Stars: Steve Carell, Jason Segel, Russell Brand, Julie Andrews, Will Arnett, Kristen Wiig
Director: Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud
Oscar History: No nominations, but it had to have been in the running for Animated Feature, as it scored a Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations in that category.
Snap Judgment Ranking: 2/5 stars
The movie tells the tale of Gru (Carell), a "master villain" who has faded into unprofitable ventures and is being upstaged by a young upstart named Vector (Segel). Gru, in an attempt to completely outdo Vector and reclaim his former glory, decides to shrink and steal the Moon (it's an animated film, logic has no place here). Before he can steal the Moon, however, Gru must steal a shrink ray from Vector, which, because he cannot permeate Vector's compound, he must adopt three little girls who will pose as girl scouts selling cookies and distract Vector while he steals the shrink ray.
These broad strokes weren't in place in the trailers, and I cannot decide if I'm happy or sad about it. I'm all for trailers refraining from telling a lot about a plot-the best trailers get you just interested enough to buy a ticket, but most trailers give away the entire plot of the movie so you honestly cannot be blamed for never buying a ticket (I maintain the career of Ashley Judd would be a lot more solid right now if she could have had some creative control over her trailers, which are frequent offenders of this annoying trend). However, the movie that I saw trailers for, with a despicable villain trying to destroy the globe made me think we'd be in for something a little hipper, a little cooler: something like the Pink Panther or Marvin the Martian or something along those lines. What we ended up with was a bumbling, cliched main hero who quickly turns on his own ambitions and his own villainy the second he adopts the girls (even before then, he seemed rather half-heartedly interested).
The film, which boasts an impressive vocal cast, is surprisingly uninspired in their use of the talent. Carell is funny, but you know he can be funnier (ditto for Segel, Arnett, and in particular Wiig, who gets a thankless, throwaway character). Russell Brand is mercifully unrecognizable as an aging doctor, and so you are spared his inane and idiotic "look at me" antics. Julie Andrews, who is a welcome addition to most vocal casts, is also underused, and I'm starting to wish someone would challenge her a bit-she's an Oscar winner and three-time nominee, world-beloved, and clearly is still interested in acting. Perhaps a drama of sorts, or a return to the stage?
The film isn't all bad, and is cute in parts. The visual gag with the "hidden" Great Pyramid of Giza in Vector's yard never gets old, and the minions are a gas, constantly interjecting themselves into crazy, bouncy situations (I will note, though, that from the advertising for the sequel, it seems that they are being utilized constantly, a dangerous decision for characters who could easily wear out their welcome with overuse). However, I felt a bit washed out the entire film-like I was watching something that Disney and Pixar could do far better (Disney indeed took on an element of this plot with Wreck-It Ralph, though they also made their villain have such a heart of gold that he's never really believable as an actual bad guy).
But I'll turn it over to you (it's a short movie, and not a strong enough one to warrant a huge review of discussion). What'd you think of Despicable Me? Do you think it should have bumped out How to Train Your Dragon, The Illusionist or Toy Story 3, or do you think the Academy got the lineup right? And what do you hope to see in the sequel?
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