions.

With all that in mind, a sequel seemed like a tough task.

Especially considering how the first ended with Gru changing his ways and living on the side of right. So of course they went that way and used the main character's twist to the film's advantage. It was a good idea and for the most part this movie does a good job but in my opinion, it falls short of the magic the first one gave us.

Plot

Gru is recruited by the Anti-Villain League to help deal with a powerful new super criminal. 

DM2 picks up pretty much after the events of the first film. The girls are living with Gru and are about the same age when we left them. Gru is no longer interested in living the life of crime and is very content being a daddy. Then we get the introduction of a new subplot. Gru gets a love interest. The film spends time establishing Gru's desire to complete the family tree even though he denies it publicly. This love interest comes in the form of his new "partner" Lucy.

Played nicely by Kristen Wiig.

If there is anyone that can play across Steve Carell it's her. She has the right amount of craziness to level off her character. Lucy is light and airy which plays well off of Gru's stoney presence. Her performance also had a nice balance between simple and straight up loony toons. It was nice to see someone else share the screen with Gru.

The film does a great job balancing the new characters with the old ones. Everyone gets their just due. The girls aren't filler in between jokes or scenes with the minions. They served a purpose to the story just like everyone else. DM2 gave the girls some more life too. Margo, Agnes and Edith get expanded. Margo enters puberty, Edith becomes more dare devilish and Agnes just gets cuter. And then of course you have those hysterical little yellow dudes.
Unlike the first film, the plot involves the minions a bit more directly. This in turn gives them a bit more screen time which is ALWAYS a good thing. These guys are hysterical. From the way they talk to how they sound to their individual designs, the minions can easily carry a film. One only hopes that these guys will wise up and spin them off into their own film or maybe a TV series on Cartoon Network. They are too funny and deserve to be seen as often as humanly possible.

Once the final plot is revealed the film goes through the same motions that the first one did. The funny thing is that it doesn't feel repetitive. I can't put my finger on it but the scenes feel exactly the same from film to film but it worked really well. The minions play a bigger role in the end and it gives the climax a funnier finish. The final scene at the end was just hilarious when the minions parody a song that we all know.

Just brilliant.

All told, Despicable Me 2 is a good film, a funny film and an adequate sequel to a franchise that I didn't think was franchise-able. Who knows where Gru and company will go from here. As long as the minions are around I'm in.

On the 5 star scale. Despicable Me 2 gets 3 stars with a "Go See It!" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"