Charming and enjoyable fun

Rating: 6/10 (11 August 2013)

In 2010, 'Despicable Me' was a surprise hit – it was not a sequel and came from a studio who had never had a huge success in the era of Pixar; but it was an enjoyable comedy that went on to gross nearly half a billion dollars worldwide, thus making a follow-up all but inevitable.
'Despicable Me 2' finds former supervillain Gru (wonderfully voiced by Steve Carrell) in much less evil form, blissfully living with his three adopted orphans (and the minions), hosting birthday parties, sweetly dressing up as a fairy princess and making cupcakes and jellies. However, this idyllic life is interrupted by Anti-Villain League agent Lucy (Kristen Wiig) who is partnered up with Gru to take down a nefarious villain.
Despite some good gags involving Gru, the real stars of the show are the little yellow Minions. They're given significantly more screen time here than in the original, but thankfully it rarely feels like overkill, instead they're a reliable source of laughter whenever they are on screen, whether chopping through a wall, singing a lullaby in gibberish talk or saying "bottom" with a snigger. On the other hand, Kristen Wiig is given a relatively underwritten role and most of her jokes fall flat, despite some good voice acting.
One of the flaws of 'Despicable Me 2' is how unfocused it is – the big villain behind it all barely gets a look-in, while the plot is muddled and slightly unengaging, but overall, this was easily forgivable, simply due to the charming nature of the movie. It's not earth-shattering and arguably not as good as its predecessor, but this sequel is consistently enjoyable, always managing to put a smile on my face and causing viewers young and old to erupt with laughter.