Here’s my “Quick and Dirty Review” of “MINIONS.”
Eh, not great. Watched this right after watching Despicable 1 and 2 and you can really see the difference in the screenplay--most of the jokes didn't land and things didn't make sense. My ten-year old was asking me questions I couldn't answer about the characters and motivations. I think someone watched the first two, said "hey let's make a Minions-only movie" and then tried to figure out why they were popular. I can tell you why they're popular--they talk funny and they get into funny situations. Can you make a whole movie out of that? I'd argue no.
The animation was great and there is some inventive stuff in here, but I found my attention wandering. If felt like things were just "happening" to the minions, through no actions of their own, and the movie felt like an exercise in trying to spot connections to the "good" movies in the franchise. It's like going to Disney World and only searching for Hidden Mickeys on all the rides instead of having the rides themselves be good.
Also, it's written for (and possibly by) six year olds, especially the ending that reminds you OVER AND OVER about the minions' connection to Gru. Not subtle, not funny. The last words describe their new boss as dastardly and "despicable," and my daughter said sarcastically "OH THAT'S GRU? WE HAD NO IDEA." Funnier than anything in the movie. 3 out of 10. Yuck.
