At this point, why resist the new Minions & Monsters movie? Yes, the Minions — the oddly shapeless, distinctly shaded (they have their own custom shade of yellow) creatures originally featured in the Despicable Me series — have been memed, commercialized and overexposed to an impressive degree. Yet there’s enough gleeful, wordless slapstick charm to these little scamps that it’s much easier to try to enjoy their hijinks than find a reason to scoff.
Is It Worth Putting Yourself Through Minions & Monsters? We Have the Review
Minions & Monsters, the third standalone film for the Minions (and, somehow, seventh overall in the Despicable Me franchise), benefits greatly from a change of time period and setting. While we hop between many historical eras — I think Minions may be immortal, but they never fully explore the ideea — we’re mostly concerned with the early days of Hollywood, as a few particular Minions decided to focus on a career in pictures.
This gives director and co-writer Pierre Coffin, who also voices the Minions, the chance to craft delightful visual gags referencing the early days of cinema. I didn’t walk into the theater expecting references to Casablanca, Citizen Kane or Safety Last!, let alone a surprisingly lovely recreation of scenes from Georges Méliès’ A Trip to the Moon.
If your unabashedly mainstream kids’ movie takes its time in recreating a 124-year-old science-fiction short, you’re certainly putting the effort in.
Still, 90 Minutes is a Lot of Minions Time
The film begins and ends quite well, building to an appropriately frenetic, wacky climax. (The Minions have, by that point, conjured a world-eating monster in pursuit of a Hollywood comeback — not that the plot is all that vital, here.) It’s easy to get on board with Minions & Monsters and just as easy to leave happy.
The middle, though, is a bit of a slog. The Minions are best in small servings; all that gibberish gets dull after an hour or so. The presence of an oddly stacked voice lineup — including Allison Janney, Christoph Waltz, Jeff Bridges (yes, three Oscar winners are in this film), Jesse Eisenberg and Trey Parker — only seems to add more unnecessary dialogue to the proceedings.
A mid-film nap aside, though, it’s a pleasant diversion. After 16 years, we can assume that the Minions are sticking around; we might as well kick back and let them entertain us.
A Festival Darling Hits Theaters, and Millie Bobby Brown Is Still at Netflix
You certainly won’t find anything like Maddie’s Secret at the multiplex. The film, the directorial debut for comedian and actor John Early — who also stars in and wrote the film — is already a film-festival darling and has drawn critical raves, even if critics can’t quite agree on what genre the film is supposed to occupy. It’s a comedic melodrama, I think, and an earnest tribute to the sort of made-for-TV films that once filled off-night network schedules. Early stars as Maddie, a budding food influencer who hides her eating disorder; while much of the film is a very subtle satire of foodie culture, the drama is played entirely straight. It’s a curious and intriguing product, if one that will have you constantly asking whether or not there’s a joke you’re missing. Maddie’s Secret is out in limited release this week; check your local arthouse.
Millie Bobby Brown, forever recognizable as Stranger Things protagonist Eleven, may put that character aside (allegedly) — but she’s not free of Netflix just yet. Enola Holmes 3, the third chapter in the teen-detective series, drops on the streamer today. Henry Cavill and Helena Bonham Carter co-star. Early reviews are currently a mix; seems like something you can throw on in the background over a long weekend.
But There Are Other Ways to Spend the Holiday Weekend
If you’d like something slightly more weighty to wrap up the holiday weekend, Fathom Entertainment will re-release Citizen Kane as part of its Big Screen Classics series. Orson Welles’ film — consistently ranked as one of the top films of all time by Sight & Sound — celebrates its 85th anniversary this year; expect an introduction from Leonard Maltin before the feature.
Finally, just to save you the search: Independence Day is streaming on both Hulu and AMC+. Welcome to Earth.
Story by Sean Collier
Photos Courtesy of Universal Pictures
Subscribe to TABLE Magazine’s print edition.
