Movie review: ‘Despicable Me 4’

Opening On cinemas July 3, ‘Despicable Me 4‘s Illumination Entertainment (and distributor Universal) launching the latest salvo in their mammoth franchise.

The success of ‘Negligible‘The movies are almost comically predictable at this point, and while the latest offering does very little that’s truly new, it seems certain to appeal to family audiences.

Related Article: Movie Review: Minions: The Rise of Gru

Will ‘Despicable Me 4’ keep the family happy?

While it would be a mistake to say that the franchise has truly matured, the new offering at least represents the usual evolution of the story, as it is Steve CarellGru has completely adapted to family life. However, his evil past comes back to haunt him when a rival threatens his domestic bliss and the Gru clan is forced to retreat to a safe house.

Plus, any movie starring Gru is contractually obligated to include the Minions, and here’s a new spin on that concept, even if it’s a slightly tired satire of a genre that’s long since been parodied beyond reason.

Script and direction

Written by a ‘Despicable Me’ veteran Ken Daurio and in a slightly surprising twist, Mike Blanco (although ‘The white lotus‘The boss is also credited with ‘last year’Migration‘, also from Illumination), so he has clearly found a parallel rhythm with the animation company.

Don’t expect Lotus-like depth (not that you’d expect that from a cheesy animated movie), and the movie is refreshingly free of hackneyed attempts to teach lessons about strengthening family bonds, mostly because those have already been covered in the Despicable movies. The jokes come in spades, but the main problem with the script and the movie it’s based on is that they all feel like separate elements that eventually try to come together for the big finale, but they never seem to all be on the same story line.

Gru, for example, not only has to deal with the return of an old nemesis, but also a potential new threat, and the script doesn’t really handle them as effectively as it would, and several feel underserved.

Kudos, however, to the team for two referential jokes that seem to have been created specifically for the parents who brought their kids to this one, particularly a ‘Terminator 2‘ moment that really works.

Chris Renaud (another ‘Despicable’ veteran) and Patricio Delage (who has moved up from the animation department to a more general leadership role here) oversaw the direction. And rather than try to change what worked about the look of the films, they stuck with the basic model: plenty of Minion moments (even if, like the split plots, they feel like separate skits that are folded into the story) are left unfinished until they serve a point at the end, and even then, they feel like an afterthought.

If you’re taking kids who are only there for the chubby, chatty, yellow nuisances, you might be better off re-watching old shorts and moments online.

Performances

The voice cast is, as you’d expect, entertaining – many of them have been with this franchise long enough to really take on their roles. Where things fall down a bit is in a by-the-numbers script that doesn’t really give them much freshness.

Steve Carell as Gru

Carell knows how to deliver a Gru line in his sleep these days, but throws himself into the role with his usual enthusiasm. He is somewhat isolated from the rest of the family for large parts of the story, but recovers well. king joeywho plays Poppy, a teenager with her own criminal aspirations.

Will Ferrell as Maxime Le Mal

Will Ferrell Here he plays Gru’s old schoolmate and nemesis, but while Ferrell tries out a French accent to try and nail something new, he’s rarely all that memorable. An obsession with cockroaches seemingly opens the door to Minion-style madness, but his insect army is quickly established and then forgotten. In the ranks of gadget-obsessed villains that have emerged in the movies, Le Mal doesn’t really stand out.

And that goes double for his girlfriend, Valentina (Sofia Vergara). It seems clear that either there is more to her role on the cutting room floor, or Vergara spent approximately 10 minutes in the recording booth, as Valentina is a largely useless character.

Stephen Colbert, Kristen Wiig and more

Esteban Colbert, Carell is old ‘Daily program‘ His colleague is always a good choice when compared to him (here as the snooty, snotty new neighbor Perry Prescott).

Kristen WiigMeanwhile, she gets meatier material as Lucy Wilde, Gru’s wife, including her attempts to become part of the new community they are forced to move to.

And finally, there’s Gru Jr., the new addition to the family (who mostly just makes gurgles and other childish sounds). He’s a fun diversion, a kid who just doesn’t like his dad (until… Well, that would be spoiling things, but you can guess).

The Minions do their thing as always, and their superhero parody is fun, if not actually effective, at this point where we don’t really need another example of genre mockery.

Final Thoughts

Gru and company are such reliable cash cows for Illumination right now that they could probably just release 90 minutes of Minions babbling and slapping each other, and family audiences would open their wallets to watch it.

You may want something truly revolutionary, but it’s unlikely to disappoint the most die-hard children’s fans.

‘Despicable Me 4’ receives 7 out of 10 stars.

What is the story of ‘Despicable Me 4’?

Gru (Steve Carrell) and Lucy (Kristen Wiig) and their daughters: Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier) and Agnes (Madison Polan) — welcomes a new member to the Gru family, Gru Jr., who intends to torment his father.

At the same time, Gru faces a new nemesis in Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell) and his femme fatale girlfriend Valentina (Sofia Vergara), and the family is forced to flee.

Who else lends their voice to ‘Despicable Me 4’?

The voice cast for the new animated film includes Joey King, Stephen Colbert, Chloe Fineman, Pierre Coffin and Steve Coogan.

Other films in the ‘Despicable Me’ franchise:

Buy ‘Despicable Me’ movies on Amazon