Films like this don’t need to be the best films ever. What I mean there is that they can be funny, silly and occasionally touching and that is enough. Escapism for the 90 minutes is all you should expect. And a film like this delivers more often than not as long as you don’t go into it with unrealistic expectation.
Gru (voiced by Steve Carrell) is in the midst of a identity crisis; he doesn’t know who he is anymore. He has been fired from the Anti-Villain League due to his inability to capture the latest bad guy threatening humankind. In the nick of time just before he hits rock bottom a mystery man shows up with some surprising news.
Apparently Gru has a twin brother that he never knew about. Dru (voiced by Steve Carrell) is happy, charming and successful. Cue sibling rivalry. The two meet and work together against a former child star, Balthazar Bratt (voiced by Trey Parker), who is now a horrible villain. Actually, to be more precise, Dru lures Gru back into a life a crime as he makes it so appealing. The attraction to the dark side pulls Gru back in.
Don’t know what fans of the film series would complain about here. It has got everything you like previously. Minions (a little bit not so much that you get sick of them), the cute kids, pop culture references and Gru being a lovable anti-hero. Some might say it is predictable, etc. I say it knows its audience and strengths and plays to them. Films like this are pretty much review-proof anyways. Critics will be less and impress while the target audience (kids) will be won over.
Feel good summer flick. Nothing more, nothing less. Perfect film to take the kids to.