This One's Just For The Kiddos

Rating: 5/10 (26 February 2017)

Nowadays, when I see an animated movie like this, I pretty much expect it to entertain me as much as the target audience of children. The bar has been set that high. Unfortunately (at least for me), this one is pretty much just for the kiddies.
For a basic plot summary, "Minions" tells the story of, well, the Minions! While the little mischief- makers were well established in the Despicable 1/2 films, this one explains how they came to meet Gru. For thousands of years, they wandered the earth looking for the meanest bad guy to serve, from cavemen to dinosaurs to Yetis. In more recent times, they fall in with Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock), who is intent on stealing the Royal Crown (quite literally) from the Queen of England (Jennifer Saunders). As per usual, the Minions' frantic antics make this an almost impossible task, with one even being crowned King himself (King Bob!).
Simply put, "Minions" is a fun romp for any audience of children. The gags will elicit laughs, and just the concept of Minions in general is still enough to hold interest. Kevin, Bob, & Stuart (the main three Minions featured) will enthrall kids for the whole 90 minute runtime.
Because of how high the animation bar has been set, though, I can't help but rate "Minions" a pedestrian 3-stars by my own standards. Maybe that isn't fair to the film, but it is from my own personal perspective. This one doesn't have, say, the wry humor of a "Toy Story", and emotional punch of other Pixar efforts, or even the sincere sweetness of its two predecessors. It's just silly, goofy fun.
So, if you have kids, put this on and it will be a rollicking hour and a half of laughter. Just don't expect to become invested in the cartoonish fun like you probably have been in the past.