A disappointment

Rating: 4/10 (29 July 2013)

Sigh!
I don't get to watch too many movies, and even fewer on the big screen. So after watching Despicable Me (the original) numerous times at home - and loving it to death, this movie was a big disappointment for me and my daughters at the movie theater. It's been hard for me to put a finger on exactly what was missing, but I think it is mostly the lack of clever, witty dialog that filled the first movie. There are many fun moments in this movie, but they are predominantly sight-gags and one-liners. And sadly, the space between those moments was just not too intriguing. FYI, my girls (10 and 7) were also underwhelmed - though my younger one asked to get it on DVD or iPad, so she could replay the few parts she really liked.
I thought this sequel had a lot of potential - especially in the Lucy character, but most of that potential was just squandered. The villain is portrayed with a very stereotyped and non-PC caricature, and unlike Vector (the villain from the first movie), didn't seem to have any motive. The evil plot was actually kind of scary instead of being funny, and the characters seem to spend a lot of time doing things that were just not that interesting and saying things that were just not that funny.
All in all, a real let-down for our once-in-a-blue-moon trip to the movie theater.