3D Blu-ray Movie Reviews

We first met the Minions in the Despicable Me films. They were the henchmen of Gru, desperate to be seen as The Greatest Villain of All Time. But the Minions movie begins at the dawn of time when these funny, goggle-wearing creatures, babbling in their unique humina-humina-humina language, emerge from the primordial sea. They’re immediately driven to seek out the greatest villain they can find. But no sooner do they find one than they bumble into eliminating him.

Eventually they ditch their failed quest for a new boss and find a quiet home in the Great White South. They’re happy at first but eventually get bored. A committee of three—Kevin, Stuart, and Bob—set off for warmer climes in search of a likely supervillain to lead the group.

Critics (and much of the public) liked the Minions better as the nutty, lovable sidekicks in Despicable Me and Despicable Me 2. I can’t disagree. But there’s more than enough slapstick, sight gags, and pure silliness throughout to keep adults amused and kids (and the Peter Pan in many of us) delighted.

The film’s production design is filled with crisp, saturated color and a striking range of “sets,” from the age of the dinosaurs to 1960s New York and London. The Blu-ray transfer is equally impressive. The 3D is also well done. While I preferred the increased brightness of 2D playback, the 3D was fun and will be manna from heaven for 3D fans frustrated with today’s diminishing Blu-ray 3D releases.

If you’re hungry for the dynamic sound typical of modern action films, you’ll have to wait. Through much of the film’s length, the sound mix is relatively subtle, but it’s clean and offers occasional dynamic highlights. Well-chosen pop tunes (most from around the ’60s) also hilariously inspire and supplement the action. Dialogue intelligibility is excellent as well. But while you can clearly divine what the Minions are saying, if you understand every word, there’s a book deal in your future.

The extras are fair, including three mini-movies (one of them good, the others meh), a deleted scene, an odd (but poss- ibly kid-amusing) “Around the World Interactive Map,” and best of all, a “Behind the Goggles” look at the making of all the films featuring these small, yellow, lozenge-shaped goofballs.

Blu-Ray 3D
Studio: Universal, 2015
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Audio Format: Dolby Atmos / TrueHD 7.1 core
Length: 91 mins.
MPAA Rating: PG
Director: Pierre Coffin
Starring: Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton