There’s no mystery why they keep making “Despicable Me” movies – the last sequel, in 2017, raked in more than $1 billion worldwide – but why folks continue watching should be tested by the fourth edition (not including the “Minions” offshoots). A tired, disjointed medley of madcap visual gags, the animated film yields roughly as many legitimate laughs as can be counted on a Minion’s three-digit hand.
Babies remain the last vestige of scoundrels in sequel terms, so naturally the movie introduces a son to Gru (voiced as usual by Steve Carell) and Lucy (Kristen Wiig) who, semi-amusingly, can’t stand his dad, screaming or acting up in some other way every time Gru picks him up.
Gru remains in the do-gooder business, which begins with him tracking down a villain (and former villain-school classmate) named Maxime (Will Ferrell), who can turn into a kind of cockroach, which is every bit as appetizing as that sounds.
The French-accented Maxime quickly escapes prison, forcing Gru and his brood to take refuge at a safe house under assumed identities. From there, “Despicable Me” does little more than kill time while family members try adjusting to their new surroundings, including Gru’s dealings with a snotty neighbor voiced by Carell’s chum Stephen Colbert, providing a sort-of animated reunion for “The Daily Show” and “The Ambiguously Gay Duo” alumni.
Despite the long lapse since “Me 3,” the film features lots of the obligatory Three Stooges-style gags involving the Minions, and the occasional excrement joke for the kids. The most promising wrinkle actually goes nowhere, with an enhanced quintet of Mega-Minions blessed with Fantastic Four-ish powers, an idea put to no real purpose.
Whatever novelty existed when the franchise made its debut 14 years ago, the creative returns have diminished with each incarnation, if not the financial incentives. Although the success of “Inside Out 2” speaks to a healthy appetite for animated sequels, the comparison between the two in their ambitions borders on night and day.
One of the aforementioned laughs happens when the Minions change a diaper, carrying out the task with remarkable precision before launching the soiled item into the distance.
After sitting through 90-some-odd minutes of “Despicable Me 4,” that process provides a handy metaphor for the disposable nature of the movie, leaving Universal and Illumination Studios to hope the memory has faded before they unleash another helping of this warmed-over Gru-el.
“Despicable Me 4” premieres July 3 in US theaters. It’s rated PG.