Despicable Me 4

This latest instalment in the Despicable Me series follows former-villain-turned-secret-agent Gru (Steve Carell) and his family, who are forced to assume new identities in the residential town of Mayflower to hide from Gru’s former classmate and current nemesis Maxine Le Mal (Will Ferrell), who seeks revenge on Gru for humiliating and arresting him. The family is given strict instructions to lay low until Maxine is once again in custody, but the Gru clan is far from an inconspicuous family and is once again thrown into all sorts of hijinks.

While the above synopsis might make it seem like Despicable Me 4 has a narrative, the film is bafflingly uninterested in telling any kind of story. Things happen, sure, with some decent kinetic set pieces rendered in traditional energetic Despicable Me fashion and supported by a strong cast of seasoned comedians, but none of the flick’s shenanigans are in service of any overarching ideas, or facilitate any character arcs. It’s not really about anything, content with being a series of vaguely connected events that play out dispassionately until it’s time for them to end, a far cry from the series’ sincere and character-driven origins.

To compensate for its structural deficiencies Despicable Me 4 focuses on quantity, throwing as many characters, concepts and comedic bits at the wall as it can over its 95-minute runtime. Unfortunately, this approach gives each moving part little room to breathe, making the movie feel under-baked. This fast-paced structuring also makes it difficult to form an emotional attachment to the on-screen goings-on, which is a shame because there’s a lot of comedic potential in the premise, as well as some exciting sequences that could have benefited from some extra focus.

Illumination was off to a strong start this year with Migration, which defied expectations and proved that the studio could deliver entertaining cinema for children with a tight narrative focus and compelling character exploration. Unfortunately, Despicable Me 4 feels like a significant step backwards in quality, more than willing to rest on its laurels and feeling bereft of passion or enthusiasm despite some strong visuals and entertaining physical comedy. The series is perhaps a victim of its own success – Gru and the Minions have become pop culture titans in the 14 years they’ve been around, but in doing so, have lost what made them special in the first place.

Umar Ali

Despicable Me 4 is released nationwide on 12^th July 2024.

Watch the trailer for Despicable Me 4 here: