“Despicable Me 3” Movie Review

If you have seen the movies in the “Despicable Me” series, you pretty much know what you can expect in the latest instalment. “Despicable Me 3”, not unlike its predecessors, is harmless fun which isn’t aiming for anything special – it’s a good time while you are watching it, but you’ll hardly retain any of it once you have stepped out of the theatre.

The movie follows criminal mastermind turned crime fighter Gru (Steve Carell), who is booted off the Anti-Villain League along with his wife Lucy (Kristen Wiig) when they are unable to apprehend former child actor turned criminal mastermind Balthazar Bratt (a criminally underutilized Trey Parker – pardon the pun). Into the picture comes Gru’s wealthy twin brother Dru, who wants to become a supervillain like Gru was. Add to it sub-plots about the minions leaving Gru, Balthazar Bratt’s evil plan, Lucy’s attempts at being a mother to the three girls, something about a unicorn, and you’ve got the hotch-potch plot that pushes the movie to the end credits.

The biggest problem with the movie is that there are so many opportunities lost in an attempt to cram in multiple storylines. The idea to separate the minions from Gru to give them their own storyline was a bad one, since it was Gru’s interaction with the minions that provided for some of the best laughs (which is probably why the “Minions” movie was just average). The introduction of Dru also doesn’t add much, and it’s a shame that more promising opportunities were compromised. The idea of having a former child actor become a villain was golden, but unfortunately not really utilized – and it’s a shame since Trey Parker’s bits were among the most enjoyable in the movie, and I couldn’t help but think about what could have been.

But that’s not to say the movie isn’t enjoyable. What the movie lacks in focus it makes up for in virtually non-stop gags and witty one-liners, which have been the highlight of this franchise in the past as well. Also the emotional elements and family-bonding type stuff are handled pretty well and doesn’t slow the pace. The voice acting continues to be the greatest strength, with Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig and all the others continuing their good work from the previous movies. Russell Brand’s Dr. Nefario is absent from this movie, but it isn’t really a big loss. I guess I’ve said enough about Trey Parker already, and he was the scene stealer for me.

To sum up, this one is just a plain and simple decent time. The younger audiences would enjoy it a lot more I guess. Don’t go running to the theatres for this one – you can catch it on TV later.