Following the immense high that Toy Story 3 gave me, I was pretty much ready to see any animated movie that might come out. Unfortunately I decided to shell out the extra cash for 3-D.
I'm not saying that Despicable Me is bad, because it's not, but I am saying that if I pay 12 dollars to see a movie in 3-D it better blow my mind away with visual effects.
Despicable Me, is the story of longtime villain Gru (Steve Carell). Gru is getting up there in years, and his dastardly plans don't have the punch that they used too. When he finds that a rival villain has actually stolen the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt (and quite hilariously puts it behind his house and paints it like the sky) Gru decides to put into action his most evil plan of all time, stealing the moon. Yes, the moon; his plan is to use a North Korean designed shrink ray, shrink up the moon and bring it back to Earth, to show off his awesome evilness.
But there's one small problem, Vector (Jason Segel) the guy who stole the pyramid, has also stolen the shrink ray, so Gru has to get creative and adopt three adorable orphan girls to get it back.
Despicable Me is like a dark comedy for children, which is incredibly hard to put into words, but if you see it you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. It is made for children but there is enough humor here for adults to enjoy it all the same. Gru's house is littered with endangered animals that could cause a chuckle. Gru's responses to the little girls demands and pleas are what every parent thinks, but loves too much to say it, and he gets to do it in a delicious Russian accent. "Pretty please?" "The physical appearance of please does nothing." More amusing things like the Bank of Evil (formerly Lehman Brothers) made for an enjoyable time.
The voice cast is pretty good as well. Steve Carell shines as Gru and his accent is flawless. Russell Brand jumps in as Gru's 80 year old sidekick Dr. Nefarious and you never once think it sounds like a young man. Will Arnett, Kristen Wiig, and Julie Andrews make nice showings as well.
The little yellow things climbing all over the poster are Gru's minions and really only serve as slapstick humor for the kiddies. Despicable Me is incredibly predictable but it adds a nice twist with its dark humor and general pacing. Plus, the littlest orphan is the cutest thing on the planet.
Just don't pay for 3-D.
2 and a half out of 4 stars
-Christopher O'Connell
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