Cinema has always been evolving from transitioning from silent pictures to movies with sound. To this day, cinema still continues to evolve, and if there’s anything Hollywood loves more, it’s telling a story about how cinema has changed. Whether it’s 1952’s iconic musical classic, Singin’ in the Rain, or 2022’s underrated Babylon.
Minions has now decided to step into the fray and tell their own version of 1920s Hollywood, and frankly enough, it feels like with Minions & Monsters, the franchise has finally decided how to utilise the hilarious evil yellow creatures without just resorting to potty humour.
Minions & Monsters steps away from the iconic trio and takes us further back in time to 1920s Hollywood to follow a new tribe of Minions. James (Pierre Coffin) has a love for art and also has a dream to make a Hollywood picture. With the help of Henry (Pierre Coffin) and Ed (Pierre Coffin), they create a monstrous disaster for their film and must work together to take it down.
There’s no surprise that the Despicable Me franchise has been able to spawn 4 movies and now 3 spin-off films. It’s Illumination’s most successful franchise, and like we learnt with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, Illumination knows exactly how to pull in their audience. While I’ve always loved the first 2 Despicable Me movies, I’ve never been too fond of the Minions films and have always believed they didn’t offer anything for adults to enjoy.
Although the cast of Minions is switched around, Minions & Monsters still holds its identity and doesn’t lose touch with what made it popular in the first place. This new tribe of Minions doesn’t fall too far from the tree, as their main goal is to also look for a “big boss”. What sets this film apart from the original Minions movie is that this film isn’t about that at all; instead, it’s actually used as a plot device for the subplot, which works better in its favour.
The main focus with Minions & Monsters all boils down to James wanting to make the movie of his dream. With this storyline at the centre of the film, we get to witness their transition from silent movies into using sound, and the inclusion of the Minions makes this a hilarious endeavour when all you end up getting is Pierre Coffin’s gibberish mixed with various languages (chihuahua, everyone, chihuahua).
It feels like Pierre Coffin and Brian Lynch have managed to elevate the humour of the Minions franchise as they steer clear of the potty humour and instead replace it with industry jokes and references to the history of cinema. The start of the movie doesn’t waste time with taking us on a trip down memory lane as we see various callbacks to films such as E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and The Matrix. To everyone’s surprise, even George Lucas appears, voicing himself, which has to easily be Illumination’s coolest surprise/cameo appearance to date.
It’s a full circle for the Minions, as they were inspired by legendary silent actors such as Charlie Chaplin, to whom the film delivers a fantastic homage. From the film’s opening Universal Pictures intro rewinding to its 1920 version to the Minions appearing in archived footage of old films, it feels like Minions & Monsters was made with care, dedication, and love.
It stands apart from the entire franchise, as it doesn’t try to do any unfunny, wacky gimmick with the Minions, like turning them into animals or having evil versions of themselves. From start to end, they’re just Minions, a tribe split into two. One half wants to make a film, and the second half wants to find their boss.
The tribe is led by Richard, better known as Dick (Pierre Coffin); yes… this is the one potty humour joke that we’ll accept because the name gave way to a humorous joke that I didn’t expect to laugh at. He and his group of Minions come across Dort (Jesse Eisenberg), a guy in a robot costume who talks about ruling over the world.
It’s strange, as the movie feels like it takes a break as we focus on this group and Dort’s romance, but it doesn’t slow down Minions & Monsters and instead keeps it at that crazy pace that you can usually find with an Illumination film.
On the topic of its pacing, it’s unfortunate how late the movie’s villain, Goomi (Trey Parker), enters the fray. Parker’s voice work as the character is off the charts; his dialogue is witty and snarky, and he manages to be one of the best new entries to the film alongside Dort, making you wish he had more screen time.
While leaving behind some of the annoying, tiring grievances of the previous Minions films, Minions & Monsters still carries the heart that these movies carry. Pierre Coffin makes a return after originally directing the first three Despicable Me movies and the first Minions film, and he’s proved with Minions & Monsters that he understands these despicable yellow creatures better than anyone else.
It goes without saying that Minions & Monsters is the best Minions film, but it might also be the best film in the Despicable Me franchise. Whether you’re a fan of the franchise or not, this is the one Minions movie that’s worth watching if you have a love for cinema and Hollywood.
