A sea of little yellow guys are filling theaters everywhere this weekend -- Minions! The spin-off movie from Despicable Me, featuring Gru's tiny little henchmen, arrives in theaters tomorrow. But does this movie stand on its own hundreds of feet, and will you survive watching it with your kids?
During our screening of the movie, kids of all ages -- from the preschoolers to my 11-year-old son -- were screeching with laughter. As for parents, how you feel about this movie depends on how you felt about the Minions when you saw Despicable Me. If you found them cute and charming, you'll enjoy this film.
The movie explores the Minions' strong instinct for loyalty -- to a master to follow and, more important, to each other.
That's a whole lotta loyalty, as we all know. How will you keep track of all those little yellow guys? The film focuses on just three: Kevin, Bob, and Stuart. These intrepid three embark on an adventure that leads them eventually to mod, mod 1968 London while the rest journey from the Arctic to join them.
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Why 1968 London? Ehh ... why not? I suppose it was for the technicolor style and the swinging soundtrack. Hope you like the Kinks, the Who, and the Turtles. The timing also serves as a setup for Despicable Me, but I don't want to give too much away. (Let's just say there's a bit of a continuity problem with that scene in Despicable Me when Gru watches the lunar landing.)
We love that Minions features a female super villain, Scarlet Overkill, voiced by Sandra Bullock. Equal opportunity for evil, that's what we say! Her fighting skills are on point, and her husband Herb (Jon Hamm) invents ingenious villain weaponry. Scarlet is pretty one-dimensional compared with Gru, though.
There's an obvious lack of diversity overall, and we're not just talking about the Minions. Aside from a seconds-long scene in India, there are hardly any people of color in the move. I counted zero and my son counted two. Last time I was in London it was definitely more diverse than that! What's a matter, Pixar? Did you run out of brown markers?
That aside, though, the film is a fun, carefree way to spend a summer afternoon. If you feel so inspired, you can discuss with your kids afterward what it means to root for villains. Was that fun? How do people become villains, anyway? No, we're not getting more Minion Happy Meals today, stop asking.
And for the next few months, you'll be able to point to the Minions as shining examples of siblings getting along well. Can't you kids be more like Kevin, Stu and Bob?!? They'll love that.
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Are you planning to see Minions with your kids?
Image via Pixar