I wish there was a way for the little boy who sat behind me at Despicable Me to write this review. Because it shouldn't matter what I think; despite Hollywood's best efforts to make movies that appeal to both children and adults (the future father in me is very grateful for this), these movies are ultimately made for kids.

As a film critic I'm conditioned to analyze character development, cinematography, and a bunch of other crap that won't affect that little boy's enjoyment of the movie at all. While I sat calmly in my seat and watched the movie, he bounced around and squealed when it looked like 3D was popping off the screen. He giggled at fart jokes and laughed uninhibited when Dr. Gru's minions made a joke. He even rebuked the characters on the screen when they thought Dr. Gru wouldn't make it. "Oh yes he will!" he said loud enough for the entire theater to hear. And when you look at the movie from his perspective, it was pretty damn good!

It might not resonate with adults the way that Kung Fu Panda or Toy Story 3 did, but it is a fun, mindless escape. And for that reason I applaud it.

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Despicable Me takes place in a bizzaro-Incredibles world where super villains are allowed to roam free and their exploits are rewarded by the Bank of Evil. After up-and-coming villain Vector (Jason Segel) steals one of the Great Pyramids the onus is on Dr. Gru (Steve Carell) to outdo his rival. He sets his sights on stealing the moon, but he and his sidekick, Dr. Nefario (Russell Brand) can't do it alone. So Gru adopts three orphans, Margo (Miranda Cosgrove) Agnes (Elsie Fisher) and Edith (Dana Gaier) to pose as "girl scouts" to help him steal the necessary shrink ray gun from Vector. But Despite how petulant the three young ladies are, their charm begins to melt Gru's icy facade, and he must choose between stealing the moon and attending their ballet recital.

Like most animated films, the cast is packed with recognizable names and voices, including Julie Andrews who makes a cameo as Gru's Mom. Carell does a fantastic job with his character - putting on a fun Middle Eastern/Russian accent that would make Michael Scott cringe. Everyone else does a good job of not allowing their voice to overshadow their characters, with the exception of Brand who was miscast as a 90-year-old mad scientist.

The animation was crisp - especially the parts of the movie that were implemented to take full advantage of 3D. I haven't seen a lot of movies in 3D, but I can already see a new sect of physical comedy forming where filmmakers are able to play off the interactive element the technology offers. And it's probably only just the beginning (I can already imagine Jackass 3D coming to theaters).

There was no overarching moral to the story, but in many ways that is a good thing, because it teaches grown ups there doesn't have to be a deeper meaning to everything, sometimes things are just fun for the sake of being fun.

--Mark Collins