I took my daughter out on a date the other night. Hot dogs, french fries, and a movie. I showed her the possible options, and she chose "Despicable Me 2". Against my better judgement, I agreed.
Here we go...
Despicable Me 2
Starring the voices of Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, and Elsie Fisher
Overview - Gru has retired from a life of crime to look after his 3 adopted daughters. Until one day he himself, is kidnapped and asked to join the Anti Villain League (A.V.L.) to help seek out and stop the world's most ruthless villains. New gadgets, cars, and spy junk. A whole new Gru?
Review - So what made "Despicable Me" great? Was it the Minions? The studio thinks so. Was it Gru? No, he's just the prop. Was it the villain named Vector? Please... How about the girls? Margo and Edith are accessories. Everyone must admit that Agnus (the youngest of the girls) will make you split your sides with her her off-the-wall crazy antics. To see a stuffed Unicorn and react by saying "It's so fluffy I'm gonna die!!" just makes the kid that much cuter. If you don't laugh at Agnus, you have no soul. But no worries. I hear Jesus can restore your soul. So head on down to your local Bed, Bath, and Beyond. Look for the pearly gates (that's the beyond part of the store. Usually somewhere near bath mats and shower curtains) and tell the security guard, I think his name is Peter, that you are looking for a new soul so you can understand why Agnus from "Despicable Me" is funny. He will have pity on you, because God made Agnus to please audiences all over the world.
As I stated above, the studio thinks the Minions are the greatest and funniest creation since the Manatee (if you disagree, go look at one). The problem is that I have yet to meet anyone, children included, who agree with this claim. So, of course, there are WAY too many Minions in "Despicable Me 2". To a degree, they are the bulk of the story line. A secret villain is kidnapping them one at a time, and Gru is hot on the case! So I guess having adopted children qualifies you for being a good guy/super spy. In my opinion, they took the focus off the quirky kids, and put them on little yellow dullards trying to be quirky. In this one, they made Agnus more cutesy than quirky. I was looking forward to some more over-the-top moments from Agnus, but alas. They barely had Edith speak at all. In the first one she was sarcastically goofy, and I was hoping to see more of that. Of course, they had to pull the whole "teen crush saga" into this film. Edith is maybe 12, and they're having he swoon over a smooth-talking Latin boy. I was very put-off by this, as I have a 14 year old niece, and I can't imagine her swooning and dating someone yet. How about let's let our kids be inspired to be kids, and not Twi-hards who are hell bent on their own emotional destruction.
I didn't mind the villain-turned-spy thing. I have met many guys who have done time in prison and come out ready and willing to be great dads and inspiring leaders. I actually admire the relationships he has with the girls. He may have his quirks, but they girls respect and love him. I liked how they set up Gru for dating, and how his past life experiences have hurt him. It coupled well with the story line, in the first one, about how he desperately wants his mother's approval. Gru has a few funny lines, but one scene in particular made me nearly wee my pants. Dr. Neffario was incredibly forgettable in this one. Until the end of the movie, you keep forgetting he is in it. I thought Kristen Wiig did a good job as the secondary spy who has a goofy attraction to Gru. I was willing to look past the fact that she voiced a different character in the first one (Miss Hattie) because this character was more her speed.
The villain has a plan that makes absolutely no sense. It's one of those, "I'm going to nuke the world and live on the remains" kind of plans. What about food? Water? Procreation? Think bubba, THINK!
Overall I would say your kids will like it, but after 1 viewing, you will pray your blueray player scratches the disc beyond repair, and you can play the whole "Oh no, it broke." card. I give it a 1.5 our of 5. It was worth 1 watch, but I can't see wanting to sit through it over and over again. Movies like "Toy Story", or "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" on the other hand, I could watch repeatedly and laugh throughout each time.
I love doing these reviews, and I promise you'll see more soon.
If you have a suggestion, email me at entertaindave@gmail.com and follow me on Twitter @endertaindave
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