Despicable Me 3: Movie Review

Imagine a song is playing and you find yourself really enjoying it.  Now imagine you are sitting in a room for and that same song was stuck on repeat for 90 minutes. 2015’s “Minions” is probably the closest thing I can think of to that.  I loved the little yellow guys from the first two “Despicable Me” films but after “Minions”, I couldn’t even stand the sight of them.  Fortunately, they have much less screen time in “DM3”. Unfortunately, the film itself feels less inspired than the two previous installments.

One of the problems with “DM3” is that the central character, Gru (voiced by Steve Carell) isn’t all that despicable anymore.  He is now a secret agent and loving family man.  He leads a generally happy life. His minions are not as pleased and they decide to leave him in search of a life of villainy.  Gru’s live changes when he learns he has a twin brother named Dru (also voiced by Carell) and that their father was the ultimate super villain.  Dru want’s Gru to show him the ropes of being a villain but Gru has left that life behind.

I failed to mention that Gru and his wife Lucy (voiced by Kristen Wiig) were actually fired for letting the most-wanted villain Balthazar Bratt (voiced by Trey Parker) slip through their fingers.  Bratt was a child star who grew up to be the evil character he played on television. Everything about him is stuck in the 1980’s, including his clothing, music, and dance style.  Bratt is probably the most interesting villain in the “DM” films but the freshness is gone and the humor feels forced.  Yes, kids are going to love “DM3”, I have absolutely no doubt and it isn’t a terrible film by any means.  I just wish there were more here than a few light chuckles.

By: Marc Ferman