Look out superheroes, the villains are taking center stage.
Gru, voiced by Steve Carell with a very weird, and sometimes difficult to understand Slavic accent, prides himself on being the world’s most villainous thief along with a resident evil scientist, Dr. Nefario (Russell Brand) and his myriads of minions. That is, until a little healthy competition comes along. When a new rival villain, Vector (Jason Segel) steals the Great Pyramid of Giza, hides it in his backyard, and replaces it with an inflatable replica, Gru realizes he must do something even more spectacular and plots to steal the moon.
After funding for his evil scheme is denied by the Bank of Evil (“formerly Lehman Brothers”, the movie’s best laugh) due to Gru’s history of heists which have been more costly than financially rewarding, Gru sets off to steal the Shrink Ray prototype, not yet perfected, from his new nemesis in order to shrink the moon and bring it back to earth . . . bringing the world to its knees.
Unfortunately, penetrating Vector’s laboratory proves to be impossible, until he observes Vector purchasing Miss Hattie’s cookies from three orphans, Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier), and Agnes (Elsie Fisher) who are peddled out by the Home for Girls’ Miss Hattie (Kristen Wiig) to sell cookies door to door. Gru seizes the opportunity to gain entry to Vector’s lab through their cookies and adopts the adorable trio.
Gru has little interest in the girls, but after some time the children help Gru discover his sensitive side through their demands for him to read bedtime stories, and flashbacks to his childhood reveal Gru’s mommy issues. Gru’s scheming and crazy plans are really just his attempts to make his mother proud of him. (how original)
This transformation story is funny, with one gag after another. The yellow pill-shaped minions provide most of the comic relief similar to the penguins in Madagascar. So many elements of the movie are reminiscent of Up, The Incredibles, Monsters vs. Aliens, and other recent films, making Despicable Me seem far less inventive than the story really is. Despicable Me is tolerable, hardly the children’s spy thriller it could have been, and not as funny as the previews might suggest, but overall it would suit if you were looking for a few (and I do mean few) laughs on a rainy day at the theater, and of course you’ve already seen Toy Story 3.
