Minions

This animation tells the story of the minions trying to look for an evil master in order to keep up their morale. They find a villain called Scarlet Overkill, and the minions are tasked with stealing the crown from the Queen.

I saw the trailer and I thought the "Minions" was so cute. After watching the film, I thought it was even cuter than I expected! The plot is silly but fun. The minions are simple in design, and simple in their thoughts, but they manage to create the funniest situations. There are some jokes that made me laugh out loud, such as the usage of a teapot inside a police car. I also just realised that the minions are not talking unintelligible gibberish - it is actually a mix of languages, which I spotted Spanish, German, Mandarin and Bahasa. I enjoyed watching this animation, it is 90 minutes of brain-off entertainment.

Minions was a pretty good film, I mean the animation was top notch, and the jokes were very good (at some points). The main minions in the film Kevin, Bob and Stuart were fairly funny at times, and the fact that they couldn't speak English added another funny mark to it. If you have seen the Despicable Me franchise, then you probably know who the minions are, but if you haven't seen the Despicable Me franchise, then before you watch Minions, I recommend you see Despicable Me 1 and 2, As that is where they were first introduced to the world. Moving on, some villains in the film, seemed a bit rushed just to get on with the movie, and some of them were unnecessary, but overall they each had their own funny scenes. The main villain Scarlett Overkill, had a crazy personality, and had some good humor which added a nice ring to the film, as well as that the Minions were always there to mess with her, So it was an action packed- family fun film :)

Overall: I recommend you watch this, it has some funny moments and is a perfect spin-off to the Despicable Me franchise. I hope you enjoy the film :)

Alive since the beginning of time, Minions live to serve the biggest, baddest, and most evil. After a series of unsuccessful masters find a way to perish, the Minions no longer have someone to work for, a purpose to live and they all being to grow depressed. But one minion finally decided to do something, Kevin, along with Bob and Stuart venture into the world to find their people a new evil boss to work for. Their search culminates in them meeting Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock), the world's first ever evil super villainess.

Let's be honest, there wasn't really a need for this movie other than an excuse to put Minions in a movie. This movie will inevitably make lots and lots of money. They're cute, they talk funny, and they act funny. Kids (myself included) loved them from the 2 Despicable Me films and they (and I eventually will) probably have all of the related merchandise. Kids will want to see this one too and get all the eventual merchandise that will come from it.

Now to the film! Even though I am an adult, I liked it. I mentioned that I liked the 2 Despicable Me films and the thing I liked the most from them was the Minions. Despite all of these years, they still haven't gotten old for me. But the question is could they carry a movie? The answer is no. Don't get me wrong, I like the Minions and the movie is called Minions but it did not have to focus on them as much as it did. There are other human characters in the film like Scarlet Overkill and her husband Herb (Jon Hamm) and also this family of bank robbers. I felt that they were a little underused and a little more of them would have provided some balance. Another thing that was underused was the narrator. He was used in the beginning of the film just so the viewers can understand what was going on. It could sometimes be difficult to understand what is going on when all you see is a bunch of Minions speaking gibberish. There were moments later on where more explanation would have helped. The story is simple enough. The film is a prequel to the 2 Despicable Me films so it takes place in the 60s so you'll get all the time-appropriate references and a soundtrack with 60s music so you'll get your Beatles, your Who, etc. The slapstick humor will keep the kids entertained and the 60s references will entertain the adults. Some of the reviews have mentioned that the plot is not compelling but I was fine with it. I would have liked it if some of the writing for some of the human characters was a little better. It wasn't terrible but I what I liked about the Despicable Me films was how the human characters interacted with the Minions. If I had to compare this film to the Despicable Me films, this one would place third behind 1 and then 2. I personally can't wait until their next film which will be Despicable Me 3 which comes out in 2017.

Having mostly gibberish for script, this movie is a prove that visual antics and a few timely noises go a long way to induce laughter. In a throwback to classic setting and comedy, this spin-off might not be bigger than most animations in recent time, but it's still an enjoyable foray. The style of 60s world and era appropriate soundtracks enhance the atmosphere as these peculiar creatures dabble in feeble mischief.

Story follows three particular minions on their way to find the most dreadful villain there is. The journey takes them across the globe until they meet Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock). Graphic-wise Minions is presentable. Though not all of the set pieces are magic, some of the displays, such as the rainy night or monarch architecture are still engaging and presented with nifty details.

The mostly simplistic nature works well, bringing visual cues and lots of squeaking mumbles. It doesn't use elaborate word plays, but this is actually an advantage as the humor is readily accessible for any casual viewer. Several of the jokes are distinctly amusing, though it doesn't fall flat even when a couple of them don't hit the high note.

It also boasts notable pop references of the time, from the ironic quips and its zippy tunes. The human characters can be a bit stereotypical or over-the-top, since these are mostly spoof version of action flick baddies. Its actual villain portrayal might take the name Overkill way too seriously for comical purpose.

The presentation for visual humor is fine and the references are easily relatable. Minions is not a cerebral endeavor or emotional adventure, though these awkward yellow simpletons are notoriously delightful.

"Minions" doesn't really have anything new to offer, aside from crassly commercializing the yellow side players in the "Despicable Me" movies. You sort of accept that going in. Personally, I've always been fond of the little pill-shaped bastards, which is why I enjoyed this movie. It's 90 minutes of exactly what you'd expect from them and it turns out that's enough to sustain a whole movie. The cast is great, despite the miscast Sandra Bullock (not a slight, I like her) and the humor is just right for a light-as-it-gets Summer movie. The '60s setting also worked surprisingly well.

Honestly, as toy commercials go, you could do a whole lot worse.

7/10