Gru (Steve Carell)
Gru was once the greatest super-villain of them all but is now facing obscurity and bankruptcy. In order to reclaim his status as the ultimate evil genius, he devises an elaborate plan to steal the moon. However, he not only has to contend with an ambitious young rival but also with three orphaned girls who are becoming increasingly fond of him.
The 3D computer animation Despicable Me is comparable to Pixar’s 2004 The Incredibles, which was about superheros living everyday lives. The idea of instead focusing on a super-villain facilitates lots of jokes about balancing the crazy inventions and plans for world domination with suburban domesticity. While lacking the sophistication of The Incredibles, Despicable Me is still a fun series of throwaway gags and slapstick; balancing its black yet family-friendly humour with moments of sincerity that never feel saccharin.
Steve Carrell is great voicing Gru and the animation feels like a faithful extension of his personality and physicality. The army of Beaker-like minions also provide plenty of laughs but they also have a lot to do with the film ultimately being a series of fun gags rather than something more cohesive and satisfying.
Originally appeared in The Big Issue, No. 363, 2010
© Thomas Caldwell, 2010
Posted by Thomas Caldwell 
Date Night is a missed opportunity and Carell and Fey certainly deserve better material. Not only is the film mostly rather bland but it is also poorly made with ugly digital cinematography and substandard editing that often fails to even adequately create match-on-action transitions. It was also disappointing to see the film eventual fail so badly in terms of its attitude towards gender roles. For much of the film both the Fosters are on fairly equal terms with each other but by the time the film ends Claire is having to dress like a prostitute while Phil is left to come up with the final big plan that he inexplicably keeps to himself. Stay home and watch Carell in the US version of The Office and Fey in 30 Rock instead as for the most part Date Night doesn’t deliver.
