1Sixteen years of the little yellow guys, and now, in their sixth movie, the Minions are back in Minions and Monsters. And this time, they’re coming to your home.
The movie takes place in the middle of the first Minions movie, giving us another look at what these little guys were up to before they found Gru.
This time, it’s all about how the Minions took over Hollywood. How they conquered it. And how, while trying to make a monster movie, they accidentally release a terrible evil onto the world.
You know, typical Minions stuff.
I’ve loved the Despicable Me/Minions movies, and I feel like they just get sillier with every film. At this point, that’s part of their charm. These movies know exactly what they are, and Minions and Monsters doesn’t try to change the formula.
Pierre Coffin has absolutely nailed these little guys. After all these years, it’s amazing how much personality the Minions have considering that half the time I have absolutely no idea what they’re saying. But somehow, you always know exactly what they mean.
And Coffin is backed up by an all-star cast that includes Allison Janney (“The West Wing,” “Mom”), Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained), Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, A Real Pain), Jeff Bridges (Tron: Ares, The Big Lebowski), Zoey Deutch (Voicemails for Isabelle, Something from Tiffany’s), Bobby Moynihan (“Saturday Night Live,” The Secret Life of Pets), and Phil LaMarr (Pulp Fiction, The Super Mario Bros. Movie).
Like I said, all-star.
And there’s some really good voice acting here. Nobody feels like they’re simply showing up to collect a paycheck. Everyone seems to understand the kind of movie they’re in and has fun with it.
The Hollywood setting also gives the filmmakers plenty to play with. Mixing the Minions’ particular brand of chaos with old Hollywood and classic monster movies turns out to be a perfect combination. There’s something inherently funny about putting these walking disasters anywhere near a movie set and expecting things to go according to plan.
The plot is great too. Crazy. Insane. And damn funny.
In other words, everything you’d expect from a Minions movie.
That’s probably the best thing I can say about Minions and Monsters. After six movies, the filmmakers aren’t suddenly trying to reinvent the Minions or turn this into something it isn’t. They know why people love these characters. Give them a simple situation, let everything go completely off the rails, and watch the chaos unfold.
And it still works.
The home release also comes with a pretty good collection of extras. And what I like about them is that they aren’t just there to fill space. Several of them actually play off the whole Hollywood and movie-making theme of the film.
MINIONS TAKE ON HOLLYWOOD
This was probably the extra I enjoyed the most. The filmmakers and artists at Illumination talk about creating the movie’s early Hollywood setting, including the research that went into getting the period right.
I always enjoy this kind of behind-the-scenes material because you get to see just how much work goes into something that looks so effortless on screen. We’re watching Minions run around causing complete chaos, but there’s a lot of thought and detail behind that chaos.
CASTING MINIONS & MONSTERS
With a cast this good, of course you want something devoted to the voice actors.
This gives you a chance to hear from the filmmakers about the casting and what each actor brought to their character. Voice acting doesn’t always get the credit it deserves, especially with animation, so I enjoyed getting a little more insight into the performances.
And again, when you’ve got Allison Janney, Christoph Waltz, Jesse Eisenberg, Jeff Bridges, Zoey Deutch, Bobby Moynihan, and Phil LaMarr involved, you might as well show them off.
HOLLYWOOD SOUND
Composer John Powell takes you into the studio and talks about creating the score and capturing the sound of Hollywood’s golden age.
I’m always fascinated by how much music can affect the feel of a movie without you necessarily realizing it while you’re watching. With Minions and Monsters being such a love letter to old Hollywood and classic monster movies, the music is a big part of selling that atmosphere. It’s nice to see Powell get some attention here and hear what went into creating that sound.
HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN IRENE BLOB MONSTER SLIME
Okay, this one obviously isn’t aimed at me.
But if you’ve got kids, I can absolutely see them having fun with it. Snoopslimes shows you how to make your own Irene-inspired blob monster slime using ingredients you can find at home.
It’s silly, it’s messy, and it’s Minions. Makes sense to me.
MOVIE-MAKING MINIONS STYLE
This one surprised me because it’s actually a pretty cool idea.
Instead of simply showing kids something from the movie, it encourages them to make something themselves. It shows how to create your own Minions-inspired monster movie using hand-drawn artwork and flipbook animation.
Considering the entire movie revolves around the Minions falling in love with making movies, this might be one of the most appropriate extras on the disc. And who knows? Maybe it’ll get some kid interested in animation or filmmaking.
HOW TO DRAW
Finally, head of story Nima Azarba teaches you how to draw James, Henry, Ed, Max, Dort, Goomi, Irene, Howard, and Phillips.
Again, I’m probably not sitting down with a pencil and trying to draw all nine of them, but I like extras like this. It gives younger fans something to actually do after watching the movie instead of just giving them another featurette to watch.
Overall, it’s a nice collection of bonus material. There’s something for people like me who enjoy seeing how these movies are made, while the slime, filmmaking, and drawing features give younger fans something more interactive.
And I think that’s the smart way to put together extras for a movie like this. The parents get the behind-the-scenes material, the kids get to make slime and draw Minions, and everybody’s happy.
If you’ve stuck with the Minions this long, I really can’t imagine Minions and Monsters disappointing you. It’s ridiculous, it’s chaotic, it’s funny, and it never takes itself remotely seriously.
Six movies in, these little yellow guys can still make me laugh.
And really, what more do you want from the Minions?
Minions and Monsters is now available on Digital and arrives on 4K UHD, Blu-ray™, and DVD on September 8.
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