REVIEW: ‘Despicable Me 4’ doesn’t offer full cinematic experience

“Despicable Me 3” went unseen and unreviewed at this site in 2017 because of a busy schedule. Considering there’s not an ongoing arc in the series, it doesn’t look like it’s a necessary watch.

That’s certainly apparent in “Despicable Me 4,” as the animated sequel gives the family an entirely new scenario to deal with, and there’s little mention of any unresolved matters from 3. So, in part four, Gru (Steve Carell), an Anti-Villain League agent, manages to put a former rival of his behind bars.

That rival, Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell), escapes prison and vows revenge. The villain’s action forces Gru, his wife Lucy (Kristen Wiig) their daughters and new-born baby to go into a sort of witness protection program. However, plenty of shenanigans still ensue.

In November 1996, FOX aired “The Simpsons” episode “You only Move Twice.” In it, Homer is recruited by another company and hired, resulting in the family relocating to another city. There, the family has to adjust to a new home, the story mainly focuses on Homer’s experience, and there are side-plots following each of the other characters trying to fit in.

All of this is brought up because “Despicable Me 4” feels very similar to that episode. The point, though, is not to say this film copied that episode, making it feel mostly unoriginal. It’s more to say that it comes across as entirely episodic. The fourth “Despicable Me” is less a cinematic experience and more of an individual adventure-of-the-week, better suited for television.

The whole thing is just a stand-alone tale where Gru has some hiinx while the rest of the familiar characters just have token roles. Margo (Miranda Cosgrove), for example, has a bad day at junior high, but her experience is never brought up again. This is even true with the creatures that keep this series chugging.

Most of the Minions in the movie have to stay at the AVL headquarters for safety, but a few are selected to be given a super serum and become Mega Minions. The superpowered Mega Minions have certainly appeared on most of the promotional material for the film, but the fact is, they could have been entirely cut from the movie and it wouldn’t have made a difference.

Their adventure feels more like a stand-alone short film that was added to the movie to pad time. And even with their addition, it only comes into about an hour and a half.

All thing considered, though, the biggest issue with “Despicable Me 4” and the series in general is the inability to advance. This is most reflected in the three daughters who are still the same age as they were in the original 2010 picture. It might have been interesting to see Gru have to adapt to the girls growing up, but that never happens.

It’s not that it’s entirely unusual, as “The Incredibles 2” also had a similar factor. However, the characters in “The Incredibles” are much more well-rounded and their powers are reflected in their personalities. It’s not as much the case with “Despicable Me 4.” The lack of character growth is also reflected with the baby, Gru Jr.

The first movie showed Gru adjusting to being a dad of little kids, and in the next few films it showed more of that experience. But by part four, Gru is already accustomed to being a father to his three daughters. But instead of the family dynamic changing with them growing up, they just add a baby so Gru can go through more of the struggling dad experience from previous installments.

In all fairness to the movie, that’s not the only part of his adventure in this fourth film. Gru is also blackmailed into assisting an aspiring teen villain named Poppy (Joey King) who just so happens to be a new next-door neighbor as well. It’s a subplot that just feels random and doesn’t add much to the series. It also raises a major question. Why wasn’t this character just Margo?

Poppy is a difficult teen to deal with who uses a lot of modern slang that Gru doesn’t get. She’s also inspired by Gru and wants to pull off a heist at his old high school.

Couldn’t a teenage Margo fill that role? Have her becoming a teenager Gru understands less, who also gets an urge to impress her dad or wants to rebel by being a villain? It just seems like a waste to introduce this whole new character when an existing, established and well known one could fill the spot.

All of this isn’t to say the movie is thoroughly unenjoyable. There are some fun moments, both with Gru and the rest of his family. There’s a memorable chase scene with Lucy and the kids in a grocery store, for example. The actions by the Mega Minions provide some entertainment, too.

On the antagonist side of things, Maxime is alright as a sort of anti-Gru. He too has an exaggerated accent, a silly looking nose and his own henchmen, cockroaches in this case.

It’s a goofy foil that works for the series, although Ferrell being the voice is a twinge disappointing. Not because he’s bad, but because his “Megamind” from 2010 never became the phenomenon this franchise did.

As for the look of the picture, it’s fine. Illumination’s stye is all about creating characters and creatures with exaggerated looks and features, which gives it a more cartoonish appearance that’s fun for kids. It’s somewhat reminiscent of the type of exaggerated character designs you’d see on Cartoon Network shows.

“Despicable Me 4” is an easy watch for kids with entertaining visuals and plenty of fun scenes. The movie overall, though, is padded with an unnecessary subplot, sidelines major characters, and feels more like a television episode instead of a rich cinematic experience. It’s another example of Illumination simply paling in comparison to its studio rivals. 2.2 out of 5.