DVD Review - Despicable Me

Once in a while a movie comes along that is such a surprise, it's like a breath of fresh air.  Despicable Me is exactly that movie.  I wasn't really looking forward to watching it, but by the end I was laughing out loud.

Gru is one of the worlds top supervillans, but finds that he is being phased out by younger, smarter talent.  His dream since he was a little boy was to own the moon, and he's finally figured out a way to do it.  Unfortunately, Vector is an up-and-coming supervillan who has the last piece of the puzzle, the Shrink Ray.  The only people Vector lets in his house are three little orphan girls selling cookies.  So Gru adopts the girls from the orphanage, so they can help him get into Vector's compound.  Soon, however, the three cuties start to soften Gru's heart.

There's a lot of Roadrunner-the-Coyote type slapstick violence, but no one really gets hurt.  There's some language, if you consider "poop" and "butt" language.  But what's really here is a heartfelt tale of one man's discovering that he can love and be loved.

Despicable Me is the first effort by French animation house Mag Guff and Illumination Studios.  It's not quite Pixar or DreamWorks, but it gets there.  The characters are well developed, and brilliantly animated, especially little Agnes and Gru's henchmen, the Minions.

This movie will work great for kids of all ages, as a great tale of the strength of family, and the power of love.  Enjoy!