Review of Despicable Me 2 (2013) by Agentkmurph — 30 Jul 2013

If there is one thing Despicable Me 2 did well at was where a lot of sequels fail; the story is self-explanatory. Almost no prior knowledge is required to understand the plot and setting of this film as is proof by several of my friends who had not seen the original and yet found Despicable Me 2 both accessible and wildly entertaining.

The characters were also far more diverse in this feature than in the original. Rather than just the main characters (Gru, Dr Nefario, the girls, random super-villain, and of course minions) like in the original, Despicable Me 2 featured a wide breadth of supporting roles that made for a more dynamic environment than the original. The film didn't seem quite as constricted or stale.

Despicable Me 2 also abounded with loads of wonderful slapstick humor. Some might call it toilet humor but Hey! Jokes don't have to be complex. And to be fair, there was a noticeable chunk of more subtle, long-running, and intelligent humor. The antics of the minions classifies as its own category of humor; they are definitely one of the main reasons to see to film.

While there was lots of humor to go round, a good deal of supporting characters, and modular plot, I did feel that Despicable Me 2 lacked the heartfelt nature that the original so wonderfully possessed.There was the "I must not cry! Dammit I'm crying" kind of the feel to the end of the original while Despicable Me 2's ending felt cliched. The plot as a whole was sort of emotionless in that sense because you could see it coming from miles away. And when I that, I mean that only in the long term sense of the story. The scenes in actuality jumped from place to place all the time which was frustrating more than it was suspenseful like it was meant to be. It was like they were trying to tell too many different stories with just one movie. And the buildup to the revelation of the supervillain; totally botched. Felt no suspense or surprise whatsoever. One of the worst I've seen yet.

Well besides some need for improvement in the emotions and the plot, Despicable Me 2 did one thing well for certain; it made me laugh till I was out of breath and my cheeks ached. A wonderful comedy if nothing else.