Minions: The Rise of Gru

Tonight, I saw the new “Minions: The Rise of Gru,” which came out July but released on Peacock yesterday. Since I saw it on Peacock tonight, I will let everyone know what I thought of this.

We first heard “Minionese,” the language of the Minions, in 2010, when creators Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin created them with supervillain Gru and his army of tiny creatures that spoke gibberish made up of random words from several languages.  Since “Despicable Me,” there have been two sequels, the bad guy has changed himself, and the minions got their own movie in 2015.

“Minions: The Rise of Gru,” written by Bryan Lynch and Matthew Fogel and directed by Kyle Balda, is the origin story of Gru becoming a villain and his introduction to the cute denim-wearing, goggle-wearing tiny creatures who are really loyal to their owner.

Almost twelve-year-old Gru’s desire is to become a supervillain and join the ranks of the Vicious 6, an infamous group of villains which needs one member after discarding their leader Wild Knuckles, voiced by Alan Arkin. The remaining members are Belle Bottom (Taraji P. Henson), Jean Clawed (Jean-Claude Van Damme), Nunchuck (Lucy Lawless), Svengeance (Dolph Lundgren), and Stronghold (Danny Trejo).

Udita Jhunjhunwala said in her review, “The choice of names and voice parts for the villains establishes the tone of this film – it’s steeped in 1970s nostalgia from the disco styling to the soundtrack that includes retro hits Funky Town, Cecilia, You’re No Good and Born To Be Alive.”

Gru’s audition with the Vicious 6 does not go like he thinks. It gets worse when the mystical stone he steals from them is misplaced by one of his minions.

Along with his little helpers Kevin, Stuart, Bob, and Otto (all voiced by Pierre Coffin), Gru (Steve Carell) is now an aspiring villain who is wanted from the real antagonists. During this exploit, he meets Dr. Nefario, voiced by Russell Brand, a scientist and owner of a record store who later joins Gru’s team, and Wild Knuckles, the villain who will end up being Gru’s mentor.

Jhunjhunwala said, “During the adventure, the minions become a more cohesive unit with their “mini boss” and discover their superpower – to make big sad eyes that can melt the heart of the fiercest human.” As for Gru, viewers already know who he is, since they have seen him adopt three girls and join forces with the Anti Villain League in the “Despicable Me” franchise.

The animated comedy is an 88-minute enjoyment, further brightened by the talented voice cast (which includes Julie Andrews as Gru’s mother and Michelle Yeoh as a Kung Fu instructor) that wants to just entertain every viewer. If the children in the audience are shouting in enjoyment at the mischiefs of the Minions, from trying to fly a plane to learning Kung Fu, then that’s a job well done.

This is better than the first “Minions” movie. If you haven’t seen this in theaters, then see it on Peacock, because it will be there for the next four months before moving to Netflix for ten months before coming back to Peacock for four more months. You will have an enjoyable, laughable time, since the Minions are not the central focus this time. Gru and the Minions get an equal amount of screentime. The voice acting is great, the jokes are funny, and the language of “Minionese” is just hilarious. See it and have an entertaining, fun time.

Thank you for joining in on tonight’s review. Stay tuned next Friday for the conclusion of “Starship Troopers Month.”