Good Family Fun

Rating: 6/10 (14 August 2015)

Whilst these gooey lemons weren't the focus of Despicable Me, they were without a doubt the stars. As great as Gru was, not a single kid or adult left cinemas without at some point going "Bannana!" So it makes sense that they should end up getting a movie all of their own, that still has the same great animation and visual gags that made the franchise enjoyable to begin with.
It starts out giving a brief back-story for the history of the minions. Turns out the minions have been around since the dawn of time, always following the most evil bosses they can find. But their masters don't seem to last long as the minions end up accidentally causing the downfall of everyone of them, from Genghis Khan to Dracula. After hiding out for several years (leaving them oddly absent from having to work for the likes of Hitler or Stalin), 3 of the pint sized ducklings (Kevin, Stuart and Bob) go off to America in search of a new master in the 60's. Thus they go on an adventure, finding a new master called Scarlett Overkill, stealing a crown and accidentally taking over England.
The plot never actually takes any form, never remaining focused for long with the small yellow blobs getting distracted by every passing thing. But with the slapstick and chaos of the minions you don't really need one. It's less of a story and more of a series of sketches for the minions to put them into different situations going from hanging out with a family of bank robbers to being stepped on by the Beatles in Abbey Road.
An unexpected joy of this film ends up being the soundtrack. Not just because of the great Minion renditions (it starts off on a particular high note with the minions singing the 20th Century Fox theme), but also just a great selection of classic 60's tracks that should fill parents with nostalgia and introduce kids to some classic tracks.
However the film does have one key problem, which is there's too much from the minions. Their slapstick is funny, but it's not enough to carry the film for an hour and a half on it's own and ends up feeling worn out towards the end. The Despicable Me films mixed in Gru's brand of humour where he played the victim, that stopped the minions slapstick from becoming repetitive. It's also lacking the same emotional core that a character like Gru brought to Despicable Me, with his bittersweet story of a man becoming a father being far more engaging than a crazed villain wanting to own a crown.
But whilst the minions work much better as side characters, this spin off never feels like a misfire. It still has enough humour to be fun for the family, but just lacks the same level of rewatchability as previous films of the franchise.