Film: Despicable Me 4

The 4th instalment in this excellent series that introduced us to the Minions now has a 4th child. Now there is a Gru Jr. causing additional havoc. However, their lives are disrupted when the super-criminal Maxime Le Mal escapes from prison and is (obviously) seeking revenge. The family have to go to a safehouse while and Gru meets the neighbour’s daughter, Poppy, who as an aspiring criminal herself, already knows exactly who they are.

She blackmails Gru into helping her steal the mascot from his old school so she can enrol and pursue her villainous ambitions. Chaos ensues at the school as Gru and Poppy carry out the heist, with Gru Jr. and a couple of Minions in tow. Meanwhile, most of the Minions are now working for the Anti-Villain League (AVL) agency. Some of them become test subjects for a machine that gives them superpowers, resulting in five mega minions, a bit like the Fantastic Four.

There are laughs aplenty, particularly as Gru’s witness protection identity is as a solar panel salesperson and wife Lucy has been transformed into Blanche the hairdresser. DM4 is utter joy from start to finish with the customary 80s soundtrack.

8½/10