Despicable Me (2010)

The film Despicable Me (2010), produced by Illumination Entertainment and distributed by Universal Pictures, follows the story of Gru – a longtime supervillain who is determined to outdo his unknown rival’s act of stealing the Great Pyramid of Giza. Together with his elderly assistant, Dr. Nefario, and faithful army of Minions, Gru hatches a plan to steal the Moon. However, concerns arise about the cost of such a feat and Gru is forced to seek financial assistance from Mr. Perkins, the director of the Bank of Evil. As part of Mr. Perkins’ conditions for granting Gru a loan, he must first steal a shrink ray. While attempting this task at the bank, Gru encounters Vector – the budding supervillain who had earlier stolen the Pyramid. In a turn of events, Vector succeeds in intercepting Gru and his Minions on their way back with the shrink ray. After several unsuccessful attempts to retrieve it from Vector’s fortress, Gru notices three orphan girls (Margo, Edith, and Agnes) being allowed inside to sell cookies to Vector.

Gru plans to leave the girls at an amusement park, but then starts to form a bond with them. He later shows Mr. Perkins the shrink ray through a video call, which is interrupted by the girls. However, Perkins rejects Gru’s request for a loan and deems him useless. A heartbroken Gru confides in the Minions that his project has lost funding from the bank. In a surprising turn of events, the girls offer him their piggy bank and the Minions pool their resources to raise the necessary funds. Meanwhile, Perkins scolds his son Vector for allowing Gru to steal back the shrink ray. Dr. Nefario calculates that the Moon will be closest to Earth on a day that coincides with the girls’ ballet recital. Concerned that they will distract Gru from his mission, Dr. Nefario contacts Miss Hattie, owner of the orphanage where the girls were adopted from, to take them back. Despite this distraction, Gru successfully shrinks and steals the Moon. Rushing back to Earth in hopes of making it to the recital on time, he arrives only to find that Vector has already kidnapped the girls.