Review: Despicable Me

Despicable Me has the perfect mix of humor and heart. It tells the story of Gru, a less than successful super-villain attempting the biggest heist in history: the moon. He adopts 3 young orphans to help him foil a rival villain, and the story revolves around how he balances these young children and his villain career.

The story, as I said, is filled with humor. From his little yellow minions that are incredibly funny, and full of sight gags, yet without being crude or over the top. Gru himself is humorous, especially with antics like using his Freeze Ray to cut to the head of the line at the Coffee Shop (come on, who of you wouldn't).

The characters are well developed, and believable within their universe. Heartfelt moments will tug at your heartstrings, perilous scenes will leave you worried (even though as a children's movie, you'll know things will work out all right) and the humor will keep you laughing.

The three orphan girls, particularly the oldest, are portrayed as reasonably complex, and are diverse in their personalities.  They're enjoyable to watch, and their interactions are both fun and believable.

The only problem I had with the entire movie was the physical appearance of Gru's mother. She looked too much like the granny from Hoodwinked, and that got on my nerves. A little more originality in looks would have helped greatly.

It's hard to say more without spoiling the movie, but if you have kids, be sure to take them. If you don't have kids, be sure to go anyway. It's a great film that is a lot of fun for everyone, and well worth the cost of a ticket, even for 3D.