Animated franchises are a bit of a hit-or-miss affair. Some, like Toy Story, get it absolutely right, even if they should have stopped at number 3, whereas Ice Age started off well but became overcrowded with far too many characters and lost that original charm. Despicable Me started with a massive boom, a hilarious, inventive story of a criminal mastermind who finds himself softening after seeing three young girls on his doorstep. Since then, Gru has married and met his twin brother, and the Minions have taken over the series. Now we get Despicable Me 4, and if you were to remove the Minions, this would definitely be a film in which you would say, enough is enough now.

Gru’s family life is going well. Along with his wife, Lucy, and the three girls, Gru now has a son who hates him. Yet Gru is persistent in trying to make him like him. Their lives, however, are turned upside down when arch-enemy Maxime escapes from prison and plans to get revenge on Gru and his family. Having to go into hiding, Gru finds his neighbour’s daughter will use his hidden identity to her own ends.

The series has always celebrated slapstick comedy, with constant nods to silent movies and the likes of Keaton and Chaplin, with the Minions being incredibly childish and yet often hilarious, their humour transcending ages. Once again, they are the stars of this adventure, with their antics, like mini shorts that used to appear at the start of many Illumination films, full of wit, daftness and laughs. Yet this time, it doesn’t seem to be enough. The filmmakers seem to be struggling with ideas, and the plot is so thin that you could write it down on the back of an envelope.

We have the main plot: Gru and his family go into a safe house and have different identities to escape the vengeance of Maxime, a criminal who can turn himself into a cockroach. Once the initial idea is set up, the film becomes a series of short sketches instead of a complete story, so we get Lucy making a mess of her supposed identity by working at a beauty salon, Gru being blackmailed by the neighbour’s pretentious daughter to help her with a criminal act, and, of course, the minions, this time five of them turned into Mega-Minions with extraordinary powers.

The issue is that none of this stuff works. Most of the gags fall flat, and the story just seems to drag. It’s full of colour, noise, and enough visuals to keep the younger members of the audience happy, but what was once a blast for everyone has tended to forget the “family,” and so this will often leave the older members a little confused and slightly bored.

The voice talents from the previous films are all back, with Steve Carell as Gru and Kristen Wiig as Lucy. They are joined by comedian Will Ferrell as Maxime, which does seem an odd choice to play a French villain, but if you can look over that, he is at least a fun character. As for the Minions, they are all played by Pierre Coffin, and they are still funny. One question: how come the three girls have never grown up?

Despicable Me 4 has shown that the series has run out of steam, and I hope that everyone involved has decided this is the last film, with maybe one more Minion film if they feel they still have legs. It’s a pity when you think back to the days of “IT’S SO FLUFFY!” which is still the best line from any of the series.

2 out of 5

Director: Chris Renaud and Patrick Delage

Starring: Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Will Ferrell, Pierre Coffin, Joey King, Sofia Vergara, Chris Renaud, Miranda Cosgrove, Steve Coogan, Stephen Colbert, Laraine Newman

Written by: Mike White and Ken Daurio

Running Time: 94 mins

Cert: U

Release date: 12th July 2024