Illumination Studios
The Despicable Me franchise has some amazing staying power, and I’m always interested in what new wacky adventures Gru’s family can have. I reviewed this movie when it was at theatres, and as always, am interested in what’ll get offered in the home video release. They never fail to deliver some hilarious short. That’s why I keep on buying them over streaming (I’m in the camp that should a film get pulled, I can’t revisit the movie when I want to) or asking for review copies. I must thank Universal Studios as the Despicable Me 4 package arrived before my birthday. I celebrated my day with Benny’s Birthday short.
Here, this Minion is afraid of what the others planned. That’s because he’s stuck in a temporal loop, and he can’t figure out how to escape. By the time the cake arrives, he gets hurt, and the day starts all over again! How he breaks free is not too unexpected. It’s tough to find fault with these shorts because the works of Mack Sennett inspired most of them. He’s the Silent Film King of Comedy, and in his vast catalogue of works, there’s plenty to borrow from.
Perhaps the best part of this set includes the alternate / deleted scenes, which include segments in development (instead of rendered in full). That’s rare for these disc releases to do, but I’m glad to view what might have made the cut, even though there are lots of black screen moments in between scene transitions.
And for those people feeling lazy to figure out the who’s who of returning characters from past films, the “Rogue’s gallery” is a welcome addition. Sometimes, I don’t want to hit pause while watching the film to catch all the Easter eggs. In this case, to know where some villains are can hint towards who’s available should a fifth film get made.
Although I’ve often mentioned in prior reviews that no substantial answers are provided regarding where the heroes went, “The Minion Mayhem” featurette hints at the possibility they never existed at all. Although there’s no mention about the passing similarity to Marvel Comics’ The Fantastic Four, that’s because this team has other superheroic archetypes included.
As a long-time fan, just how long this IP can continue depends on who is at the helm. While some franchises have transitioned to television series with other voice talents taking over, I doubt this franchise can do the same.
Bonus Feature List:
- Game Over and Over Mini-Movie
- Benny’s Birthday Mini-Movie
- Deleted/Extended/Alternate Scenes
- Despicable Dialogue
- Meet the Cast
- Making Of
- Mega Minion Mayhem
- Rogues Gallery
- How to Draw
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