Despicable Me 4

Despicable Me 4 (2024)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


It's okay for a sequel and has funny parts as usual, but it's not a favorite. The intro is a bit of a kick featuring Blackpink given there's some k-pop fandom in our house between one my friends, my daughter, and myself. The minion hero squad is a mash up that will look familiar from many other well known heroes including Cyclops, Mr. Fantastic, The Thing, and possible Superman? The story itself is rather mixed up and slow moving with a plethora of characters. The ending is meant to be uplifting, but falls a little flat, though some watchers may be amused to recognize several of the villains in the audience at the talent show. Still rather baffling how they supposedly have this high tech network and all know about each other's accomplishments or failures, yet the other villains still consider Gru a villain in their ranks and don't seem to remember or recognize that he works for the AVL (Anti-Villain League). 

Minions 2: The Rise of Gru

Minions 2: The Rise of Gru (2022) 

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars


It's a bit odd to see Gru with a thick head of black hair, but also understandable as he's still a small child in school himself in this installment of the series. As usual, the minions themselves are both helpful and destructive all at the same time, though they continue to have a rather unique if somewhat strange relationship with Gru. We even get to see their first meeting with Dr. Nefario here, though it's easy to miss if you don't put the pieces together right away.

Despicable Me 3

Despicable Me 3 (2017)

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars


It seems I've missed a few reviews over the years. This is another one that was watched with the family awhile back and seems to be missing. While not as good as the first film, this keeps the same style of humor and shenanigans with Gru and the minions. As usual, things aren't going exactly according to plan. Somehow, they'll get it all turned around and set back to right, this time with the unexpected aid of Gru's twin brother Drew, though the twins had not met until now. While Gru is still trying to stay on the side of good for his new family, Drew wants to follow in the family tradition as the villain, further pitting these sibling against each other. They can make a good team though, as they prove when a past Hollywood star wanting to live out his show for real puts Gru's girls in danger.

Minions Short 9: Cro Minion

Minions Short 9: Cro Minion (2015)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


A rather evil and arrogant little caveman baby points the finger at two caveman minions as responsible for anything going wrong, leading to the caveman father wanting to kill said minions while a pterodactyl (or something similar) keeps making off with the baby. Not the best or even funniest of the mini-movie line-up.

Minions Short 7: Binky Nelson Unpacified

Minions Short 7: Binky Nelson Unpacified (2015)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


Despite being part of the minions mini-movies line up, this is the one film (so far) that does not in fact have any minions in it. Rather, Binky Neslon is the baby of the Nelson family and rather attached to his pacifier. When they family discovers that it was lost during a museum heist, they assume Binky will be just fine adjusting without it. Little do they know the industrious child manages to get back on his own, best a security guard, and recover his pacifier all on his own. About the only real tie-in with the Minions/Despicable Me franchise appears to be the art style and the heist theme.

Minions Short 4: Puppy

Minions Short 4: Puppy (2013)

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Neither a sentient space ship or a ladybug are actually a "puppy," but in minion sense I guess it works. Gru's double take to their walking (complete with leash) was more than a little amusing. It's also touching how he uses their resources to find the ship's family and send him home once he realizes where it is and that it's missed. For all that the minions are essentially criminals, they are also very tender at times (which as been proven with their interactions with the girls).

Minions Short 2: Orientation Day

Minions Short 2: Orientation Day (2010)

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars


It's a miracle as many of the minions have survived for so long with their short attention spans, complete lack of common sense, and habit of dropping bombs. Who cares if we just watched an "educational video" about different parts of work and the safety involved.... lets just argue with the others who have been doing the job awhile and drop bombs on everyone instead..... oops.

Minions Short 5: Panic in the Mailroom

Minions Short 5: Panic in the Mailroom (2013)

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Kevin enjoys the show as one of the other minions gets sprayed with purple goop turning him randomly into one of the crazy purple minions from the second movie. It's all fun and games until a box of kittens is put at risk. Of course that chase would be just what it takes to finally sneeze out all the purple crazy transformation goop.... right onto the kittens. We don't see what it actually does to them other than growing shadows and growls as the two minions cower in fear. Not the usual more happy ending, but still funny.

Minions Short 6: Training Wheels

Minions Short 6: Training Wheels (2013)

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars


Apparently training wheels can stop a robbery (though the minions apparently make off with the jewels) and turn a desire to bike into a desire to fly. It seems fairly typical for a minions story, especially when you add the girls into the mix. They always have courted disaster and somehow lucked into everything turning out alright in the end.

Minions Short 3: Banana

Minions Short 3: Banana (2010)

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars


One minion makes the mistake of opening his lunch, a banana, in front of other minions. Hilarity ensues as they try to one-up each other to get the banana. It just makes it worse as they narrowly avoid disaster only to run into larger groups of minions who join in the chase. Ultimately the banana is lost and the horde turns on another minion when he takes a bite of an apple. Guess the minions really like their fruit.

Minions Short 1: Home Makeover

Minions Short 1: Home Makeover (2010)

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The minions and the girls impersonate Gru and decorate the house with stars, tutus and frills to pass a home inspection so the girls don't get taken away. The jig is up when Gru walks in as the inspector is leaving. Gru's horror at the home modifications is more than a little amusing.

Minions Short 8: Competition

Minions Short 8: Competition (2015)

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


In true minion fashion, everything escalates to an insane level. What starts off as a basket match turns into wrestling and ultimately into a bomb race before deescalating back into a basket match. Destructive tendencies are pretty much guaranteed when the minions are playing.

Minions Short 10: Mower Minions

Minions Short 10: Mower Minions (2016)

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This was an amusing short shown at the beginning of The Secret Life of Pets. The minons want a blender to make banana shakes, but they need money to get it. They see someone paid for lawn service, so they steal his equipment to attempt their own lawn care for cash. It ends up being more of a circus, in true minions style, but they get the money for the blender. Of course then a new upgraded model is released when they are all essentially minion balls for how many banana shakes they've eaten. The minions always seem to be amusing despite their destructive and often hilarious nature.

Minions 1

Minions 1 (2015)

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars


Minions is an offshoot of the Despicable Me franchise, focusing on Gru's "minions." This film carries from their early creation through history up until they first meet a young Gru stealing England's crown. As most common with minions, there are misunderstandings and a lot of laughs throughout. Unlikely you've ever seen a group so haphazard and crazy in one place - and this group is huge (though most of the movie you only really see the original 3 searching for their new evil mastermind to follow).

Despicable Me 2

Despicable Me 2 (2013)

My rating: 2.5 of 5 stars


If you thought the first one was random, the second one is even more so. They don't hit exactly the same level of hilarity this time around however. The interlacing love story to make Gru the perfect little family in time for Mother's Day probably has something to do with this as they focus more on the dysfunctional duo than the actual humor or failed crime.

Despicable Me

Despicable Me (2010)

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This movie is so random and off the wall it borderlines somewhere between ridiculous and hilarious. The minions are very amusing. It's easy to dislike the real villains of the series while also finding it highly entertaining how that situation resolves. Notice the henchman's threats towards the girls has stopped by the end of the film. As different as these 3 little girls are, they apparently work together perfectly to change their world for the best.