Bad As They Wanna Be

I don't quite believe that Gru and Evelyn Salt are truly villains. Perhaps it is that they are simply misunderstood. After catching a double feature the other night of Salt and Despicable Me I noticed that being the bad guy is always more fun, but it makes doing the right thing all the more difficult.

Salt: I had originally planned to pass on this one considering I am trying to watch my sodium intake, but after such good word of mouth I decided to give it a shot. While not a great film, it certainly gets the job done. There was one thing I took particular notice of, and that is the gender issue. It is not enough that it stars Angelina Jolie who is just about the most recognizable woman in the world right now, but then they have her constantly adding a woman's touch to the spy game. Ethan Hunt would never use his underwear to block a security camera. Richard Kimble wouldn't be caught dead bandaging a bleeding wound with a maxi pad. You don't see Jason Bourne resorting to drag to get past the secret service. These are not complaints just observations.

Some of the twists you can see coming a mile away. I found the spider venom thing way too obvious. I did however love the way the film keeps you on your toes regarding as to where her loyalties truly lie. I also found the ending to be a bit abrupt. I expected it to go on for another twenty minutes, but I guess the set up for a sequel was necessary. This one is tasty... in small doses.

Despicable Me: Steve Carell has made some pretty lousy choices this year. He is leaving The Office, he coasted through the tepid action comedy Date Night, and was flat out awful in the putridly annoying Dinner for Schmucks. His involvement with this film allows him to save some face. It is cute. Really cute.

Gru is a world super villain who was clearly modeled after Ernst Stavro Blofeld from the Bond films. His endgame is to steal the moon. In order to do that he must first acquire a shrinking ray gun recently lifted from Vector, a rival villain who is addicted to girl scout cookies and has his own fortified evil hideout. Gru decides to use the cookie angle by adopting a trio of charming orphans, and uses them to infiltrate his rival's base.

The real heart of this film involves Gru inadvertently discovering what it takes to be caring father. Even if it means using a super weapon at a carnival game to win a fluffy unicorn for the youngest girl (adorable). There is also a fair amount of lightly wicked dark humor when Gru warns the girls of the monster lurking in the closet just before bed time, and how their eating and bathroom privileges are similar to that of a dogs.

This one is really sweet, short, and colorful. I found its dependency on the minions (Gru's personal gibberish-speaking army of little yellow helpers) to be a tad bit on the heavy side, and this isn't as great or well rounded as something like Toy Story 3. Kids will eat it right up, and even there parents will find plenty of sly laughs. It might not steal the moon, but it just might end up stealing your heart.

Both films: B