Not So Despicable After All

 

 

Universal Pictures film, Despicable Me, written and directed by some of the same writers and directors as Dr. Seuss adaptations, Horton Hears a Who and The Lorax, boasts a star-studded cast of voices, comprised of many comedians.

 

Despicable Me follows Gru, the evil criminal genius, his right-hand-man Dr. Nefario and his Minions as they plot to shrink and steal the moon to become the greatest criminals in all the world. His scheme involves using orphans Margo, Edith and Agnes to infiltrate his new found arch nemesis Vector, but being a new dad to the orphans eventually tugs on his heart strings as he has to work to a deadline on his evil plan.

 

Steve Carell, Jason Segel, Russell Brand, Julie Andrews, and Kristin Wiig are among the well-known names providing their voices for the characters within the film. Interestingly, the two directors, Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud, also lend their voices to the film for many of the various Minion characters. When watching the film, however, I did not find myself instantly recognising the famous voices I have heard many times before, and therefore the star attraction to the film tends to lose its weight as a drawing card. Steve Carell would be the only voice I would have been able to eventually detect, however, with the accent he provides for his character it is not immediately noticed.

 

N.E.R.D star and music producer, Parrell Williams, provides original music for the film as a composer for the original songs and theme music. The music assists the film's youthful fun and playfulness adding its own smooth contemporary feel. The theme track adds a dangerous but cool element through the rap, which would prove popular with slightly older children watching the film. A great addition by Williams.

 

The multitude of Minions is what takes this family animation to greater heights. The Minions are cute, funny, and make the film more entertaining for a larger array of audience members. The storyline of the film is highly predictable, as most family animations are, but heartwarming and enjoyable nonetheless. Despicable Me is not as comical for adults as some other family animations produced by Universal or Pixar, but it is still one to entertain children on school holidays and its sweet ending will please the whole family.