Expectations:
When Despicable Me came out, back in 2010, I was not as impressed as most moviegoers. Sure, the Minions were hilarious and Agnes was the cutest animated character to grace the big screen in a long time, but the story focused on the infamous villain, Gru, meaning that there was more time spent on a character that was so-so instead of the characters that everybody loved. To top it off, I have been wondering for at least three years why exactly the film was titled Despicable Me. If anyone can give me a clever or true solution to this predicament, you get a shout out in my next blog post... Deal?... So, needless to say, I wasn't quite as excited about Despicable Me 2 as most people were. However, I really do enjoy watching animated films in the theater, where one can experience the film with the multitudes of children yelling out their own crazy antics at the characters on screen. There are few things in life more entertaining. Also, knowing that almost everybody loved the minions and Agnes the most of any of the characters, I expected to see a lot of them in the sequel, which I assumed I would enjoy...
Plot:
With the focus remaining on Gru (voiced by Steve Carell), Despicable Me 2 was quite similar to its predecessor, as far as the plot was concerned. Of course, the film did not dwell on the same moral issues, due to Gru's newfound niceness, and, obviously, with the success at the box office, people don't really care about the originality of the storyline. But, I think the story was a little bit too safe. Not that animated films have to be daring and unique, especially in sequels. I just wanted the mediocrity of Despicable Me to be overcome in its sequel, and that did not happen for me. Don't get me wrong, the film was great, and I'm sure the kids will learn something important from it. It just never felt like groundbreaking storytelling, which is probably because I had higher expectations.
Characters:
As was the case with the plot, the spread of time spent on the various characters was also very similar to the first film. With Gru at the center of the story and Agnes (voiced by Elsie Kate Fisher) and the Minions providing the laughs, most of the other characters lacked significance. Amazingly, Edith, voiced by Dana Gaier, was the only character that really faded into the background. Otherwise, the filmmakers did a good job of incorporating each character, regardless of how insignificant they really should have been.
Negatives:
As I mentioned above, Edith had absolutely nothing to contribute to the storyline. The writers couldn't even come up with something stupid for her to do, much less something good. As for characters who actually had something to do, I really didn't care for Lucy, voiced by Kristen Wiig. While I'm glad that Gru had a love interest, I just wish she was actually funny in some sort of way.
Positives:
As I have already said (twice), I really do love Agnes and the Minions. Without the two, this movie would be absolutely horrible. Honestly, take the Minions out of Despicable Me and you have a meanish guy and a little girl that talks funny, otherwise known as Wreck It Ralph. I really hope that the Minions get there own film, before we have another Despicable Me. It may lack in plot, but I could watch those little yellow blobs ALL DAY LONG.
Conclusion:
No better... No worse... That's how I would describe Despicable Me 2, in comparison to the original. I also just noticed that I went from a Pixar film review to an R-rated comedy review to a Despicable Me 2 review. Gosh I'm versatile.... I know was critical of the first film, but I guess it's ok that the second was strikingly similar, because Despicable Me 2 could have been the next Hangover 3! I challenge you to find that sentence anywhere else on the internet! Once again, shout out to you, if you can find it. If you have children and NEED to go to the theater, I strongly suggest this as a family film. Not only does it bring more laughs than Monsters University, but it also manages to teach lessons in a more subtle manner and allows for a lot of emotional support, particularly if your family is sort of odd like Gru's. Honestly, though, if you have kids, you should just stay at home. That popcorn is expensive! I give Despicable Me 2 3.02 out of 5 stars.
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