‘Minions & Monsters’ Review: For the Fools Who Dream
When Despicable Me was first released, I was 12 and obsessed. It was exciting to see a new studio (Illumination) emerge and hold its ground against DreamWorks and Disney/Pixar. The Pharrell-produced soundtrack (alongside Scott Pilgrim) shifted my brain chemistry that summer. That Christmas, my late dad gifted me the Despicable Me Blu-ray – the first Blu-ray I ever owned. Now I’m at 350+. 2010 was pivotal for another reason, too: it solidified my path as a screenwriter. I started writing stories on loose-leaf paper, then taught myself screenwriting software. They were atrocious because, duh, I was a teenager, but it was exciting.
After old man Ren took me to see Martin Scorsese’s love letter to classic cinema, Hugo, in 2012 at the 1926-built Cobble Hill Cinema, I was so awestruck that I created this outlet, which set me on a film-critic path that eventually became my full‑time job. While I expanded my cinematic palette as a kid, my love for those adorable slapstick tic‑tacs (aka Minions) remained. At least until – as we do with age – they became the Nickelback of animated mascots: they were loved, then hated for overexposure and mediocrity, and now we’ve circled back to them being adored. Well, at least for me. Y’all be easy.
So I was genuinely looking forward to Minions & Monsters, which sees Illumination on their Tarantino grind (besides nabbing Christoph Waltz for a revisionist history tale), as their O.C.s invade early cinema and take over Tinseltown. During a personally transformative month, while closing out a long‑gestating, grief‑stricken, survival‑mode chapter, Minions & Monsters was the surprise movie that inspired a new creative chapter and reignited the spark I once had as a kid post‑Hugo. Watching a movie about a Minion’s determined pursuit to break out of his mold and create art made me want to run home and write the next great cinematic masterpiece while binging classic cinema. Besides being one of Illumination’s most sophisticated outputs to date, it fueled me with the whimsy and passion I once had (and am about to rediscover). Screw Damien Chazelle’s Babylon or even La La Land; this one is for the fools who dream… even if the dreamers are some of the greatest fools in modern cinema.
Image copyright (©) Courtesy of Universal Pictures
MPA Rating: PG (for violence/action, language and rude/macabre humor.)
Runtime: 1 Hour and 30 Minutes
Language: English
Production Companies: Illumination, Universal Pictures
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Director: Pierre Coffin
Screenwriters: Pierre Coffin, Brian Lynch
Cast: Pierre Coffin, Jeff Bridges, Jesse Eisenberg, Allison Janney, Christoph Waltz, Zoey Deutch, Trey Parker, Bobby Moynihan, Phil LaMarr
U.S Release Date: July 1, 2026
Establishing that Minions (all voiced by Pierre Coffin) have numerous tribes that travel globally, one tribe in 1927 struggles to secure a new villainous boss. But a Minion named James aspires to be a storyteller, and his individualistic passion gets him ostracized from the rest of the tribe. However, a Minion named Henry supports James’ dreams and appreciates comedy. The two form a deep friendship, much to the dismay of tribe leader Dick. During one of their pursuits of a new bank-robbing boss, the Minions wind up in California. Unbeknownst to them, they screwed up a western film shoot. That film’s director, Max (Christoph Waltz), shows the damaged footage to his studio superiors, the twin Bright Brothers (Jeff Bridges). They approve of the change, and Max turns the Minions into stars. But their instant success in silent cinema hits a wall when talkies arrive, and their Minionese language becomes a career liability. Unable to adapt to English, the tribe gets booted from Hollywood. James, still chasing his filmmaking dream, pitches a monster movie. To make it happen, he, Henry, and a hearing‑impaired Minion named Ed summon a Cthulhu-creature, Goomi (Trey Parker), who has destructive plans of his own. Meanwhile, the tribe takes a liking to their new “big boss”: a scrawny robot named Dort (Jesse Eisenberg).
Illumination provides soulful tribute to old Hollywood through Minion eye(s).
Minions in Illumination’s Minions & Monsters | © Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.
Every Minions movie is a period piece. In contrast to its previous entries, set in the 1960s and 1970s with baseline slapstick, where its creative ceilings were limited to costume gags and Minions singing era-appropriate needle drops, Minions & Monsters fully maximizes its setting by treating it as a character in its own right. It’s a grand ode to early cinema in every way, much like Scorsese’s Hugo or Chazelle’s Babylon (but funnier). The opening title sequence sees the yellow bastards infiltrate the first wave of motion pictures, from The Horse in Motion to Lumière's L'Arrivée d'un train en gare de La Ciotat.
