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Criticism of ‘Minions: The origin of Gru’: the yellow rage returns

The new installment brings together the henchmen and the top-grossing evil genius in animated cinema.

    We don’t know if Gru, our favorite villain, was aware at the beginning of his successful animated film franchise that soon those who were going to steal all the prominence were those yellow beings with a language between Esperanto and a recycled Klingon-Bruguera called minions. Little by little, and at the rhythm of a gag, they interfered (without acrimony, as the president would say, that referent boomer) in the adventures of the character with the aquiline nose (increasingly involved in fatherhood, settling down and being the light side of a lineage of supervillains) to get hold of her. The minions had their own feature film, a fun tribute to swinging London 60s with one of the most hilarious historical prologues, and more like a press or magazine comic strip from our Alfons Figueras, from the latest animation.

    Although this latest feature film that has been released seems to try to return the prominence to Gru by narrating his vocation and first experiences in evil megalomania according to the SPECTER school (the opening credits are pure James Bond and pure Maurice Binder, the usual designer in the classic years), already from the title (Minions: the origin of Gru) yields the weight of the narration to the despicable and yellow beings. An openly disjointed and anarchic narration, a bit like the minion humor itself, which prevails over a minimal plot (the trip to San Francisco and the rescue of a magical amulet) where the least important thing ends up being that eleven-year-old Gru and the quintet (before sextet if we have that Knuckles who physically reminds Joaquín Luqui!)) of criminal minds whom he admires.

    Set in the 70s of the bicentennial of the United States, the phenomenon of Shark (and of Rocky) and the glorious presence of disco music, kung fu and blaxploitation, Minions: the origin of Gru works as a series of isolated vignettes where the nods to the future of the franchise (Nefario), the afro hair, the nunchakus, the blows in the little China of San Francisco’s Chinatown, the Shaolin Kung Funesque training and the musical hits of the time supply the inanity of the adventure that tries to convey the entire film. It does, however, miss a stop by this minion troupe at the emblematic San Francisco venue ‘La Ostra Azul’, which appeared recurrently in the saga crazy Police Academy, which should have been mandatory because more total icons of Pride have not emerged, and more Village People, than these ovoids are not scene-stealers, but franchise-stealers.

    For groupies of the other yellow humor

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    The best: the affectionate tribute to Sempé de Little Nicholas in the end credits.

    The worst: there is no story, and less with a climax Shang Chi.

    DATA SHEET

    Address: Kyle Balda, Brad Ableson, Jonathan delVal Country: USA Year: 2022 Release date: 1–07-2022 Gender: Animation Script: Matthew Fogel. History: Matthew Fogel, Brian Lynch. Character: Five Paul Duration: 90 minutes

    Synopsis: Long before he became an evil genius, Gru was just a 12-year-old kid in the 1970s trying to take over the world from the basement of his suburban home. And he wasn’t doing too well. But when Gru crosses paths with Kevin, Stuart, Bob, and Otto—a new Minion with braces on his teeth and desperate to feel accepted—this unexpected family will join forces to build their first lair, design their first weapons, and lead carry out their first missions.

    Source: Fotogramas

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