Friday 30 June 2017

Despicable Me 3 (2017)

Full disclosure: I think the Despicable Me movies are overrated. If you're one of the folks who thing the sentimental absurdity that makes up this series is the cat's ass then we're likely not to agree. I don't despise the movies, and each has moments I enjoy. But overall I find myself wishing they were more inspired, more deviously subversive. The whole premise that this super-villain and his adorable minions end up being sickly sweet is disappointing to me.

Despicable Me 3 suffers from what a lot of third parts suffer from in movie series. It starts to feel tired, like we've seen it all before. Hardly any of it feels fresh, especially the whole subplot of Kristin Wiig's Lucy discovering how to be a mom. It all seems like the film is just giving us what we expect and want instead of taking us to the next level or in an interesting new direction. Many film series get stuck in these ruts so it's not surprising. I found myself laughing less, bored a little more.

Perhaps a good way to illustrate this is the film's antagonist Balthazar Bratt. He's hilarious cause he dresses in outrageous 80s clothes, dances 80s style to 80s tunes, and wears and 80s mullet. Cause the 80s are just automatically hilarious?? No thought was put into this one note character who is essentially boring after the first scene. Perhaps as a minor villain to be overcome in the first act he would have worked but he doesn't sustain interest for the full 90 minutes. 

These films are their best when they go full into riffing on the absurd. That's why the minion segments, usually far more random than the A plot, are the most enjoyable. Once these films get bogged down in what are essentially overly sentimental stories, they loose me.

So chalk this up as just another piece, exactly like the rest in this series. If that's your groove, more power to you. For those wanting something fresher, this is past it's prime.

Despicable Me 3
Starring: Steve Carrell, Kristin Wiig, Trey Parker, Julie Andrews, Pierre Coffin
Directors: Pierre Coffin, Kyle Balda
Writers: Cinco Paul, Ken Daurio

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