Ready on set: James and Henry take centre stage in ‘Minions & Monsters’.
MINIONS & MONSTERS **** (90 minutes) PG
Having just been given a major dose of top-tier animated family fun with Toy Story 5, now comes a booster shot with Minions & Monsters, the latest loony chapter in the super-popular, infinitely extendable Despicable Me film franchise – which, research states, is actually a bigger box-office bohemoth than Toy Story. And as we know, ChatGPT never lies.
As we also know, and which TS5 quite superbly demonstrated, when you’re this deep into a movie series a fresh idea or two can be a big help in chugging out yet another entry.
Here we have two catalyzing story elements to spice things up.
Chief ingredient here is the introduction of two new Minion main characters, James & Henry, who are the A-story focus.
The other add-on is the beautiful setting of 1920s Hollywood, giving the creators plenty of scope to indulge in all that glorious period detail and to pepper the film with loads of lovely references to classic films – Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd and a swag of others.
These will have adults laughing and no doubt have kids later asking them “what was so funny?”
Mayhem erupts as James & Henry get into the movie-making business and set about finding a monster for their debut feature.
Meantime, the rest of the Minions, exhausted by starring in a string of films, go in search of a new evil master to serve, finding a robot alien a perfect candidate.
Signature craziness reigns throughout and, in contrast to TS5, there’s no overt stress put on messaging or giving any meaning to the daffiness.
While it’s lovely when such messaging is done well and embedded into narrative, it is admittedly refreshing to just sit back and behold a big bit of nonsense without having to worry if the film is good for the mental health and moral values of kids.
Hitting all the right buttons, Minions & Monsters is another winner from French animation studio Illumination, is set to be huge, which will then trigger the next planned sequel Minions & Mobsters, set in 1930s Chicago. Just kidding.
And now, a footnote.
A predictable part at some previews of family films is the delightful spectacle of kids mucking around in front of the cinema screen before and after the show.
This was the case at Hoyts Chadstone on Tuesday night with kids merrily jumping and tumbling and twirling and running about in the carpeted space before the giant Imax screen.
Extending all due blessings to their boisterous little hearts some of them, however, got very close to the screen, with one kid tossing around a full water bottle, to see how high he could throw it.
A thought occurred: “What if that punches a hole through the middle of that very expensive, very delicate screen?”
A cautionary word with the manager established that it was a worry, as any rupture would necessitate the very costly removal of the screen. Presumably, this would also mean the closing of the cinema until it was replaced.
It obviously would have been a disaster had something happened beforehand and he took with good graces the suggestion that this activity need be closely supervised.
Moreover, the bigger point is that parents and adult guardians need to keep a closer eye on what their charges get up to at the cinema. Please.
GLENROTHAN *** (98 minutes) M
Two estranged aging brothers with long-standing grudges attempt a thorny reunion in a charming, very well-acted comedy-drama set in the scenic Scottish Highlands.
While running his successful distillery in the picturesque titular village, Sandy (Brian Cox) pens an old-fashioned letter to his brother Donal (Alan Cumming) in New York, urging him to accompany his daughter Amy (Alexandra Shipp) on her next regular visit to the place.
Eager to see his Donal Sandy uses illness as an incentive to draw him back to the hills, though Donal has reason enough to get away from New York for a while after his beloved club goes up in flames.
It’s a rough road to reconciliation for both of them as they reflect, via flashback, on their younger years, their stern taskmaster of a father (Alan Cox) and why Donal left while still a teenager.
In his first directorial venture, veteran Cox – one of the best, most versatile character actors on Earth – elicits very high-grade performances from his A-list cast, with especially good work from Cumming whose friction with Cox goes deep. It’s a very pleasing ensemble so expertly guided it seems a shame Cox didn’t get into directing much earlier.
The only real quibble with this charmer comes in the final stretch as a Deus ex machina is wheeled out to tie things up. It’s a tad pat and, in a neat irony, is a convenient plot device Cox himself warned against using when he played screenwriting expert Robert McKee in Adaptation.
Talk about things coming full circle.
SUPERGIRL **1/2 (108 minutes) M
Rickety in parts and visually mediocre, Supergirl clocks in as passable superhero mulch, with Milly Alcock (House of the Dragon) ably holding the super soiree together as Kara – aka Supergirl – arcs from incredibly annoying 1990s slacker to value-added super personage.
Staying far away from Earth where the atmosphere deprives her of the ability to get wasted, she encounters Krem (Matthias Schoenaerts), the film’s main meanie who poisons her pooch Krypto.
To save him she must retrieve the antidote from the stud-faced Krem who is also bring persued by Ruthye (Eve Ridley), a sword-bearing lass who wants lethal revenge on Krem for what he did to her family. Along for the ride is ruffian Jason Momoa, respendent in Alice Cooper make-up.
As a superhero lark, it’s a middling affair that Alcock, an Australian actress, helps buoy with a pleasantly varied performance once Kara emerges from her insouciance and actually starts caring about stuff.
That said, dare one say that they’ve side-stepped the one big thing that makes the whole Super-person concept interesting, which is how things transpire on Earth with their superpowers.
A few flashbacks aside, Supergirl spends most of her time on distant planets with strange names, her powers only kicking in when she is close to a particular type of sun. (This could be read as a comment on solar energy. Not sure, though.) So, the central novelty is really absent.
Though it’s replete with the usual range of VFX, the film’s visual quality is surprisingly pretty rough.
There’s way too much low lighting, too many unsightly aliens – a real ugly bunch, this lot – grimy sets and the usual food-processor editing. There’s one faux oner that’s neat, but most of the action is spliced in the usual frenetic manner. It’s very wearying on the old glazzies. When will these filmmakers have the stones to hold a shot for more than a second?
The film also misses the opportunity to attend to one long-standing quibble about Supergirl’s outfit that has never made sense.
Namely, with all the flying around and leaping about and feats of strength she has to do why does she wear a miniskirt? It seems unsuitable. Wouldn’t a full-length jumpsuit or body suit or such like be better?
Just thinking out loud here. Please forgive.
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