New in cinema - I - Simply unbeatable": Megaminions and old enemies
It's fun, turbulent, and yellow again in the cinema: With "Despicable Me 4: The Return of Gru and the Minions," the once infamous supervillain and his minions are back on the silver screen. In the sixth adventure from the cheerful universe, Gru is now a loving family father in suburban idyllic life, and the Minions have become superheroes. This is necessary, as Gru has once again attracted the wrath of the supervillain, Maxime Le Mal, and must figure out how to protect himself and his loved ones.
The plot is partly conventional and follows typical storylines. Gru and Le Mal have been enemies since school. At a class reunion decades later, they cross paths again, and Gru arranges for his adversary's arrest. All good? Of course. Le Mal has allied with cockroaches and developed superpowers. With this, he breaks out of prison and, with his girlfriend Valentina, plots his revenge. Gru must go into hiding with his wife, the three adopted daughters, and Baby Gru. However, the witness protection program of the Anti-Criminal League (AVL) fails, and Le Mal locates the family with dramatic consequences.
Poppy and the Megaminions
Apart from familiar characters, there are also new ones, such as the rebellious Poppy. She lives with her parents in the neighboring house of Gru's family and aspires to become a supervillainess herself. To test herself, she forces Gru to let her join in the fight against Le Mal. New are also the five Megaminions. At the AVL headquarters, the yellow troublemakers were injected with a super serum and now possess enormous powers, like Spiderman or Superman. "Strength, flight, lasers, stone-like invincibility, and elasticity," explains director Chris Renaud. However, the Minions would not be the Minions if they did not cause chaos with their newfound abilities.
Sweet Tooth Cravings and Gas Station Frustration
The charm of the animated film comes from the many details that Renaud and his team meticulously add. For example, when Gru is exasperated by the mundane everyday life of a family, between shopping, cooking, child-rearing, and diaper changing. Or when Le Mal, on his revenge spree, runs out of gas and fails at the gas station checkout - a frustration, even for supervillains: "Insert card and remove it repeatedly. Card not read. Hurry up!"
Even the Minion who climbs into a candy vending machine out of greed - and cannot get out again. From then on, he lives behind the vending machine glass. Oops! But that doesn't bother him much. Deliciously, he feeds himself through the sweets and informs himself in a pamphlet: "The Vending Machine Diet".
Billion-Dollar Universe
The universe around "Despicable Me" began in 2010, with Gru still in the role of a supervillain. Meanwhile, the animation franchise is worth approximately 4.6 billion US dollars and, in the history of cinema, the most successful of its kind, according to the makers. And such a business needs to keep running. Minion fans could not tear themselves away from the latest film in the series, while others were decidedly more original. However, for approximately one and a half hours of harmless cinematic enjoyment with the family and familiar voices like Oliver Rohrbeck (Gru), Martina Hill (Lucy), or Jens Knossalla (Maxime Le Mal), the adventure is worth it every time.
- After the excitement of the movie, Gru found a moment of happiness at home with his girlfriend Lucy, Baby Gru, and their three adopted daughters, cherishing the simplicity of family life in Munich, Germany.
- During the class reunion, Ms. Valeria, also known as Valentina, the supervillain's girlfriend, was noticed by many, including Baby Gru, who was fascinated by her elegant and mysterious aura, reminiscent of the cinematic heroines from Germany.
- In an attempt to hide from Maxime Le Mal and his cockroach minions, Gru and his family attended a movie screening in Munich's famous cinema, hoping to blend in with the usual crowd and keep a low profile.
- Poppy, the rebellious neighbor girl, was inspired by the movie's superheroes and decided to join forces with the Megaminions to fight against Maxime Le Mal, dreaming of becoming a successful supervillainess in Munich, Germany, just like her heroes.
