Despicable Me 4

Gru and his family – Lucy, Margo, Edith and Agnes – welcome their newest addition, Gru Jr. But, now, they face a new danger in the guise of Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell) and his girlfriend, Valentina (Sophia Vergara), and the family must go on the lam in “Despicable Me 4.”

Robin's Review: B

This summer, we are dealing with two cases of the fourth release of a sequel in a franchise. Keep your eyes open for “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” (or, “BHC4”) and the next in the “Despicable Me” series. This time, we begin at the Lucee Pas Bon: The School of Villainy and the Alumni award. The recipient, Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell), is planning his next move to dominate the world.

Gru (Steve Carrel), no longer a villain but a member of the Anti-Villainy League, Is out to stop Le Mal, who has changed himself into a giant cockroach and commander of a tiny but enormous army of little roaches. It is up to Gru, his family and his minion to stop the dastardly plan.

That is the outline for the plot, The story itself is a series of vignettes involving Gru and family in witness protection; Le Mal’s arrest, imprisonment and escape with a plan for revenge; the family adapting to their new surroundings; the minions and their ongoing escapades and more.

Nothing I say, negative or positive, will change people’s minds whether to see “Despicable Me 4” or not, For what it is worth, I was at a packed screening full of little kids and, aside from one baby that kept squalling through the movie, the diminutive audience paid attention, laughed a lot and had fun. And, I have to admit, I did, too.

Universal releases "Despicable Me 4" in theaters on 7/3/24.