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96 of 104 people found the following review helpful.
Fun Movie With a Positive Message
By Amy Pierce
I went to this movie reluctantly, mostly because my ten year old talked me into it. I had only seen the trailers and I was expecting an extended version of Spy vs Spy, which I have never really loved. This movie suprised and delighted me. Far from being a sad 3D version of silly one-upmanship, this movie had a lot of heart, and a lovely message.
I especially enjoyed how the main character struggled with the growth he experiences throughout the movie. We get to see him struggling with the difficulty of giving up his old behavior patterns and goals, even though he clearly sees that he could be happier if he let them go. And the difficulty that Groo's only friend has with the changes he experiences as he lets three little girls into his life, and how his friend tries to prevent him from changing, are a great reminder that sometimes when we make positive changes in our lives the people around us aren't always as supportive as they should be.
My son loved the movie too, although not for quite the same reasons I did. He wants a glass floor shark tank for our living room now. I said I'd think about it.
78 of 92 people found the following review helpful.
Surprisingly Good!!! Worth watching once.
By Georgia B
Okay, first let me be clear. I in no way wanted to go and see this movie. Why did I go? Well that is what you have to do when you have a 10 year old brother and the parents don't want to take him to see it. Anyway, twenty minutes into the movie I started to think that the movie was okay for younger children, because it was quite a silly plot line (the main aim in the plot is that they want to shirink the moon) and was maybe lacking in some emotion. However, I have to admit by the end of the movie I quite enjoyed it, you really get to see Gru (our villian turned dad),on his journey and see the changing emotions he has to go through, not to mention the decisions he has to make. Some of the scenes our quite touching and some of the dialogue is quite humerous.
Now I just want to mention the cast, there is a very good cast including the very funny Steve Carell, Jason Segal, Julie Andrews, Russell Brand leading the cast but of course I have to give credit to the actresses who played the three girls Miranda Cosgrove who was excellent playing the smart older sister, Dana Gaier as the moody teenager and finally there is Elsie Fisher who at about 8 years old is a natural.
So overall I think that this is a great family movie, the kids will enjoy it more but I enjoyed it and I am a 16 year old girl, however i think that it isnt a movie I would watch over and over again but I think children would.
It is definatley worth a watch.
112 of 135 people found the following review helpful.
He's a Villain, But He's Not a Bad Guy
By Chris Pandolfi
While not quite as wondrous or challenging as a Disney/Pixar film, "Despicable Me" is still a lot of fun, able to make audiences laugh without having to sacrifice story or character development. It's also one of the few animated films to not entertain the idea of heroes - it merely distinguishes between evil villains and not-so-evil villains, the latter apparently capable of good deeds despite their propensity for hatching diabolical schemes. Such a person is Gru (voiced by Steve Carell), who looks like a pointy-nosed Fester Addams and speaks in a pseudo-Russian accent so delightfully phony, it only adds to his charm. His goal has always been to become the world's greatest super villain, but as the film progresses, we realize that, underneath it all, he's actually a pretty nice guy.
He certainly has the means to be a criminal mastermind; within his vast secret lair beneath his looming black house, he and the goggled Dr. Nefario (voiced by Russell Brand) have overseen the creation of ray guns that can freeze people and blow things up, vehicles that can drive on surface streets but look serious enough to drill through the Earth's crust, flying machines equipped with every missile known to man, and tiny robots disguised as chocolate chip cookies. The problem is, Gru's notoriety has been overshadowed by rival super villain Vector (voiced by Jason Siegel), who looks like Bill Gates in an orange jumpsuit and lives in an obscenely secured white fortress (surveillance cameras, hundreds of missiles, trick doors, shark-infested moats - the whole nine yards). Hoping to regain his status, Gru plots his greatest heist yet: Stealing the moon.
Of course, it will have to be shrunk to a manageable size, which is why Gru needs Vector's extra special shrink ray. Here enters three orphaned girls - Margo (voiced by Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (voiced by Dana Gaier), and Agnes (voiced by Elsie Fisher) - who get by selling boxes of cookies door to door; Gru adopts them, knowing that they can safely infiltrate Vector's fortress. What begins as a simple plan turns complicated when the girls start behaving like the children they are. They run around. They make noise. They touch things they're not supposed to touch. They always want to be read a story before going to bed. Aside from those things, they actually expect to be raised, a responsibility Gru has avoided after growing up with a sourpuss mother (voiced by Julie Andrews). Does he have it within himself to be a dad and a super villain?
Many animated films have scenes stolen by the antics of their supporting characters. "Despicable Me" is no exception; here, we have Gru's minions, a multitude of yellow ball-shaped one- or two-eyed creatures of unknown origin that speak fast, high-pitched gibberish and are a bit accident prone. You look at one and just can't help but want to punt it across a football field. It would probably be able to take it, judging by the hilarious physical abuse they all endure throughout the film. They're goofy, broad, and given the best sight gags, so naturally, they thoroughly upstage all the other characters every time they appear in a scene. They're even given their own epilogue segments during the end credits, which have little to do with the actual story but deftly take advantage of the film's 3-D effects.
Ah yes, the 3-D, seemingly inescapable these days. It's a process I admittedly have mixed feelings about. Sometimes is works beautifully (Disney's "A Christmas Carol," "Avatar," "Alice in Wonderland"). Sometimes, it's either an unnecessary gimmick ("Clash of the Titans," "My Bloody Valentine 3-D") or a total disaster ("The Last Airbender"). I'm glad to say that it works for "Despicable Me," especially during a scene at a boardwalk amusement park when Gru and the girls ride a roller coaster. There's also the moment when Gru makes an emergency landing in the middle of the street; the point of his shuttlecraft juts out from the screen, which momentarily made me think it would poke out my eye. Still, if you have the choice, go for traditional 2-D. Aside from paying less at the box office, you won't have to bother with the glasses, which can often times be a distraction.
Regardless of the dimension involved, "Despicable Me" is a delightful film - funny, sweet, and a triumph of animation and visual effects. Kids will enjoy it for its bright colors and physical humor, and this will almost certainly include Dr. Nefario's demonstration of a gun that emits a foul-smelling gas: "It was supposed to be a DART gun!" Gru exclaims in frustration. Adults will like it for its subtler touches, like a sign that reads "The Bank of Evil (formerly Lehman Brothers)." Everyone is sure to enjoy its good-natured spirit, especially when it's coupled with scenes of Gru's minions. Mark my words: They will be remembered long after memories of the plot have faded.
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