From that point forward, Pierre Coffin – the director, co-creator, and voice of the Minions – fervently adopts every genre from 19th-century cinema and pays tribute to it in a unique, affectionate, and mayhem-oriented gag that will captivate any parent who enjoys classic cinema and hopefully inspires kids to educate themselves on said references. The Minions are cited as inspired by Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin, and honestly, they (alongside the Jackass crew) are contemporaries of those comedic legends. The film features ample hysterical comedic action sequences guided by a fantastic John Powell orchestral score that goes harder than it should. Coffin and the animation team rise to the challenge, elevating the slapstick energy and incorporating styles from Keaton to Benny Hill with earnest and uncharted comedic sophistication for Illumination.
The animation is striking and full of detail. Hollywood Boulevard’s gritty desert appearance, complete with vintage cars and Art Deco buildings, feels remarkably alive thanks to the set decor and art direction team.
Essentially, Minions & Monsters is the kids’ version of The Artist – down to the conflict rooted in the protagonists’ failure to adapt to talkies – done in its own hilarious, irreverent way. Coffin and Brian Lynch’s writing proves how good a Minions film can be when it’s based on its characters. Sorry to Kevin, Stuart, and Bob, who have baseline personalities. Henry and James are the first Minions I’d take a bullet for. Their liberation from the tribe’s villain‑obsessed status quo and their well‑realized “pursuit of making art no matter what” arc genuinely surprised me. Yes, they’re still Minions, but ones with complete character. Their buddy camaraderie starts adorably and gets to “and they were roommates” territory (Minions said “gay rights”). They’re also joined by Ed, a deaf Minion, and the creative team went the extra mile to give Minionese its own sign language (MSL). Their shared determination gives Minions & Monsters a potent earnestness and irresistible charm that had me grinning nonstop. Perhaps I’m a sucker for the passionate, hard‑working dreamer archetype, but the sincerity is a huge change of pace; I’m no longer just pouting like Nikki from Obsession, as I did while watching the predecessors.
Old habits die yellow.
Dort (Jesse Eisenberg) and Minions in Illumination’s Minions & Monsters | © Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.
Minions & Monsters eventually devolves into old Illumination habits. The first half is possibly the best the studio has been since Despicable Me, but the second half – once it introduces Dort, its The Day the Earth Stood Still homage character – loses steam. It’s not that the subplot is entirely unnecessary; its shoehorned romance between Dort and a women’s suffrage activist (Zoey Deutch) completes the old Hollywood genre love lettering and ties into a fantastically directed action climax involving a Minion vs. gooey monster brawl. But Dort himself isn’t as funny as everything else going on, and he erodes the potential of Trey Parker’s high‑pitched, cutesy green‑goober Cthulhu and his muddled, destructive plans. He doesn’t leave much of an impact and feels standard as an Illumination villain. It’s a shame considering every other facet is expertly advanced.
These Corn Pops got me wanting to pick the pen back up again.
L to R: James, Ed, and Goomi in Illumination’s Minions & Monsters, directed by Pierre Coffin.Copyright© Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.
The problems I did have, I’m used to, and they aren’t as bothersome as they used to be. These are kiddie flicks after all and its a better diversion for the family than the past predecessors. Ultimately, Minions & Monsters is so damn charming, smart, and funny. Functioning as an ode to old Hollywood and as the best the Minions have been on the big screen to date, it delivered such an inspirational punch that left me motivated to write again. The past four years of my personal life were spent trying to stand upright following my dad’s passing, coupled with trying to stand my own ground living away from my family. Following a month that included his beloved Knicks winning the NBA Finals, finding new stability, practicing self‑care, and working on projects to release unresolved pain, Minions & Monsters triggered the ideal new chapter in my cinematic journey.
From its captivating one-ers highlighting the filmmaking process to a finale that champions all the players who collaborate to tell a meaningful story, this movie reminded me why we’re in this business in the first place. There’s an indescribable joy in making art for the masses. That joy compelled me to start this 14‑year‑long film-criticism career, and it’s what will finally lead me to open that Final Draft document (or buy a new subscription since I changed laptops) again. I can’t believe it took those yellow slapstick pills to motivate me, but honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
