Minions: The Rise of Gru

Voices of: Steve Carrell, Pierre Coffin, Alan Arkin, Taraji P. Henson, Michelle Yeoh, Julie Andrews, Russell Brand, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren, Danny Trejo, Lucy Lawless, Will Arnett, Steve Coogan, RZA, Jimmy O. Yang
Directed by: Kyle Balda, Brad Ableson, Jonathan del Val
Rating: PG
Genre: Animation, Comedy
2022

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: 12-year old Gru (Steve Carell) sees his chance to become a supervillain when the Vicious 6 begin recruiting a new member.

Review:

Tim: I've long despised the Despicable Me/Minions series of movies. I know it's Illumination's flagship franchise, but the movies have mostly been terrible. I do not understand why they are consistently so popular, to the point where this is the 5th entry in the franchise. So, here we go again. And... Minions: The Rise of Gru is actually a decent film. Wait, what? That can't be right. Have I gotten soft in my advancing age? I'm as perplexed as you are, but I actually sort of enjoyed watching this movie. In my mind, this is the best movie in the entire franchise- although it still has clear and obvious flaws. I enjoyed it significantly more than the four that came before it.

I really believe the big differentiator here was an effective story. The movie is a prequel, but it pits 12 year-old Gru against a team of supervillains. It immediately has that underdog vibe that's so compelling. We know Gru at this point, so we absolutely want to see him emerge victories over these bad adults. It also provides Gru with a mentor, Wild Knuckles, voiced perfectly by Alan Arkin. There's definitely some villainous Mr. Miyagi vibes going there, which is fun to see a young apprentice being taught by an aged mentor. The movie has a solid voice cast and generally, is entertaining. There's still flaws, but this movie never really annoyed me. I enjoyed watching it with my 9 year-old son and 5 year-old daughter. We had a nice time watching this fast-paced story.

The visuals worked well. Illumination has always had issues with the story, but the animation itself works. The Minions might be incredibly annoying, but they are beautifully rendered. The colors popped, the animation added to the action scenes- it was definitely a strength of this film. Speaking of the Minions, I do think they played a slightly less prominent role in the film, which was much appreciated. This movie introduces this team of supervillains, plus the betrayed Wild Knuckles, so there's simply less time for the Minions to do their inane shtick. Sure, we still get a ton of scenes with them and it's all fine- kids love it. But they felt more supporting, which was desperately needed (and a big reason why I disliked the Minions movie so much).

Steve Carell was solid as always, voicing Gru. I won't say I especially like his character- I don't think I ever have, or ever will. But, he was fine and Carell does a nice job bringing him to life here. Pierre Coffin is all over the Minions, but again, not my cup of tea. I loved the voice work of the late Alan Arkin. This was his final film, and I had mixed emotions hearing him voice this character. He's incredible and he perfectly brings this character to life- added more humanity than you'd expect into his performance. It's a sad loss for the world, though.

Michelle Yeoh was great in a small supporting role. Julie Andrews didn't have much to do, but her voice was welcome. I love that the film cast Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren, Danny Trejo, and Lucy Lawless in villainous roles. That's just inspired casting. None of them get a ton to do, but it's still so fun knowing these voiced those characters.

While Minions: The Rise of Gru was a shocking surprise for me, it's still not a good movie. The Minion shenanigans are always as annoying as they are entertaining. The film feels too stylish and still doesn't have enough substance (although this one clearly has more substance the previous films). There was a few more legitimately humorous parts here, but it still feels too simplified, too dumbed down. You can make these movies to appeal to audiences of all ages and while this one gets closer than the others, there's still room for improvement. The story made me care a little bit about Gru, which is a first. Still, when you're considering really effective animated movies, this still doesn't make the cut.

That being said, this still calls for a celebration. I was dreading watching this movie and I ended up mostly enjoying it. I can't claim to have any confidence that the future movies will be this decent, but I'll celebrate the highest point of this franchise, inexplicably, the 5th film in it. Take the sort-of win, Illumination, and keep this streak going!

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Despicable Me, Despicable Me 2, Despicable Me 3, Minions, The Super Mario Bros. Movie