Despicable Me 3

This franchise ran out of steam years ago, but it’s making too much money to stop, so everybody’s giving it another go. Villain-turned-hero Gru (voiced by Steve Carell) finds his long-lost brother (also Carell); his wife Lucy (Kristen Wiig) tries to bond with his foster daughters, one of whom flounces off on a unicorn hunt; and a supervillain arises in the form of 1980s child star Balthazar Bratt (Trey Parker) grown-up and evil. The story is all over the place—to the point where there’s really no story at all. Well, the animation is smooth and gleaming, and Gru’s pill-shaped Minions (whom many find inexplicably adorable) are back in force. Fans will believe they’ve gotten their money’s worth. Interestingly, bad guy Bratt’s chief weapon is bubble gum, which makes a fitting metaphor for the whole movie. J.L.