'Despicable Me' Review

Gru (Steve Carell) is a villain and make no mistake about it. He freezes up people in front of him in the line in Starbucks and genuinely enjoys popping children’s’ balloons. As it turns out, Gru is kind of a lower-level super villain. He stole the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty — the small ones from Vegas. After learning that Vector (Jason Segel), another villain, has stolen the Egyptian pyramids -- the real ones no less -- Gru decides he will steal the moon and get the title of the most villainous of them all and be the subject of news broadcasts.

Helping Gru in his quest is Dr. Nefario (Russell Brand), who creates robots and all sort of gadgets needed in the missions and a group of minion helpers aptly called, The Minions. A key component in Gru’s plan is to get the shrink ray; to shrink the moon and be able to steal it and take back to Earth, obviously. To Gru’s dismay, Vector takes the shrink ray from him and hides it in his lair, which has a high level of security. In order to get the shrink ray back, Gru enlists the help of three little orphan girls to infiltrate Vector’s place. The girls, Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (Dana Gaier), and Agnes (Elsie Fisher) sell cookies and Vector happens to have a weakness for the coconut ones.

From the moment Vector and Gru meet at The Evil Bank, the movie is consistently funny. There is a sequence in which Gru attempts to get into Vector’s lair for the first time that brings a few laughs all by itself. Margo, Edith, and Agnes deliver most of the movie’s hilarious one-liners, and while The Minions never speak, no words are needed for them to deliver.

After Gru meets the girls, what follows is a typical story. Three cute little girls, with their innocence and selflessness, can warm the most darkened heart. They like Gru just as cold and evil as he might be. As it is, Gru is simply in need of approval and acceptance, from his mother and from the super villain world.

Yes, he might have taken a wicked path, but what is one to do after all good done gets shot down? To the adult section of the audience, the story might seem dim and one that has been told over and over again. They might think the only redeeming feature about the movie is that it is actually funny. Those little yellow creatures are a riot, of course.

Let’s remember, however, that this is a children's movie. They are going to laugh at the funny parts. The gadgets and the little yellow creatures will captivate them. But they will see and hear the story and its lesson. And it will be the first time for them.

In this world that we live filled with skepticism and where these little movies are too cutesy and improvable and old, hearing how innocence, love and a good heart can make a huge difference in one person, for our children and our children’s children, this is a story worth repeating.