“Minions & Monsters” is the third standalone film and seventh overall appearance of the Minions, a group of mischievous, yellow pill-shaped, gibberish-speaking characters introduced in 2010’s “Despicable Me.” The scene-stealing troublemakers have been a reliable box office draw for animation studio Illumination Entertainment, which returns to the bankable franchise to give families a way to escape the heat.
This time, the adventures take place in 1920s era Hollywood – certainly a good place to find a suitably evil “Big Boss” to serve. Two creative-minded Minions, James and Henry, are inspired to make their own monster movie. Reciting from a spellbook they picked up while serving an evil wizard, they summon destructive monsters to star in their movie. Comic mayhem ensues when the monsters go out of control and the Minions must stop them.
The movie has a good time taking shots at Hollywood culture while reenacting many famous scenes from the silent film area. Obviously, the themes and jokes are aimed at mom and dad. The theater was often silent as the references flew right over the audience of 6-year olds’ heads (and probably many of the grown-ups’ heads too!) However, when the madcap action started, howls of laughter abounded. The short snippets during the end credits got the biggest laughs.
“Minions & Monsters” runs one hour and 30 minutes and is rated PG for cartoon violence and rude/macabre humor. It’s tricky to judge a film aimed at young viewers. The gaps between its bursts of frenetic slapstick feel too long, and the century-old Hollywood references are too obscure for almost all movie-goers. Still, the Minions themselves have a playful charm (although a little goes a long way) and the sight gags generally work. For kids, it rates 3 out of 5 stars since it could test their attention spans. For parents, it’s a 2.5‑star experience with just enough entertainment to stay awake while wishing the runtime was only 30 minutes.
