Excellent Family Entertainment

Rating: 9/10 (1 January 2014)

After such a wide success with a couple of animated films in the mid 90s and early 21rst century, a boom occurred in the full CGI animated family films and it hasn't stopped. Several productions have came into play and flourished and or fizzled. Recalling a couple franchises that fizzled was Shark Tale (2004) & Hop (2011). Unfortunately, along with the power of the technology, came the abuse of it. But just like Pixar, Illumination Entertainment put in a lot of effort and time into a family film that packs a punch for all ages.
Despicable Me is the story of a troubled genius named Gru. Gru isn't truly evil, he just doesn't have much of anyone to care for. And like many other troubled characters, it is because of a rough childhood. Thus leading to hard times as an adult trying to connect with the outside world. Thankfully, with the help of three little girls, Gru learns more about himself than he ever thought he knew before. A good thing to note is that the writers to this movie have the experience. Cinco Paul & Ken Daurio have written screenplays for various animated films and directors. And along with the story come some very entertaining characters.
And I think we all know what those characters are - the yellow skinned minions. As many know now, the minions are the mascot to the famed "Despicable" franchise. With their innocent yet reckless nature and garbled language, the minions are the ones that'll have audiences rolling over the floors. But these aren't the only characters that make the movie fun. The main voice actors do a great job as well filling in their roles. Steve Carell as Gru was a perfect casting choice. Gru's assistant, Dr. Nefario voiced by Russell Brand was also a great achievement. I didn't even realize it was him until the credits rolled.
Along with them are Jason Segel who plays another villain named Vector, Will Arnett voices the head of bank and many others. It's interesting to try and figure out who voices who because the characters are masked so well. The animation and score to the film produced by Heitor Pereira and Pharrell Williams is well executed too. Each scene represented the right emotion and had a consistent tone. Though I would have preferred to hear a main theme. It probably would have made the film even more memorable.
The voice cast is awesome which makes the characters likable allowing the comedic moments to bring out the fun in the movie. Many people will consider the minions to be the best part.