'Despicable Me 3' REVIEW: Boasts another round of slapstick madness within an over-stuffed p

Despicable Me 3 is the third film in the 'Despicable Me' films, not including Minions (2015). In this film Gru (voiced by Steve Carrel) and Lucy (voiced by Kristen Wiig) get fired from being secret agents after letting another evil villian Balthazar Bratt (voiced by Trey Parker) get away. Gru also learns that has a twin brother named Dru (also voiced by Steve Carrel) and together they would perform one last heist as brothers. So, how do I feel about the 'Despicable Me' films? I like'em. They're not deep, but do well in what they do: Make you laugh. Did I laugh at this movie? I did, but not as much as I thought I would, but I liked it nonetheless.

As these films do well as always is the animation. With the amount of slapstick that's apparent with all these films, I feel that this film utilities it the most. How's the slapstick and visual gags? They're funny, however not a frequent. What I like about all three of these films is that they are fun for the whole family. Kids will definitely get a kick out of the minions and adults who are also fans of this series will enjoy it too.

This film also maintains the underlying themes of family throughout all three movies with the introduction of Gru's twin brother Dru who's not very smart and wants to be as evil of a villain as his brother. However, that's the emotional component of the film. The comedy usually lies is of course with the minions with their zany antics and this is where I feel is the problem of the film: The minions are barely in this movie. Where the movies does make up for the lack of minions (and laughs) is with the villain who I thinks breaths the most life in this movie (Not that there's no life in this movie). Among all the villains in the 'Despicable Me' films I find this one to be the most amusing to watch.

The villain Balthazar Bratt was once a child star on a show about a child villain and since his show was cancelled due to his pubescent aging he decides to become a villain in real-life and want revenge on Hollywood. By far this villain has the most energy and has the most quirks about him. He is stuck in the past and wishes to relive his television show with his evil plan based on an episode and also he likes 80's songs. While Trey Parker definitely sounds like he's having fun in the role, I was always thinking about his work in 'South Park' which made me enjoy his presence even more. While this character appears just as much as the minions do and isn't as funny, he manages to steal every scene with this Michael Jackson dance moves and his forever inflating bubble-gum.

Another major issue that I have with this film is that there are an overabundance of sub-plots and almost every character tries to become the main character even though they're not. There is a sub-plot with Lucy as she tries to become a real mom to the three daughters Margo (voiced by Miranda Cosgrove), Edith (voiced by Dana Gaier) and Agnes (voiced by Nev Scharrel). Which brings us to another sub-plot with Agnes as the main character. Agnes believes that she could find a unicorn and a lot of time is dedicated to that sub-plot. It has no place in the story other than to have the message that you should appreciate what you have even though it's not exactly what you wished for, which does tie into Gru's relationship with Dru, which I think is a good lesson for kids. I still feel that all the sub-plots do wear on the length and pacing of the film.

This new film in the 'Despicable Me' franchise is definitely a welcome entry, while still maintaining it's familial themes and boast good slapstick and sight gags. The pacing does disrupt the enjoyment of the film due to overbearing sub-plots, however the villain sure makes up for it.

'Despicable Me 3' gets a B