'Minions: The Rise of Gru' Movie Review: The yellow goofballs full of energy and fun take their antics to the next level

The Minions (voiced by Despicable Me director Pierre Coffin) are the mainstay of this show. Their antics are unbelievably entertaining

Minions: The Rise of Gru
Dir: Kyle Balda, Brad Ableson, Jonathan del Val
Cast (Voice): Steve Carell, Taraji P. Henson, Michelle Yeoh, RZA, Julie Andrews, Russell Brand
Rating: 3/5

Minions: The Rise of Gru is a modernised 70’s nostalgia trip. In this film the little yellow banana-obsessed creatures are up to no good. So when 11-year-old Gru (voiced by Steve Carell) is all set to enact his dream of joining the exclusive villain gang the Vicious 6, they help and hinder in the usual fashion.

Gru skips school to try out to replace his all-time favorite villain, Wild Knuckles (Arkin). His pilot assignment to bring back the prized Zodiac stone goes awry because the minions, easily distracted as usual, end up misplacing it.  This lands Gru in a heap of trouble.

The narrative sets-up a road-trip heist while letting loose with a fair bit of comedic kung-fu action. The kung-fu Minions montage assisted by Michelle Yeoh’s lovely voice gives way to a sort of mentor-mentee relationship as Wild Knuckles’ becomes the guide to the rookie villain Gru. Thus Gru gets a family in Grandpa Wild Knuckles- someone to look up to. Eventually Gru teams up with Wild Knuckles, and together they save the world while still getting categorised as villains. The animation craft here is supple, bouncy and energetic.

The Minions (voiced by Despicable Me director Pierre Coffin) are the mainstay of this show.  Their antics are unbelievably entertaining. The Twinkie-shaped little guys bring mayhem to everything they get into. It’s their effusive disorderly charm that keeps the franchise gleefully entertaining.

This film is an all-out, irrepressible entertainer. It’s groovy – with a slew of reimagined modernised hit music of the 70’s complemented by a style quotient reminiscent of that period. The celebration of 70’s music works because of the terrific soundtrack put together by Grammy Award-winning producer Jack Antonoff.  Quite a few new faces come into play here - including Russell Brand as Dr. Nefario. The whacky sense of adventure and highly imaginative encounters are likely to keep you smiling throughout. This is a simple carefree movie, a sequel that is definitely better than the first!.

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