Illumination Entertainment’s Despicable Me 2 suffers a bit from the success and ingenuity of the original, in the sense that it fails to live up to the cleverness or novelty of its 2010 predecessor, which now ranks as the 10th most financially successful animated film in Hollywood history, after grossing $540 million and netting equally impressive heaps of critical acclaim.
Despicable Me 2 is fine, really. There are countless numbers of considerably worse children’s/animated films one could point to, but that doesn’t change the fact that, while Despicable Me was a breath of fresh air, rightly lauded for its fresh perspective and competent execution, the sequel is an uninspired, mediocre offering, at best.
Steve Carrell is once again the “villain” mastermind, Gru, but his act wears a little thin this time around. His accent is grating and he has altogether too many lines for his quasi-Russian lilt to still seem charming or quirky by the time the credits roll. Gru is also given no real raison d’être in this storyline. In 2010, Gru — a legitimate, sincere villain and not the softhearted, jam-making milquetoast we’re subjected to this go-round — set out to steal the moon. Say it aloud. It sounds cool, and it is, cool enough that the new film makes several references to it, with a wistful tone that indicates directors Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud are well aware that this movie lacks what made the original special.
I think big-name, A-list type talent is often misused or, in some ways, a waste in animated features. Russell Brand — as Dr. Nefario, whose name is sadly way better than any line he’s given — is a singular comedic talent, but he brings nothing to the table as Nefario that anyone else couldn’t give you. Kristen Wiig is one of the most exciting, engaging comedic actors in recent memory, but her charm and wit fail to shine through the blah, hackneyed façade of agent Lucy Wilde. Ken Jeong does amazing, memorable work in front of a camera, but as walking cliché and wig-peddler Floyd Eagle-san, he is forgettable at best.
The biggest story of wasted star talent in this film is the departure of Al Pacino, originally cast as the antagonist of this film, who left at the eleventh hour due to what the studio and his agent are calling “creative differences” over “how to bring the character to life.” Having sat through 98 minutes of said villain’s antics, I’m both perplexed by what could have so deeply offended Pacino creatively — because the character is as surface-level and run-of-the-mill as it gets — and gratified that someone bothered to have a fight with the filmmakers over what is inarguably the least interesting, least amusing thing about the film.
“The toughest challenge with any sequel is the loss of a sense of discovery,” Renaud said while promoting the film. “You don’t want to simply retell the story of the first film.”
He’s right, but in this effort, he’s overcorrected. The magic of vicariously reveling in Gru’s unabashed narcissism and evildoing is gone, and there’s nothing that he can do as a reformed-villain-slash-actual-hero that is half as interesting or fun to watch.
“It’s all a matter of getting the right balance,” said Renaud. “You want to deliver something new while not betraying what people liked about the first film.”
Betray is a strong word, but there’s simply no question that this movie doesn’t have the spark that made the first so deviously enjoyable. And really — given how fun and good the first movie was — there’s no great shame in falling short of that mark, but it’s disappointing to see Gru mired in boring do-gooding like so many other animated protagonists, especially after the heights he achieved with his moon heist. But in the end — especially compared to the average animated film — it’s fine. Just fine.
