Despicable Me 2

Raphael July 07, 2013 0 Comment

“Despicable Me 2” picks up more or less where the original left off. Gru (Steve Carell) has grown even more fatherly since we last saw him, playing the ideal patriarch for Margo, Edith and Agnes, voiced by Miranda Cosgrove, Dana Gaier and Elsie Fisher, respectively. The movie’s early moments set up much of the subplot that weaves throughout the main narrative — Gru’s life is about as picturesque as it gets, save for one thing: The girls lack a mother.

A short interaction between Agnes and Gru really sets it up, subsequent hints toward the mother subplot nearly making this particular element of the film over the top. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, if there’s one place “Despicable Me 2” succeeds, it’s in the exaggerated nature of nearly everything about it.

From the minions (who are inherently larger-than-life characters trapped in miniscule bodies) to the plot and even how damn adorable Agnes is, much of “Despicable” would come off as excessive if it weren’t so endearing. Carell plays Gru to great effect as he wrestles with the trials of love on his own and later as a protective father when Margo meets a boy of her own at — where else? —the mall.

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