We don’t get dialogue. We get evolution . In a rapid-fire montage narrated by Geoffrey Rush (a bizarre but delightful choice), we watch the Minions emerge from the primordial ooze—single-celled yellow organisms with a singular, desperate drive: to serve the most despicable villain they can find.
The film’s biggest strength is its pacing. At 91 minutes, it’s lean. There’s no fat. We go from the cave, to New York, to Orlando (Villain-Con), to London, to the castle. It’s a whirlwind. Minions Movie Part 1
This is the movie at its peak. Scarlet is furious that a Minion stole her spotlight. The climax involves Scarlet trying to murder the new king, a massive free-for-all at a villainous convention, and a final twist where the Minions are saved by a young, pimple-faced villain in a scarf: . The Nostalgia Bomb Let’s be honest: the 1960s setting is mostly an excuse for needle drops. And what drops they are. The film uses The Kinks’ “You Really Got Me,” The Rolling Stones’ “Paint It Black,” and of course, The Beatles’ “Got to Get You into My Life.” We don’t get dialogue
But for those of us who appreciate the art of visual comedy—the raised eyebrow, the slow turn, the accidental explosion— Minions is a treasure. It is a film that knows exactly what it is: a jukebox musical of nonsense. And sometimes, that’s exactly what you need. The film’s biggest strength is its pacing
Bullock plays her with a razor-sharp edge. One minute she’s cooing, the next she’s pressing a button to send you into a shark-filled moat. Her husband, Herb (Jon Hamm), is the Q to her Bond—a nerdy inventor with a terrifying basement of death traps. The 1960s London setting is perfect for her aesthetic. The film drips with mod fashion, Beatles mop-tops, and classic Mini Coopers. The middle third of Minions is a heist movie. The trio travels to London (via a stolen mail truck and a comically long flight of stairs). They break into the Tower of London. They accidentally pull the sword from the stone (Bob, obviously). Bob is then crowned King of England.