Minions (2015)

"Doesn't it feel so good to be bad?"

The Minions have been serving the biggest and baddest creatures since the dawn of time.  When their actions disappoint one of their bosses, they are forced to run and hide in a cave in Antarctica.  They are happy, but without a master to serve they grow depressed and unmotivated.  Kevin has a plan, he will leave the cave and find them a new master.  He takes along guitar-playing Stuart and friendly Bob.

Eventually Kevin, Stuart, and Bob end up at Villain Con in Orlando in 1967.  At the convention they are impressed with Scarlet Overkill (Bullock), the first female supervillain, and they become her minions.  Scarlet wants them to steal St. Edward's Crown from Queen Elizabeth (Saunders), and her husband Herb (Hamm) gives them his latest gadgets to accomplish the feat.  Can they steal the crown for Scarlet, or will they need to find a new boss?


When Despicable Me premiered in 2010, audiences with the characters, especially the minions.  The minions popularity grew with Despicable Me 2 in 2013, and several short films.  It was inevitable that the characters would get a larger role or spin-off somewhere down the line.  Pierre Coffin, who directed the Despicable Me movies (with Chris Renaurd), returned to the directors chair for this film.  In addition to directing, Coffin also voiced most of the minions.

Unlike the other films in the franchise, this one does not feature Gru and the girls.  They are replaced by Sandra Bullock's Scarlet Overkill and Jon Hamm's Herb Overkill.  Both are entertaining but don't have the heart of Gru (and you know that the partnership doesn't last too long since the minions end up with Gru).  For characters that have a language all their own, they still convey a range of emotions and it is still pretty easy to understand what they are talking about.

It is a cute and funny film, but the Despicable Me films are a better place for the characters.

Minions (2015) 91 minutes
Director: Kyle Balda & Pierre Coffin
Starring: Sandra Bullock as Scarlet Overkill
Jon Hamm as Herb Overkill
Michael Keaton as Walter Nelson
Allison Janney as Madge Nelson
Jennifer Saunders as Queen Elizabeth
Geoffrey Rush as Narrator
Pierre Coffin as The Minions