Minions: The Rise of Gru

The plot to this family-friendly comedy adventure is fairly forgettable, but the film arguably works best if you think of it as a collection of genuinely amusing sketches involving the loveable Minions.

Premise: Back in 1976, an 11-year-old Gru (Steve Carell) applies to become the newest member of the legendary supervillain team, the Vicious 6. But the Minions’ attempts to help Gru ultimately backfire, and soon Kevin, Stuart, Bob and Otto may be Gru’s only hope of survival.

Review:

I have a real soft spot for the Despicable Me films, and their blend of family-friendly adventure and comedy. It’s fun just to spend time with Steve Carell’s Gru, and arguably his character’s absence from the first Minions film in 2015 was one of the key reasons why that film felt so lacklustre. Thankfully, Gru (and Steve Carell) are back for this second Minions film, but the filmmakers have still struck the right balance to make this feel like a Minions film, rather than “Despicable Me 4”.

That said, if there’s one area where Minions: The Rise of Gru is weakest, it’s in the plot department. It’s probably still better than the first Minions film, but the storyline here is not nearly as coherent or engaging as any of the Despicable Me films. Instead, the storyline is a little bit all over the place, with the protagonists’ goals and adversaries shifting several times over the course of the film, in a way that suggests that there may have been major script overhauls during the production process.

“…plenty of laugh-out-loud moments thanks to the Minions’ talent for physical & slapstick comedy…”

The end result is that the film feels quite disjointed at times, with various plot threads leading off in different directions at different times. One minute it’s a quest movie to recover a missing item, another moment it’s a rescue movie, and then the next it’s (perhaps, inexplicably) a mystical martial arts fantasy!

But weirdly, despite its somewhat scattershot plot, none of these quibbles spoilt my enjoyment of Minions: The Rise of Gru, because I didn’t come to see this film for its storyline – I came to see the Minions do funny things, and the film has that in spades. A lot of the film’s biggest laughs were arguably given away in the various trailers, but there are still plenty of laugh-out-loud moments in the film thanks to the Minions’ talent for physical and slapstick comedy.

“…Michelle Yeoh’s plot thread provides many memorable comedic moments…”

Of course, there are those who are immune to the Minions’ sense of humour – but then why would anyone who doesn’t like the Minions watch a Minions film? If, on the other hand, you have any affection for the little yellow guys, then Minions: The Rise of Gru has plenty of comedic moments to enjoy. Although the plot is a bit of a mess, the film still works well as a series of sketches featuring the Minions even if you separate it from the narrative – for example, one of the comedy highlights revolves around the Minions’ flight to San Francisco, and it could have worked just as well as a standalone sketch (as it really adds nothing to the overall plot of the movie).

The same is true for Michelle Yeoh’s cameo as an acupuncturist who trains Kevin, Stuart and Bob kung-fu – the plot thread feels like it comes out of nowhere (and may have been the result of several competing ideas being pitched in the writers’ room), but I don’t really mind when Michelle Yeoh’s plot thread provides so many memorable comedic moments.

“…consistently funny for its entire short-but-sweet runtime…”

Sadly, the same isn’t quite true for the rest of the new cast, and in particular, the Vicious 6 supervillain team feel especially forgettable. Great pun names aside, Taraji P. Henson (as Belle Bottom), Jean-Claude Van Damme (as Jean-Clawed), Lucy Lawless (as Nun-chuck), Dolph Lundgren (as Svengeance), and Danny Trejo (as Stronghold) all fail to make an impact or do anything particularly memorable.

All in all, Minions: The Rise of Gru probably doesn’t stand up to comparison with the other Despicable Me films, which all have more memorable villains and more coherent plots – but this film does feel like an improvement on the first Minions film, and it is consistently funny for its entire short-but-sweet 88-minute runtime.