Moi, moche et méchant 4

Gru, Lucy, Margo, Edith, and Agnes welcome a new member to the family, Gru Jr., who is intent on tormenting his dad. Gru faces a new nemesis in Maxime Le Mal and his girlfriend Valentina, and the family is forced to go on the run.

For what it's made for, it's a pretty good film. It's designed to provide entertainment, laughter, and a mental escape, and it definitely succeeds at that. The story is of course a bit lacking and the sequence of events are pretty predictable yet still filled with humour and action. When you watch a Minions movie or 'Despicable Me,' you look for the comedy, and although this one is filled with joke, unfortunately not all of them were good ones. Another observation: as we progressed from the first installment to this one, the minions' role has become less significant, which disappoints me since they were the reason I initially enjoyed these films. The voice cast remains incredibly strong, with accents and tones perfectly enhancing the movie's comedic aspect.

Score:6.5/10.

I think this falls into the same mistakes that the third one did. It was still classic Minion fun, but it didn't have a story to tell. In fact, in this one there isn't really a story. The story was just loosely tied together. In fact, it's multiple different things tied together, to make a mess of a story. That being said, I still had fun. I thought that the different bits and pieces we got was the fun to be expected with this franchise. For me, it still had a little bit of the charm from the first two. It isn't completely lost yet. The growth of Gru and his son was cute, but that was just about as interesting the movie got. I still had a lot of fun with the Mega Minions, I hope we can see more of them in the future. This franchise will forever be a guilty pleasure of mine.

"Despicable Me 4" is a mixed bag that might leave some fans wanting more. The movie, which I rate a 5 out of 10, unfortunately feels like it cut corners, particularly in its action sequences. The fighting scenes, which are a staple of the series' high-energy style, felt noticeably truncated. This lack of extended action left a sense of incompleteness, making the film's pacing seem uneven.

However, the film is not without its merits. There are some genuinely funny moments that capture the charm of the series, reminding us why we fell in love with Gru, the Minions, and their antics in the first place. The humor, while sporadic, still manages to evoke laughter and maintains the whimsical spirit of the previous installments.

The plot, while serviceable, doesn't break new ground. It follows a familiar formula, which might be comforting for some viewers but predictable for others. The new characters introduced did not add much depth to the story, and the development of existing characters seemed stagnant.

Visually, "Despicable Me 4" maintains the bright and colorful animation style that the franchise is known for, which is a definite plus. The Minions continue to steal scenes with their slapstick humor, but even their antics can't fully compensate for the film's shortcomings.

In summary, "Despicable Me 4" delivers some laughs and retains the visual appeal of its predecessors, but it falls short in terms of action and character development. While it's an enjoyable watch for die-hard fans, it doesn't quite capture the magic of the earlier films in the series.

Despicable Me 4 is operating on fumes. Just like last time it's a bunch of random side plots that just gets it to feature length (credits included). Still, even when these films are operating at a lower level they really understand not to waste your time with another 90 minutes of zany, erratic slapstick that peaks whenever the Minions are on screen, which once again is not enough.

Steve Carell sounds less like Gru and more like himself with every new instalment but he's still the sole voice actor holding the whole thing together and in this one, he's broader than ever. Will Ferrell and Sofia Vegara very quickly earn the title of worst villains in this franchise (Minions films included) with grating vocal performances that go for caricature in very annoying fashion.

The Minions remain really funny even in small doses despite the fact that there's nothing here as memorable as their big musical number in 3. The Mega Minions are by far the best idea this one has as it allows the film to poke some fun at superhero movies and keep their dynamic fresh. They should've been in it so much more instead of being relegated to a small handful of scenes.

Chris Renaud's direction certainly gives the film a lot of energy with the hyperactive pace which can barely stay still. The opening offers the false promise of this one having some genuine stakes before quickly pivoting away from that and turning the film into the cinematic equivalent of a sugar rush which helps to keep things moving at speed even when the jokes aren't landing.

As I said above Despicable Me 4 will no doubt be a hit worldwide hands down but it didn't strike a chord in my books.

Pros Our lovable Minions doing what they do best which is wacky fun crazy stupid things which induces some laughs. I think the best cute thing was the baby Gru after the Minions. It was nice to see Gru for once a bit afraid and on the backfoot to protect his family.

Was lovely to see all the ex antagonists in the end from the series.

Cons I would say the plot is simple and predictable but the villain, although not a bad one was not as menacing and interesting.

Would have loved more of Dr Nefario.

Minion Superheroes were a treat to watch!