Our review of Minions
by Ramon Mejia
The movie Minions tells the prequel story of the lovably quirky little yellow minions of Gru from the movies Despicable Me (2010) and Despicable Me 2 (2013).
The official Synopsis:
Sandra Bullock voices Scarlet Overkill
Evolving from single-celled yellow organisms at the dawn of time, Minions live to serve, but find themselves working for a continual series of unsuccessful masters, from T. Rex to Napoleon. Without a master to grovel for, the Minions fall into a deep depression. But one minion, Kevin, has a plan; accompanied by his pals Stuart and Bob, Kevin sets forth to find a new evil boss for his brethren to follow. Their search leads them to Scarlet Overkill (voiced by Sandra Bullock), the world's first-ever super-villainess.
The Good
The Minions in this film do what they do best. Incoherently entertain with their slap stick silliness. Take your kids to see the movie, they’ll love it. The younger, the more they seem to adore the silly little minions.
Since the movie is set in the 1950s the music they licensed is great. Beatles songs galore.
I thoroughly enjoyed the trailers for the movie. They were brief, funny, and the gags were interesting. I especially enjoyed learning about the ‘history’ of the minions. The stories about all the villains they served under and how things always inevitably went wrong were entertaining. I would have liked more of those stories. Heck I can envision a whole series of shorts devoted to all the villainous masters the minions have served throughout history. Unfortunately, this movie isn’t that.
The Bad
The movie does very little to appeal to grownups. Be aware that the first 20 minutes or so of the movie is mostly in Minion gibberish and there's a lot more of it throughout the movie. So, if that gets on your nerves…well then skip the movie. Remember that’s how these little guys speak. That is what’s charming to the kids.
The storyline isn’t complicated. The minions are searching for a villain in the modern world to follow. They attend a villain convention to find that new boss. That’s about all we’ll say about the story but it’s sufficient to say that nothing ever goes as the minions plan.
Final Thoughts
For me, the movie felt like a concept for an animated short that was stretched out into a full movie. As a grown up, the movie never hit the emotional cords that Despicable Me hit and the slap stick comedy wasn’t enough to make up for the lack of a cohesive plot. However, let’s be honest. This movie wasn’t made for the grownups. It was made for kids and adults that are kids at heart. Kids will love it and want to watch it on repeat endlessly once it’s on DVD or available for download.
