Despicable Me (out 15th Oct)

I wouldn't consider myself a shallow person but I really dislike ugly things - people, animals, furniture, whatever. Ugly things annoy me. The trailer for Despicable Me highlighted the ridiculous noses of Gru (Steve Carrell) and Dr. Nefario (Russell Brand) , and don't get me started on how hideous I found the google-eyed minions. So I was a bit worried the ugliness would detract from any potential enjoyment of the film.

Things got off to a shakey start, with bulbous American tourists and a bowl cutted goofball villian Vector. No, no, ... ridiculous proportions ... so annoying... but then suddenly the plot speeds up, we meet Gru, his associate mad old Dr. Nefario and numerous minions. They simply want to make a living like everyone else, it just so happens their business is being evil. The minions are actually quite adorable, Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords) voices one of them, and I suddenly realised part way through they quite look like him too. Their goofy gnashers and inexplicable inconsistancy of having one or two eyes (how come some only have one eye?? argh) suddenly melt into very endearing qualities.

Anyhoo, back to the story. Desperate to keep his up horrible reputation against the new kids on the crime scene - namely sea-life obsessed nerd Vector (Jason Segel), Gru stumbles upon three orphan girls selling cookies and realised he can use them as a front for part of his most evil scheme yet, stealing THE MOON (bwhahaha). So, despite finding them incredibly annoying, he adopts them. He shoves them in the kitchen with a bowl full of sweets and some newspaper for "Peepee Poopoo"... but what's this? The kids are plucky and cheeky... Say, you don't suppose he might learn to... LOVE them do you?? What do you reckon?!

It could be really twee, but it's not. It could be rather unoriginal (grumpy old man's frozen heart melted by cheeky children) but it's not. There's a mishmash of dark humour, slapstick and silly rudeness for kids (use of toilets and underpants) and it really works. How terribly lovely.
9/10