Minions – Those Funny Little Creatures Have Their Own Movie
Despicable Me‘s minions get their very own spin-off in this summer flick from Universal Pictures. Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda co-direct this animated comedy featuring the voices of Sandra Bullock and Jon Hamm. “Minions” begins at the dawn of time. Starting as single-celled yellow organisms, “Minions” evolve through the ages, perpetually serving the most despicable of masters. Continuously unsuccessful at keeping these masters–from a T Rex to Napoleon–the Minions find themselves without someone to serve and fall into a deep depression. But one Minion named Kevin has a plan, and he alongside teenage rebel Stuart and lovable little Bob–venture out into the world to find a new evil boss to follow. The trio embark upon a thrilling journey that ultimately leads them to their next potential master, Scarlet Overkill , the world’s first-ever female super-villain. They travel from frigid Antarctica to 1960s New York City, ending up in London, where they must face their biggest challenge to date: saving all of Minionkind.
Rated PG, 91 min
Minions are small, yellow pill-like creatures that have existed since the beginning of time. They have developed from single-celled organisms into beings who have only one purpose: to serve history’s most despicable masters. After accidentally destroying all their masters, including a T. Rex, a caveman, an Egyptian pharaoh, Dracula, and Napoleon, they decide to isolate themselves from the world and start a new life in Antarctica. By 1968, the lack of a master drives them into depression, causing Minion Kevin to set out to find a new master. He is joined by Minions Stuart (who unwittingly was selected) and Bob (due to a lack of volunteers).
Minions is a prequel to Despicable Me that explains the origins of Gru’s little yellow henchpeople. Having existed for millions of years as a race of bumbling helpers for whatever strong sinister force they could rally behind, the Minion race has found themselves masterless after years of failure. They have retreated to the Antarctic and spent years in a continuing depression, but in 1968, three Minions decide to set off into the world to find their people a new home and a new master. A trip to a Villain convention in Orlando leads them to world renowned super-villainess Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock) and now the minions must prove themselves worthy.
Like “Madagascar’s” penguins, “Despicable Me’s” yellow minions were comic relief characters who took the lead in follow-up features. Since the first “Despicable Me” film and more in its 2013 sequel, those cute little yellow sidekicks, constantly stole the thunder from the lead character Gru. This was reminiscent of how the cute side characters like Puss N’ Boots or the Penguins stole scenes in “Shrek” and “Madagascar” respectively, and got their own solo movies. It certainly was not a surprise that these Minions got their own solo project also.