Director: Pierre Coffin
Cast: Pierre Coffin, Trey Parker, Allison Janney, Christoph Waltz
Have I Seen It Before: No. I was a little surprised to learn they were still making Minions movies. I was definitely surprised when I would up making this one of the few movies I actually ended up seeing in the multiplexes this year.
Did I Like It: Ready for the big shocker? I kinda liked it.
I mean, I can’t readily recall a movie that was committed to sucking up to me this much in its early minutes. The Universal logo? Roll it back to show us every iteration of the vanity card, including the one from 1990. It’s almost like I’m watching Back to the Future Part III (1990) for the very first time, again. Allison Janney is our narrator? Great! Is that Orson Welles* in the background?
All right, film. You’ve got me.
And beyond that, the degree to which we are all annoyed by the very thought of Minions, is put aside in favor of a generally winning film. The film wears its heart on its sleeve far more comprehensively than one might have assumed from the sixth film to feature these characters. Bits of Hollywood ephemera are sprinkled throughout the film, but I can’t help but marvel at how deeply in love this movie is with the idea of movies. Making them, loving them. I can’t readily come up with a film more celebratory of the very nature of what it is since Ed Wood (1994). And that’s high praise indeed, and definitely not praise I thought I would have for those little yellow things.
* My only real complaint about the film? Illumination and Company managed to animate a Welles exhibit in their Hollywood museum, but didn’t manage to give him any movement? You’re telling me Maurice LaMarche is too busy to come by the booth.