Those hilarious and adorable little yellow Minions are back, this time telling the story of their evil boss’s beginnings in the prequel to the 2010 animated film Despicable Me, Minions: The Rise of Gru.
The latest Minions offering opens in 1976 with the supervillain group known as The Vicious 6 getting rid of their leader, Wild Knuckles (voiced by Alan Arkin), and creating an opening on their team.
Young Gru (voiced by Steve Carell), who’s only 11 and 3/4, applies for the position desperate to join and begin his career as a supervillain. Laughed at and mocked by the new leader Belle Bottom (voiced by Taraji P. Henson), Gru steals the villain’s newly acquired magical stone to show he can be both despicable and clever. Unfortunately, one of the Minions – Otto – trades the stone for a pet rock so Gru is forced to set out to recover it.
It’s early on in his search that Gru is kidnapped by Wild Knuckles who wants the stone and wants to get even with his former villain pals for ditching him. So, Minions Kevin, Stuart, and Bob set out to try to rescue their beloved boss while Otto goes on a quest to find the stone.
Colorful, zany, and goofy, Universal and Illumination’s Minions: The Rise of Gru is a return to the formula that made the original in the film series – Despicable Me – a charming, funny, and hilarious animated hit. Steve Carell returns to voice young Gru, who’s a little adorable himself, as he works so hard to become what he knows he’s destined to be…a master villain. Carell once again wonderfully gives voice to Gru the villain who actually has a heart, whether he likes it or not.
The standouts once again are, of course, the Minions (all voiced by Pierre Coffin), who this time are on a rescue mission to save their “mini-boss.” Full of crazy, chaotic, and at times a bit overly violent action, the Minions are the true source of humor and the reason for laugh-out-loud scenes. Whether they’re being chased by the Vicious 6, learning karate to defend themselves, or posing as airline pilots and learning to fly a plane full of passengers as they go, the Minions are the lovable and wacky heart of the film.
GRADE: B
MPAA Rating: PG for some action, violence, and rude humor
Release Date: July 1, 2022
Running Time: 1 hour 27 minutes
Directed By: Kyle Balda
